Sir John Acworth Ommanney who built Northbrook Park was born in 1773 in Westminster, London. His father was Rear-admiral Cornthwaite Ommanney. John joined the navy when he was 13 and served on numerous ships and at the age of only 19 he was appointed Lieutenant. One of his most memorable achievements was his role in the Battle of Navarino. He was the Captain of the ship Albion and was credited with playing an important part in the victory. A lithograph was made by George Philip Reinagle in 1828 of his ship Albion during the Battle which can be seen at this link. For this service he was award a CB as well as the French Order of Saint Louis, the Russian Order of Saint Vladimir and the Order of the Redeemer of Greece.