Stately homes and palaces

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DUNCOMBE PARK

The seat of the Duncombe family since 1711, when the house was built by Thomas Duncombe (born Thomas Browne). His descendent, Charles Duncombe, was created Lord Feversham in 1826. The house is not open to the public, but 450 acres of parkland, gardens and nature reserve are. There is also a bird of prey centre on site.

Location/Address
Helmsley
County
North Yorkshire
Post Code
YO62 5EB
Main Historic Period
Georgian
Useful Website Address
Tip/Nearby
Helmsley Castle, Rievaulx Abbey, Castle Howard
Primary Management
Independent – Historic Houses member
CASTLE HOWARD

Castle Howard is an 18th century Baroque stately home in North Yorkshire, one of the grandest and most over the top in England, with 145 rooms and set in 1,000 acres of gardens and parkland. It is owned by the Howard family, and has been for over 300 years. The house was started for the 3rd Earl of Carlisle in c1699, designed by John Vanbrugh (his first commission) and Nicholas Hawksmoor, and took about 100 years to complete. It is built on the site of a ruined medieval castle and the original estate covered 13,000 acres - which included several villages. In addition to being able to tour the house and gardens, visitors can enjoy various exhibitions, and activities take place frequently.

Castle Howard was famously used for the 1980s TV series and 2008 film, Brideshead Revisited.

Location/Address
Nr Malton
County
North Yorkshire
Post Code
YO60 7DA
Main Historic Period
Georgian
Link to featured article
Useful Website Address
Primary Management
Independent – Historic Houses member
TATTON PARK

Tatton Park is the former estate and home of the Egerton family. Set in 1,000 acres of deer park are 50 acres of gardens, including a Japanese garden, the Tudor Old Hall, kids' playground and the 18th century mansion. There are extensive facilities, making it a popular place, and events are held regularly - including concerts featuring leading stars and the annual Royal Horticultural Show in NW England.

The estate was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1958 and is managed and financed by Cheshire East Council.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Knutsford
County
Cheshire
Post Code
WA16 6QN
Main Historic Period
Georgian
Useful Website Address
Tip/Nearby
Quarry Bank Mill, Dunham Massey, Jodrell Bank
Primary Management
Local Authority
KENSINGTON PALACE

In 1689 William III bought the Jacobean mansion Nottingham House from his Secretary of State, the Earl of Nottingham, and commissioned Christopher Wren to extend and improve it. Thus it became Kensington Palace, a favourite residence of successive monarchs until the death of George II in 1760. Queen Victoria was born and spent much of her youth here.

Today, Kensington Palace contains the offices and London residences of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as well as The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, The Duke and Duchess of Kent and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

Visitors can walk in the footsteps of royalty in Victoria's re-imagined childhood rooms, see the magnificent King's State Apartments and the famous Sunken Garden.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Kensington Gardens
County
London
Post Code
W8 4PX
Main Historic Period
Stuart
Useful Website Address
Tip/Nearby
Kensington Gardens, Royal Albert Hall, Holland Park, Notting Hill
Primary Management
Historic Royal Palaces
KEW PALACE

Once known as ‘the Dutch House’, Kew Palace is the smallest of all the royal palaces.  It was originally built in 1631 as a private house for a wealthy London silk merchant, Samuel Fortrey.  George II and Queen Caroline were first attracted to ‘little Kew’, thinking it a perfect lodging for their three eldest daughters.  After them, several generations of Georgian royalty used Kew and nearby Richmond Lodge as weekend retreats.  George III, Queen Charlotte and their 15 children enjoyed a relatively simple domestic routine at Kew, the palace rang with laughter and fun, however in later years the atmosphere darkened as family rivalries become more intense and relationships soured. Later the house became a refuge for George III, when he fell ill and was thought to have become mad. The King survived being administered powerful emetics and laxatives, freezing baths and leeching.   He was also put into a strait-jacket if he refused to co-operate.

Highlights include the princesses’ bedrooms, Queen Charlotte’s bedroom and the kitchens.  You can also visit Queen Charlotte’s Cottage, a rustic country retreat in the grounds.

Entry to Kew Palace is included in the ticket price for Kew Gardens.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Royal Botanic Gardens
Kew
Richmond
County
Surrey
Post Code
TW9 3AE
Main Historic Period
Georgian
Useful Website Address
Tip/Nearby
Within Kew Gardens. Not far from Richmond Park and Hampton Court.
Primary Management
Historic Royal Palaces
KNOLE

One of the largest houses in England, Knole is allegedly a 'calendar house', with 365 rooms, 52 staircases, 12 entrances and 7 courtyards - though only a proportion of the house is open to the public. It was built as an archbishop's palace, but passed into the hands of the Sackville family during the reign of Elizabeth I, and it is still their home. Knole is also packed with precious artwork and furnishings.

In 2012, the National Trust launched an extensive six-year conservation programme.  This has also opened parts of the complex previously unavailable to be seen by the public.

Knole is situated in the middle of a medieval deer park, which is open to all and is wonderful to wander in at any time of year.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Sevenoaks
County
Kent
Post Code
TN15 0RP
Main Historic Period
Tudor
Tip/Nearby
Igtham Mote, Penshurst Place
Primary Management
National Trust
PENSHURST PLACE

Dating from the 14th century, Penshurst Place has been the ancestral home of the Sidney family since 1552 and is partly open to the public.

Visitors can see the medieval baronial hall, the Solar, Queen Elizabeth Room and Long Gallery, which contain a collection of family portraits from across the centuries, antique furniture and tapestries. Outside, there are 11 acres of formal walled gardens, first laid out in the 1560s and full of fruit trees, colourful borders and water features.  For the younger visitor, there is an adventure playground – and a toy museum.

Penshurst Place has featured in TV and film productions for many years, including Anne of a Thousand Days (1969) The Other Boleyn Girl (2008) Wolf Hall (2015) and Mary Queen of Scots (2018) – and even a TV advertisement for dog food.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Penshurst
Nr Tonbridge
County
Kent
Post Code
TN11 8DG
Main Historic Period
Tudor
Useful Website Address
Primary Management
Independent – Historic Houses member
The Jewel Tower

The Jewel Tower is a small, but fascinating, remnant of the medieval Palace of Westminster. It was built in the 14th century and once housed Edward III's treasures. It was subsequently used to store records from the House of Lords - including notable Acts of Parliament - and went on to be the National Weights and Measures Office.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Abingdon Street
County
London
Post Code
SW1P 3JX
Main Historic Period
Medieval
Link to featured article
Tip/Nearby
Opposite the Houses of Parliament, adjacent to Westminster Abbey.
Primary Management
English Heritage
BANQUETING HOUSE

This is where the English Parliament executed the King of Great Britain and established a republic in England and Wales.  It was also a place of extravagant Jacobean entertainment.  Banqueting House is a surviving relic of the great Palace of Whitehall, which was originally the medieval London home of the Archbishops of York and known as York Place. When the once powerful Cardinal Wolsey, Archbishop of York, fell from grace, King Henry VIII grabbed his London home, enlarged it, renamed it Whitehall, and it became a favourite of subsequent Tudor, and Stuart, monarchs.  The current, spectacular, Banqueting House (there were predecessors) was designed by Inigo Jones, completed in 1622 and provided a venue for excessive celebration. Underneath it is a vaulted drinking den, used by James I for decadent goings-on.  Banqueting House has a breathtaking ceiling, probably commissioned by King Charles I in 1629-30 and the only surviving in-situ ceiling painting by Flemish artist, Sir Peter Paul Rubens.  It would have been one of the King's final sights on 30 January 1649, before stepping outside to meet his end on a scaffold that had been specially erected so that everyone could see their king die.

Region/Nation
Location/Address
Whitehall
County
London
Post Code
SW1 2ER
Main Historic Period
Stuart
Useful Website Address
Tip/Nearby
Houses of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, St James's Park
Primary Management
Historic Royal Palaces
BUCKINGHAM PALACE

Buckingham Palace is the administrative HQ of the Monarchy and has been the Monarch's official London residence since 1837. The Duke of Buckingham acquired a house on the present site in 1698, which he replaced with a new 'Buckingham House'. This was acquired by George III in 1761 as a family residence for his wife, Queen Charlotte, and their children, and extensively refurbished and modernised. George IV commissioned John Nash to turn the house into a Royal Palace. The familiar east wing, with its central balcony, was added during the reign of Queen Victoria.

Visitors can see three aspects of Buckingham Palace.

1) The State Rooms.  The 19 sumptuous state rooms, where guests are received and entertained, are generally open to the public during summer months. They include paintings, porcelain and furniture from the royal collection.
2) The Queen's Gallery, which hosts a programme of changing exhibitions of artwork, mostly from the royal collection, is open most days.
3) The Royal Mews is the stables responsible for the horses that pull the royal carriages as well as where state vehicles are kept and looked after. It is open most days, but closed in December and January.

All three venues have separate entrances on Buckingham Palace Road (the road running along the left of the Palace as you face it).

Region/Nation
County
London
Post Code
SW1 1AA
Main Historic Period
Georgian
Tip/Nearby
Nearest station - Victoria main line and underground. St James's Park underground.
Primary Management
Royal Collection Trust

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