England
Cheshire

Cheshire Travel Guide - Historic Houses

Adlington Hall    14th century house surrounded by landscaped gardens. The hall and gardens are open by prior arrangement to groups. Mill Lane, Adlington, Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, SK10 4LF Attraction Type: Historic House Location: to the W of the A523 in Adlington, 6 miles N of Macclesfield Website: Adlington Hall Email: enquiries@adlingtonhall.com Phone: 01625 827 595 Fax: 01625 820 797 Location map Details of Adlington Hall OS SJ906 805 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Arley Hall    Arley Hall was begun in 1469, and it has been owned by the same family ever since. The current hall is a product of the 19th century; it was built by George Latham for Rowland Egerton-Warburton beginning in 1832. The library in particular is a good example of Victorian Gothic style, with richly coloured stained glass windows flooding the large wooden bookcases with light. Napoleon III lived at Arley briefly, and his bedroom is preserved upstairs, with watercolours by Piers Egerton-Warburton decorating the walls. Near the house stands a mock-Gothic chapel designed by Anthony Salvin. Northwich, Cheshire, England, CW9 6NA Attraction Type: Historic House Location: 6 miles from Knutsford and Northwich, off the M6 and M56 Website: Arley Hall Email: enquiries@arleyhallandgardens.com Phone: 01565 777 353 Fax: 01565 777 465 Location map Details of Arley Hall OS SJ674808 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Bramall Hall    The house is a superb example of Cheshire "black and white" half-timbering, and one of the largest timber-framed houses in the northwest. The core of the house was built in the 14th century, with later Tuor and Jacobean additions around a central courtyard. The final effect, almost self-consciously romantic, is the result of a Victorian rebuilding program. There are fine Tudor rooms, though they are sparsely furnished, but at least this allows good views of the period plasterwork, the original timber roof in the solar, and 16th century wall paintings throughout. In addition the Victorian kitchen and servants' quarters have been restored. Bramhall Park, Hall Road Bramhall, Stockport, Cheshire, England, SK7 3NX Attraction Type: Historic House Location: off the A5102 Website: Bramall Hall Email: bramall.hall@stockport.gov.uk Phone: 0845 8330974 Location map Details of Bramall Hall OS SJ890 864 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Capesthorne Hall    Capesthorne is one of the premier country homes of Cheshire, with a history going back to the Domesday Book. The house is a magnificent Jacobean style building built in 1722. The Capesthorne family were Chief Foresters in the King's Forest of Macclesfield at that time, which meant they had the power to try and sentence poachers and enforce royal privilege in the area. Though the exterior of the house retains elements of its 18th century character, much remodeling was performed by the architect Salvin after a disastrous fire of 1861. The interior of the house boasts a fine collection of antique furniture, art, marble sculpture, and tapestries. Siddington, Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, SK11 9JY Attraction Type: Historic House Location: 5 miles W of Macclesfield, off the A34 Website: Capesthorne Hall Email: info@capesthorne.com Phone: 01625 861 221 Fax: 01625 861 619 Location map Details of Capesthorne Hall OS SJ841 727 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Dunham Massey    Georgian facade covers Elizabethan underpinnings. Wood paneled chapel, 18th century paintings and furniture. Altrincham, Cheshire, England, WA14 4SJ Attraction Type: Historic House Location: 3 miles SW of Altrincham, off the A56 Website: Dunham Massey Email: dunhammassey@nationaltrust.org.uk Phone: 0161 941 1025 Fax: 0161 929 7508 National Trust Location map Details of Dunham Massey OS SJ735 874 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Gawsworth Hall    Gawsworth Hall began as a Norman manor, though that early house was replaced in 1485 by a half-timbered manor built around a courtyard. The mound that once held the Norman house now boasts only the tiny chapel, built in 1369 and still in use, though it has been much remodeled, with stained glass by Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris. The present house retains the Tudor half-timbering so often encountered in Cheshire houses, but the Elizabethan core has been heavily altered over the years. Church Lane, Gawsworth, Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, SK11 9RN Attraction Type: Historic House Location: off the A536, 3 miles SW of Macclesfield Website: Gawsworth Hall Email: gawsworthhall@btinternet.com Phone: 01260 223 456 Fax: 01260 223 469 Location map Details of Gawsworth Hall OS SJ892 697 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Little Moreton Hall    Little Moreton Hall is arguably the finest half-timbered manor in England - certainly it is one of the most heavily photographed! The house is set around three sides of a cobbled courtyard and ringed around by a moat. The half-timbering is fanciful, delightfully ornate. The upper stories of the house project out over the base, and the small windows boast an enjoyable variety of Tudor glass. Little Moreton was built between 1450 and 1580 by the Moreton family, but little remains to preserve their memory. There are no corridors within the house; each room leads directly into the next, and the floors are connected by compact spiral staircases. The lack of interior furnishings allow visitors to see the wonderful plasterwork and wall paintings, including those in the long gallery. A knot garden stands outside the house. Congleton, Cheshire, England, CW12 4SD Attraction Type: Historic House Location: 4 miles SW of Congleton, E off A34 Website: Little Moreton Hall Email: littlemoretonhall@nationaltrust.org.uk Phone: 01260 272 018 National Trust Location map Details of Little Moreton Hall OS SJ833 589 Photo Credit: David Ross and Britain Express Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Lyme Park    Lyme Park was begun in the Tudor period but the present house was transformed by the architect Leoni into an ornate Italian palace in the 1720s. Within the house traces of the Elizabethan core remain, providing a contrast with Leoni's work. The showpiece staterooms are festooned with tapestries, a fine collectron of English clocks, and carvings by Grinling Gibbons. Yet the interior is a mix of styles. The Elizabethan long gallery has retained much of its original character, and the royal coat of arms stands over the fireplace in the drawing room. Some fine period furnishings are scattered throughout, though little remains to commemorate the Legh family, who owned the house from the 14th century to 1946. In the library are 3 ancient Greek tombstones brought here by archaeologist Thomas Legh in the 19th century. Disley, Stockport, Cheshire, England, SK12 2NX Attraction Type: Historic House Location: on A6, 6 miles SE of Stockport Website: Lyme Park Email: lymepark@nationaltrust.org.uk Phone: 01663 762 023 Fax: 01663 765 035 National Trust Location map Details of Lyme Park OS SJ965 824 Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering

Tatton Park    Greek Revival mansion begun in 1774. An interior mix of Regency, Italianate, and Dutch styles are balanced beautifully by the servants quarters, (including a cellar railway for carrying coal!) and the surviving medieval great hall. Knutsford, Cheshire, England, WA16 6QN Attraction Type: Historic House Location: on A556 Website: Tatton Park Email: tatton@cheshire.gov.uk Phone: 01625 534 400 Fax: 01625 534 403 National Trust Location map Details of Tatton Park OS SJ745 815 Photo Credit: David Ross and Britain Express Accommodation: nearest hotels - nearest Self catering