British Manor Homes
 

What are the top 10 must-see manor homes of England, Scotland, and Wales?

For starters, Chatsworth, Longleat, Knole, Wilton House, and Hever Castle.

I'd add in Castle Howard

Burleigh near Stamford and for a bit of a change from much of this Palladian overkill above I'd recommend Scotney Castle in Kent.

Oh, and of course IF you can get an invite then Chequers, Gatcombe Park, Sandringham or Balmoral shouldn't be refused (well to refuse the offer would be considered rude to the point of an unofficial declaration of war just for a start... :))

Dr D.

For something a bit older, Hatfield House, which was at one time the home of Elizabeth I. And 2 more in Kent: Penshurst Place and Lullingstone Castle. Have we reached 10 yet?

We don't have manor homes in Scotland:)

They are more generally known as stately homes. If you insist on having manor in the title, it's a manor house, not home.

We don't have Manor Houses, either:)

I think there actually is at least one manor house in Scotland: Traquair House, known as the oldest inhabited house in Scotland, as it dates from around the year 1000. Mary Queen of Scots stayed there--you can see the crucifix she gave the family--and the house still has an operating brewery. We stayed twice through Country Homes and Castles, and the owners, the Maxwell-Stuarts, are very pleasant people.

Actually there are a FEW in Scotland - Not counting palaces and castles these are the first few I can think of: Manderston, Hill of Tarvit House, Leith Hall, House of Dun, Hopetoun, Paxton House . . . .

But, as Sheila said, they're not known as manor anythings. They're stately homes or just houses.

"they're not known as manor anythings" But NEITHER are most of the ones in England - just houses or or stately homes . . . .

Manderston is exactly what a "stately home" would look like in most parts of England

Actually, we do talk about manor houses in England. Not often: but when we do, we mean something a lot smaller than the huge rambling piles like Chatsworth.

Places that "ordinary" rich folks lived in for a few centuries. 6-10 bedrooms, plus a few decent reception rooms. A few acres max of garden, with the rest of the estate being used for proper farming. Sometimes - though rarely - a big-name designer might have had a go at the garden, but usually the garden's just happened over time.

The kind of places, in other words, most of us could imagine ourselves living in if we managed our affairs a bit more sharply.

There are a lot of them around, many still coming onto the market.

Simon Jenkins' "England's Thousand Best Houses" (which every visitor interested in this should have read before coming here) gives star ratings. These are the houses he gives five stars to: I've put (M) after those I'd call a manor house

Windsor Castle
Chatsworth
Hardwick Hall
Haddon Hall (M)
Kingston Lacey
Berkeley Castle
Knole
Speke Hall (M)
Kensington Palace
Hampton Court
Syon House
Blenheim
Broughton Castle (M: it's not a castle)
Brighton Pavillion
Parham House (M)
Wilton House
Burton Agnes Hall (M)
Castle Howard
Harewood House

Because I'm an anal retentive sort of a person, I went and looked this up last night, after I'd psoted.

I found about 30 references to Scottish manor houses, but almost all of them were written by people who knew no better. Interestingly, most of them were about Aleister Crowley's house:(

We just don't have manors. the concept is unknown to us. We don't have Lords of the manor or squires or any of that stuff, and I don't think Traqhair is a manor house either, although it was one of the ones I found.

but, not to be daft about the question, I would say the 10 best posh houses open to the public, about which I know are:-

Floors; Manderstane; Hopetoun House; Glamis; Cawdor; House of Dun; Castle Fraser; Haddo; Dunrobin and Inverary

I'd add Little Moreton Hall in Cheshire. It's a Tudor gem.
Talk amongst yourselves while Sheila and I go off-topic. Sheila you may not have squires and such but many Scottish lairds have enormous power and influence. Although it's beginning to change now and not before time, Scotland is essentially owned by a very small number of people.
My Scottish husband goes on at great length about it.
There is an interesting book by Auslan Cramb called "Who owns Scotland now? The use and abuse of private land.

While planning my next UK visit with stately homes in mind, I came up with the following URL. Would it be a reliable reference?

http://www.statelyhomes.com/default.asp

It's not a bad reference just not very complete. Add The National Trust and English Heritage sites for a more complete picture.

2 of my favorites haven't been mentioned..at least I don't think so..

Kingston Lacey and Corfe castle. They are interesting because both were owned by the Bankes family., with Kingston Lacey replacing the ruined Corfe Castle around 1646, when it was destroyed by Parlimentarians.

Another suggestion..if planning to visit several National Trust properties , in England, Wales, Scotland or North Ireland, you can really save money by joining the Royal Oak Society , before you leave.

The family membership is $75.00 , and offers free admission for 2 adults and up to 3 children under the age of 21, to all the properties. Since admission fees can run as high as 10 GBP per person, it is a great deal. You also receive their magazine,NT guide book and other offers.

http://www.royal-oak.org/

Sylvia

I agree that landowners (and as a general rule, they are no longer lairds) can have huge power. You/your husband may know, however that new legislation on community purchase of land has been passed by teh Scottish Parliament and, in many cases that power is waning.

I have Ozzy's book(I went to school with him). If it's a subject that interests you you should give consideration to Andrew Wightman's books too.

Well homes or houses, it's not hard to find websites that list DOZENS of them -- what's hard to figure out are which are the ones you just don't want to miss. I'll print this thread (once it's run it's course) as a reference. Thanks. BTW, I tracked down the encylopedia article that I read in my formative years that had one manor house that stuck in my head -- it was Wollaton Hall. Also, that article referred to manor "houses" not "homes". If I could retitle the thread I would, since I'm pretty anal myself!

flanneruk - you also list a book that I will definitely try to buy. Although I mentioned houses I also want to look at some palaces and a few castles. In that area, I really only knew about Blenheim and Hampton Court.