 |
|
|
Below is a list of the most impressive
and interesting Mansions & Historic
Houses in England.
Many of the historic buildings charge
entrance fees to help with the upkeep,
normally about £14 - £20 for a
tour of the House. Some offer less
expensive entry to the gardens and
grounds. Some are free to enter to use
their facilities such as shops and
restaurants. Many hold events throughout
the year such as horse trials and classic
car rallies.
Click on Post-Codes for Maps,
Directions and Reviews.
|
|
Hampton Court Palace built from
1514, situated 13 miles southwest of
London
Hampton Court Palace has not been
inhabited by the British royal family
since the 18th century. The palace was
originally built for Cardinal Wolsey, a
favourite of King Henry VIII. After
Wolsey fell from favour, the palace was
passed to the King, who had it enlarged.
William III rebuilt and expanded the
building in an attempt to rival the
Palace of Versailles in France. That work
was halted in 1694, leaving the palace in
two distinct contrasting architectural
styles, domestic Tudor and Baroque. Entry
about £13.00 per adult. Postcode:
KT8
9.
www.hrp.org.uk/hamptoncourtpalace
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_Court_Palace.
|
|
|
Castle Howard
built from 1699, situated 16 miles
northeast of York
Castle Howard is one of Britain's finest
historic houses that can be visited,
still home to the Howard family who
conceived, designed, and built it over
three centuries ago. The building has
appeared in a number of TV shows and
Films with Its most famous being
Brideshead Revisited. Postcode: YO60
7DA.
www.castlehoward.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Howard
|
|
|
Blenheim Palace built from 1705,
situated 65 miles northwest of London
Blenheim Palace is a large country house
situated in Oxfordshire, the only
non-royal country house in England to
hold the title of a palace. The palace is
most notable as the birthplace and
ancestral home of the Prime Minister Sir
Winston Churchill. Entry from £11
per adult. Postcode: OX20
1PX.
www.blenheimpalace.com
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blenheim_Palace.
|
|
|
Chatsworth House built from 1687,
situated 37 miles southeast of
Manchester
Chatsworth House in central Derbyshire is
the seat of the Duke of Devonshire, the
Cavendish family, since 1549. The main
block was re-built by the 1st Duke
between 1687 and 1707, on the site of the
original Tudor mansion. Entry about
£12.00 per adult. Postcode: DE45
1PP.
www.chatsworth.org
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatsworth_House
|
|
|
Waddesdon Manor built from 1874,
situated 63 miles northwest of London
Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire was
built in the Neo-Renaissance style of a
French chateau between 1874 and 1889 for
Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild
(1839-1898). The Baron was a member of
the Viennese branch of the Rothschild
banking dynasty. Several films have been
shot at Waddesdon Manor, including The
Queen, when the interior and gardens
doubled for Buckingham Palace. Full entry
about #15.00 per adult. Postcode:
HP18
0JH.
www.waddesdon.org.uk
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waddesdon_Manor.
|
|
|
Longleat House & Safari Park
built from 1567, situated 108 miles west
of London
Longleat is the seat of the Marquesses of
Bath in Somerset. It is noted for its
Elizabethan country house, maze,
landscaped parkland and safari park. The
Safari Park was opened in 1966 becoming
the first drive-through safari park
outside of Africa.The house can also be
visited. Standard prices for the park
£26.00. Postcode: BA12
7NW.
www.longleat.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longleat.
|
|
|
Burghley House built from 1555,
situated 96 miles north of London
Burghley was built for Sir William Cecil,
1st Baron Burghley, who was Lord High
Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I. There are
many events held on the estate throughout
the year including the Burghley Horse
Trials. Shops & Restaurant free.
Postcode: PE9
3JY.
www.burghley.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burghley_House.
|
|
|
Brocket Hall built from 1760,
situated 26 miles north of London
Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire was built
for Sir Matthew Lamb, 1st Baronet. In the
late 20th century Charles
Nall-Cain, 3rd Baron Brocket, a
vintage car dealer, was convicted as an
insurance fraudster after claiming some
of his classic cars, worth millions, were
stolen. Reality was, the price of classic
cars had dropped so dramatically, his
investment had left the estate in a bad
way. While the 3rd Baron was in prison,
he sold a 60 year lease to a German
property business for Brocket Hall to be
turned into a hotel, golf club and
conference centre. The baron will need to
live to 104 to see the house handed back
to him. Postcode: AL8
7XG.
www.brocket-hall.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brocket_Hall
|
|
|
Wilton House built from 1543,
situated 94 miles southwest of London
Wilton House is situated near Salisbury
in Wiltshire, the country seat of the
Earls of Pembroke for over 400 years. At
the time of the Dissolution of the
Monasteries by King Henry VIII of
England, this estate belonged to Wilton
Abbey. The estate was awarded to William
Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke at that
time, who had married the sister of King
Henry's last wife. The house was built to
replace the Abbey. Entry to grounds about
£5.50 per adult, house and grounds
about £14 per adult. Postcode:
SP2
0BJ.
www.wiltonhouse.com
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilton_House.
|
|
|
Woburn Abbey built from 1145,
situated 45 miles north of London
Woburn Abbey, comprising Woburn Safari
Park, was originally founded as a
Cistercian abbey in 1145. At the time of
the Dissolution of the Monasteries by
King Henry VIII of England, the land was
awarded to John Russell in 1547, who
became the 1st Earl of Bedford. The Abbey
was largely rebuilt starting in 1744.
Entry to the Gardens & Deer Park
about £3 per adult. Safari Park
about £19.00 per adult. Postcode:
MK17
9WA.
www.woburn.co.uk/abbey
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woburn_Abbey.
|
|
|
Blickling Hall present building
built from 1616, situated 128 miles
northeast of London
Blickling Hall in Norfolk has been in the
care of the National Trust since 1940.
The original Blickling Hall was aquired
by Sir John Fastolf of Caister, an
English Knight in the 15th century, who
made a fortune in the Hundred Years' War.
The lands then passed to the Boleyn
family with there most notable child
being Anne Boleyn (Queen of England from
1533 to 1536 as the second wife of Henry
VIII). Entry to house and gardens about
£10.00 per adult. Postcode: NR11
6NF.
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-blickling-estate
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blickling_Hall.
|
|
|
Coughton Court built from 1530,
situated 113 miles northwest of
London
Coughton Court is one of England's finest
Tudor country houses in Warwickshire. The
Coughton estate has been in the
Throckmorton family since 1409 with the
Gatehouse being the oldest part of the
present structure dating from 1530. The
house at one time contained a priest
hole, the hiding places for priests
during the period when Catholics were
persecuted by law in England. The Hall
was also connected to the Gunpowder Plot
of 1605, as, some of the conspirators
rode directly back there after it failed.
Entry to house and gardens about
£9.40 per adult. Postcode: B49
5JA.
www.coughtoncourt.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coughton_Court.
|
|
|
Hutton-in-the-Forest built from
1350, situated 20 miles south of
Carlisle
Hutton in the Forest is situated in
Cumbria, northern England. It has
belonged to the Fletcher-Vane family,
Barons Inglewood, since 1605. The
earliest part of the building is the Pele
Tower built in the 1350s when the estate
belonged to the de Hoton family. That was
a time when fortified homes were a
necessity due invaders from Scotland, or
feuds with other large land owners in the
area. Entry about £8.50 per adult.
Postcode: CA11.
www.hutton-in-the-forest.co.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutton_in_the_Forest.
|
|
|
Ickworth House built from 1790s,
situated 81 miles northeast of London
Ickworth House in Suffolk is a
neoclassical mansion topped by a giant
rotunda. Ickworth had been in the
ownership of the Hervey family from the
15th century. All the Hervey family up to
the 7th Marquess of Bristol, have been
buried at Ickworth Church, located in the
Park. The house contains a large art
collection, very good examples of Regency
furniture and porcelain. The National
Trust has run the house since 1956. Entry
about £9.00 per adult. Postcode:
IP29
5QE.
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-ickworth
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ickworth_House.
|
|
|
Montacute House built from 1598,
situated 133 miles southwest of
London
Montacute House in South Somerset is
regarded as one of the finest houses to
survive from the Elizabethan era. The
house and lands were owned by the Phelips
family who became prominent in the area
after Edward Phelips become a successful
politician and lawyer. The property was
acquired by the National Trust in the
1930s. Entry about £10.00 per adult.
Postcode: TA15
6XP.
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-montacute
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montacute_House
|
|
|
Bowes Museum built from 1880s,
situated at Barnard Castle northern
England
The Bowes Museum is a purpose-built
public art gallery for John Bowes and his
wife Josephine Benoite, who both died
before it opened in 1892. The house was
designed by the French architect Jules
Pellechet in a grand French style within
landscaped gardens. Entry about
£8.00 per adult. Postcode: DL12
8NP.
www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowes_Museum
|
|
|
Wentworth
Woodhouse Wentworth by
Rotherham
One of the great political palaces with
the longest country house facade in
Europe. Built by Thomas Watson-Wentworth,
1st Marquess of Rockingham (1693-1750),
and added to by his heir, in the
nineteenth century. Present owner is
Clifford Newbold, an architect from
Highgate who uses the house as his family
home. No Visitors allowed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wentworth_Woodhouse.
|
|
|
|
|
|
