| south East ENGLAND Alfriston Clergy House
This 14th century Wealden hall house was the first building to be acquired by the Trust in 1896. Ascott Anthony de Rothschild collection of fine pictures, French and English furniture and oriental porcelain. The garden contains unusual trees, flower borders, water lilies and a topiary sundial. Ashdown House An extraordinary Dutch-style 17th century house, perched on the Berkshire Downs and famous for its association with Elizabeth of Bohemia (‘The Winter Queen’), Charles I’s sister, to whom the house was ‘consecrated’. There are spectacular views from the roof over the formal parterre, lawns and surrounding countryside, as well as beautiful walks in neighbouring Ashdown Woods. Basildon Park A classical 18th century house by John Carr of York. The focal point of the interior is the unusual Octagon Room. Bateman’s Home of Rudyard Kipling from 1902–36, originally built by a local ironmaster in 1634. The watermill grinds corn for flour every Sat at 2pm. Bembridge Windmill The only windmill to survive on the island, dating from c.1700. Boarstall Duck Decoy A rare survival of a 17th century decoy in working order, set in natural woodland with nature trail. Boarstall Tower Dates from the 14th century and altered in the 16th & 17th centuries, but retains its crossloops for bows. The tower is almost surrounded by a moat. Bodiam Castle One of the most famous castles in Britain, built in 1385 against a French invasion which never came. Box Hill On the edge of the North Downs rising some 130 metres above the River Mole, this country park consists of more than 400ha of woods and chalk downland. Summit buildings include information centre, shop and servery, and a 1890s fort (partly open to the public). Bradenham Village The church and 17th-century manor house (not open) provide an impressive backdrop to the sloping village green. A network of paths provides easy access for walkers to explore the delightful surrounding countryside, which includes hills, farmlands and classic Chilterns beech-woods. Brighstone Shop & Museum Attractive terrace of thatched vernacular cottages housing NT shop and Village Museum. Buckingham Chanty Chapel A 15th-century chapel, the oldest building in Buckingham and incorporating a fine Norman doorway. Later used as a school, it was restored by Gilbert Scott in 1875. Buscot Old Parsonage An early 18th-century house of Cotswold stone, set on the banks of the Thames and with a small garden. Buscot Park The late 18th-century neo-classical house, set in parkland, contains the fine paintings and furniture of the Faringdon Collection Trust. The grounds include various avenue walks, and an Italianate water garden, designed in the early 20th century by Harold Peto Note: This property is administered on behalf of the National Trust by Lord Faringdon, and the contents of the house are owned by The Faringdon Collection Trust Chartwell Home of Sir Winston Churchill from 1924; rooms left as they were in his lifetime. Chastleton House Chastleton House is one of England’s finest and most complete Jacobean houses. It is filled not only with a mixture of rare and everyday objects, furniture and textiles collected since its completion in 1612, but also with the atmosphere of 400 years of continuous occupation by one family. The gardens have a typical Elizabethan and Jacobean layout with a ring of fascinating topiary at their heart and it was here in 1865 that the rules of modern croquet were codified. As Chastleton House is relatively fragile and the access roads are quiet and narrow, the maximum number of visitors is restricted to 175 per day. Admission is by timed ticket. Visitors who have not booked in advance may face disappointment. A same-day telephone call is often sufficient. Clandon Park A grand Palladian mansion with a magnificent two-storeyed Marble Hall. Contains an impressive collection of furniture, porcelain and textiles. Claremont Landscape Garden One of the earliest surviving English landscape gardens, restored by the NT. Begun by Sir John Vanbrugh and Charles Bridgemen before 1720 the gardens were extended and naturalised by William Kent. The house is not NT. Claydon House The most perfect expression of Rococo decoration in England with wood carving in the Chinese and Gothic styles. Cliveden Set on cliffs about 65 metres above the Thames the present house, built in 1851, is now let as a hotel. There is a magnificent parterre, water garden and miles of woodland walks. Devil’s Punchbowl Café Local people, visitors from further afield and those journeying along the A3 can all enjoy the stunning scenery of the Devil’s Punch Bowl and Hindhead Commons from the viewpoint 50m from the café. A selection of hot and cold food is available all day in this recently refurbished café and gateway to the Surrey Hills. Emmetts Garden This garden at the highest point in Kent is noted for its exotic and rare trees and shrubs. Great Coxwell Barn A 13th-century monastic barn, stone-built with a stone-tiled roof and interesting timber structure. Grey’s Court A picturesque and intriguing house, originally 14th-century but much added to later, with a beautiful courtyard and one surviving tower dating from 1347. Inside, the intimate rooms contain some outstanding 18th-century plasterwork. The outbuildings include a Tudor wheelhouse, beautiful walled gardens full of old-fashioned roses and wisteria, and an ornamental vegetable garden Hatchlands Park A brick house built in the 1750s by Stiff Leadbetter for Admiral Boscawen, hero of the Battle of Louisburg. The house has interiors by Robert Adam and the Cobbe collection of keyboard instruments. Hinton Ampner Garden This garden combines formal design with informal planting producing delightful walks with many unexpected vistas. The Homewood A 20th-century, architect-designed house and landscape garden, reflecting the style and ethos of the Modern Movement. Hughenden Manor Bought in 1847 by Benjamin Disraeli who lived here until his death in 1881. The house retains much of his furniture, pictures and books. Ightham Mote Beautiful medieval moated manor house. Features include the Great Hall, old chapel and crypt. King’s Head A coaching inn, dating from 1450 and of particular interest for its large mullioned window, containing fragments of 15th-century glass carrying the arms of Henry VI and his wife, Margaret of Anjou. Knole Dating from 1456 and set within a deer park, Knole houses magnificent collections of furniture, tapestries and portraits including works by Van Dyck and Gainsborough. Lamb House Home of the writer Henry James (1898–1916). Some of James’s personal possessions are on view. Leith Hill A large countryside property with an 18th century Gothic tower at the highest point in south-east England. Long Crendon Courthouse A 15th century two-storey building. The manorial courts were held here from the reign of Henry V until Victorian times. Monk’s House A small village house and garden and the home of Leonard and Virginia Woolf from 1919 to 1969. Mottisfont Abbey Garden, House & Estate A tributary of the River Test flows through the garden forming a superb setting for this 12th century Augustinian priory, which after the Dissolution became a house. The garden provides interest through all seasons. Mottistone Manor Garden The colourful herbaceous borders, flowering fruit trees and delightful sea views combine to make a perfect setting for the 16th and 17th century manor house. The Needles Old Battery A Victorian coastal fort built in 1862 over 80 metres above sea level. A 65 metre tunnel leads to spectacular views of Needles Rocks, lighthouse and Hampshire and Dorset coastline. Nymans Garden One of the great gardens of the Sussex Weald with rare and beautiful plants and trees, including azaleas, rhododendrons, eucryphias, hydrangeas, magnolias, camellias and roses. Oakhurst Cottage A very small 16th century timber-framed cottage restored and furnished as a labourer’s dwelling. Old Soar Manor The solar block of a late 13th century knight’s dwelling. Old Town Hall, Newtown The small village of Newtown once sent two members to Parliament, and the Town Hall was the setting for often turbulent elections. An exhibition depicts the exploits of the anonymous group of benefactors known as ‘Ferguson’s Gang’. Petworth House & Park A magnificent late 17th century mansion set within a beautiful park. The house contains one of the Trust’s best collection of pictures with works by Turner, Van Dyck, Reynolds and Blake. Pitstone Windmill One of the oldest post mills in Britain. Polesden Lacey Originally an elegant 1820s Regency villa – remodelled after 1906 by the Hon Mrs Ronald Greville. Her collection of paintings, furniture, porcelain and silver are still displayed. Princes Risborough Manor House A 17th-century red-brick house with Jacobean staircase Priory Cottages Former monastic buildings, now converted into two houses. South Cottage contains the Great Hall of the original priory Quebec House General Wolfe spent his early years in this gabled, red-brick 17th century house. Four rooms containing portraits, prints and memorabilia relating to Wolfe’s family and career are on view. River Wey & Godalming Navigations The Wey was one of the first British rivers to be made navigable, and opened to barge traffic in 1653. This 151⁄2ml waterway linked Guildford to Weybridge on the Thames, and thence to London. The Godalming Navigation, opened in 1764, enabled barges to work a further 4ml upriver. Dapdune Wharf in Guildford is the home of Reliance, a restored Wey barge with an interactive exhibition telling the story of the waterway, the people who lived and worked on it and the barges built there. Runnymede 76ha of riverside wildflower meadows where King John sealed the Magna Carta in 1215. St John’s Jerusalem A large garden, moated by the River Darent. The house is the former chapel of a Knights Hospitaller Commandery, since converted into a private residence. Sandham Memorial Chapel First World War Chapel built in the 1920. The entire interior walls are covered with murals by Stanley Spencer. Scotney Castle Garden One of England’s most romantic gardens, surrounding the ruins of a 14th century moated castle. Also woodland and estate walks. Shalford Mill A large 18th century watermill on the river Tillingbourne. Sheffield Park Garden A magnificent landscaped garden with four lakes linked by cascades and waterfalls, laid out in the 18th century by Capability Brown. Sissinghurst Castle Garden A famous series of enclosed gardens created by Vita Sackville-West and her husband. Note: timed tickets are used. Smallhythe Place An early 16th century half-timbered house, home of the Victorian actress Ellen Terry from 1899–1928. The house contains many personal and theatrical mementos. Sprivers Garden This garden includes flowering and foliage shrubs, herbaceous borders, old walls and spring and summer bedding. Standen A family house of the 1890s, designed by Philip Webband a showpiece of the 19th century the Arts & Crafts Movement. It is decorated throughout with William Morris carpets, fabric and wallpaper. Stoneacre A half-timbered (mainly late 15th century) yeoman’s house with a great hall and crownpost and surrounded by a lovely cottage garden. Stowe Gardens One of the supreme creations of the Georgian era. The garden’s sheer scale must make it Britain’s largest work of art. The house (not NT) has been occupied by Stowe School since 1923. Uppark A late 17th century house set on the South Downs with magnificent views and an important collection of paintings and decorative art. The Vyne Built in the early 16th century for Lord Sandys, Henry VIII’s Lord Chamberlain, the house has a classical portico which was added in the 17th century. The house contains a Tudor chapel with Renaissance glass and a Palladian staircase. Also attractive grounds and walks. Waddesdon Manor The Manor was designed in the style of a French Renaissance chateau and built by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild in the 1870s. Wakehurst Place A superb collection of exotic trees, shrubs and other plants, many displayed in a geographic manner; extensive water gardens, a winter garden, a rock walk and a fine Elizabethan mansion. West Green House Garden A series of walled gardens, surrounding a charming 18th century house. The largest garden features herbaceous beds with wonderful colour combinations and a superb ornamental kitchen garden. West Wycombe Park A perfectly preserved rococo landscape garden created in the mid-18th century by Sir Francis Dashwood. The house is among the most theatrical and Italianate in England. The White Cliffs of Dover The ‘Gateway to the White Cliffs’ visitor centre has spectacular views and introduces the visitor to five miles of coast and countryside through imaginative displays and interpretation. Winchester City Mill Built over the river in 1744, the mill has a delightful small island garden and an impressive millrace. Winkworth Arboretum Hillside woodland with two lakes, many rare trees and shrubs. Witley Common Information Centre The Centre explains the importance of the heathland, which used to cover much of southern England. Guided walks available. |
