Stately homes and gardens in Norfolk

Norfolk is an excellent county to visit if you are a devotee of stately homes and gardens, as it has plenty to offer. A short article can only offer a taster of what you can expect.

Blickling Hall

Near Aylsham, which is between Norwich and Cromer. The house was redesigned in the early 17^th century but incorporates elements of a much earlier building that had been owned by the family of Ann Boleyn (whose ghost is said to haunt the house once a year!). A particular feature is the Long Gallery with its collection of rare books. Visitors can trace the history of the estate through four centuries, including its role during World War II.

The gardens and grounds are particularly noteworthy, including formal and wilderness gardens and an 18^th-century landscaped park.

Bradenham Hall

Near East Dereham. The Georgian house is not open to the public, but there are four acres of gardens and seventeen acres of woodland to be enjoyed. The gardens are divided into “rooms” by yew hedges and include a courtyard garden, a kitchen garden, and several beautiful walks. The arboretum contains specimens of more than 800 tree varieties.

Fairhaven Gardens

Fairhaven Woodland and Water Garden is in the grounds of South Walsham Hall, between Norwich and Great Yarmouth. The 131-acre garden was the creation of Major Henry Broughton, later Lord Fairhaven, who died in 1973 and requested that it be opened to the public, which happened in 1975.

The garden features shade and water-loving plants, and is 100% organic. Visitors can take boat trips on the broad (i.e. lake) and get a close view of the abundant wildlife. Among the trees is the “King Oak” which is 950 years old and was growing at the time of the Battle of Hastings!

Felbrigg Hall

Near Cromer. This is a Jacobean house built on older foundations and with some later alterations. Most of the main rooms are open to the public, including the dining room which is set for an 1860s dinner party.

The gardens include a walled garden that provides fruit and vegetables for the restaurant, an orangery and a working dovecote. The estate includes a landscaped park with a lake and 520 acres of woodland, through which run several miles of waymarked paths. One unusual feature of the facilities at the house is a second-hand bookshop.

Holkham Hall

Near Wells-next-the-Sea close to the North Norfolk coast. This is one England’s great country houses (see picture), having been built by the 1^st Earl of Leicester (Thomas Coke) between 1734 and 1764, although he did not live to see its completion. As the Hall is still a private home not all the rooms are open to the public, but those that can be viewed are truly breathtaking in their opulence.

The idea of 1^st Earl was to build an Italianate villa in Norfolk, copying many of the styles that he had seen on his travels. The magnificent “Marble Hall” (which was actually built using Derbyshire alabaster) shows how this ambition was reached, being based on the Pantheon and Temple of Fortuna Virilis in Rome.

As well as the many valuable works of art and pieces of furniture on display at Holkham Hall, there is a “Bygones Museum” and an exhibition devoted to the history of farming, given that the Holkham Estate was at the heart of the 18^th-century Agrarian Revolution.

The walled gardens are undergoing restoration, but visitors can walk around those that have already been restored, including the adjoining glasshouses.

The Park, including a lake, covers 3,000 acres and there are extensive paths and trails that visitors can take.

As well as the wildlife in the Park there is plenty to be seen on the nearby beach and nature reserve.

Houghton Hall

Between King’s Lynn and Fakenham. The house was built by Sir Robert Walpole who became Britain’s de facto first Prime Minister in 1721. The house was designed in the Palladian style by Colen Campbell and the interiors were largely the work of William Kent. Walpole originally wanted a luxurious residence in which to display his large collection of paintings by the old masters, but many of these were sold when his descendants fell on hard times. However, the furniture was retained, and many original pieces can be seen today.

The 6^th Marquess of Cholmondeley (1919-90), a descendant of Sir Robert, was a collector of model soldiers, and his collection of 20,000 models is now on display at Houghton Hall, many of them arranged as battle tableaux.

The gardens at Houghton Hall are particularly good, the restored 5-acre walled garden having being awarded the “Garden of the Year” title in 2008. The 420-acre Deer Park contains a herd of white fallow deer.

The stables, with their superb brick vaulting, should also be visited, as they demonstrate Walpole’s concern that his horses should be housed in as much luxury as his family.

Hoveton Hall

The Hall, to the north-east of Norwich, dates from the early 18^th century, but is not open to the public. However, 15 acres of gardens can be visited, including walled kitchen gardens, a clematis walk, rhododendrons and azaleas along a woodland walk, and two lakes that are notable for their wildlife. Also to be seen is an “ice well”, dating from the 18^th century, that would have been able to store 18 cubic metres of ice.

Mannington Hall Gardens

Near Saxthorpe, not far from Blickling Hall (see above). The gardens surround a medieval moated manor house and are notable for their roses, of which there are thousands of specimens. There is also a knot garden and a “sensory garden” that features plants that can be appreciated for their touch, sound and taste as well as scent and colour.

The Hall is only open by appointment and on special occasions.

Oxburgh Hall

Near Downham Market. It is a 15^th-century moated manor house that was built by the Roman Catholic Bedingfield family and is still occupied by them. It is notable for its splendid brick gatehouse, from the roof of which there are excellent views across the Norfolk countryside. In the house, visitors can go inside the “priest hole” that was a hiding place in the 16^th century for any Catholic priest who happened to be present should Queen Elizabeth’s soldiers have wanted to search the place. There are also examples of needlework by Mary, Queen of Scots.

The 15-acre gardens include a Victorian parterre and kitchen garden, and a long herbaceous border.

Sandringham House

Near King’s Lynn. This is the only house in the personal possession of the royal family, having been bought for King Edward VII when he was Prince of Wales. The house then on the site was demolished and the present house, designed and built by local architects and builders, was completed in 1870. The house and gardens are open from late spring to the end of October, and the country park is open throughout the year.

The main ground-floor rooms are open to the public, and they contain many items collected by members of the royal family on their travels or presented to them. The walls are adorned by royal portraits.

The Museum, housed in the former coach house and stable block, includes a collection of vintage royal motor vehicles.

There are 60 acres of gardens which reflect changing royal tastes over the years. The rockeries, water features and peaceful walks are particularly notable. The country park can be explored via waymarked nature trails.

Sheringham Park

Near Sheringham on the north Norfolk coast. The house is privately occupied, but the park is managed by the National Trust and consists of 50 acres of woodland gardens that were originally laid out by Humphrey Repton in 1812. The gardens are noted for their rhododendrons and azaleas, of which some 80 species are on display and are at their best in May and June.

There are walks and cycle trails through the Park, and stunning views from the treetop gazebo. The wildlife to be seen includes woodpeckers and nuthatches, and butterfly species include purple hairstreaks and white admirals.

© John Welford