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When you enter Chatsworth House, the main greeting room is the Painted Hall. It’s an unusual grand hall as it is square, has a wrap-around balcony, and on each corner, there is are circular overlooking balcony. Here guests would gather for dinner and admire the books, of which Chatsworth has nigh on 40,000, including precious first editions and the original works of philosopher Thomas Hobbes, who tutored the 2nd and 3rd Earls. There is a hidden door which leads to a secret spiral staircase, and in a side table can be found a bullet hole, a result of ‘friendly fire’ during WW2, when American infantry were stationed here. The Prince of Wales quite often came for Twelfth Night, and the king came for the pheasant shoots. As well as guests, Chatsworth would have seen a huge influx of personal staff.
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Located within the Peak District National Park, Chatsworth comprises a Grade I listed house and stables, a 105-acre garden, a 1,822-acre park and a farmyard and adventure playground. As the home of seventeen generations of the Devonshire family, Chatsworth also houses one of Europe’s most significant private art collections and an extensive archive. Explore the historic house for fascinating stories and one of Europe’s most significant art collections. In the garden, discover water features, giant sculptures and beautiful flowers set in Britain’s most stunning and surprising country estate. Or come face to face with our farm animals in our working farmyard and enjoy adventurous fun in the playground.
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Connoisseurs of the arts, they included in the collection paintings, Old Master drawings and prints, ancient coins and carved Greek and Roman sculptures. Palladian furniture designed by William Kent was commissioned by the 3rd Duke when he had Devonshire House in London rebuilt after a fire in 1733. When Devonshire House was sold and demolished in 1924, the furniture was transferred to Chatsworth.
Chatsworth Family Festival
Social change and taxes in the early 20th century began to affect the Devonshires' lifestyle. When the 8th Duke died in 1908 over £500,000 of death duties became due. In 1912 the family sold 25 books printed by William Caxton and a collection of 1,347 volumes of plays acquired by the 6th Duke, including four Shakespeare folios and 39 Shakespeare quartos, to the Huntington Library in California. Tens of thousands of acres of land in Somerset, Sussex and Derbyshire were also sold during or just after the First World War.
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The Duke employed the services of the famous Capability Brown who replaced the formal garden design of the 1st Duke with something notably more natural, a cornerstone of his design style which at this time was particularly fashionable. With changes made to the surrounding landscape as well as the building itself, Chatsworth under the 4th Duke began to take on a distinctive form and style. His son meanwhile, who was known as the 2nd Duke of Devonshire, did not make any further changes to the house itself, rather his contribution was most notable in terms of his art collection which he displayed at Chatsworth. Book your tickets to the house, garden, farmyard, and playground online.
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Bursting with history, art from all ages and a working farmyard, there is so much at Chatsworth to enrich your students’ curriculum. Furthermore, with holiday cottages and hotels, shops and restaurants, including Britain’s best farm shop, you can really make the most of your time with us. Our guidebook contains a comprehensive overview of the history of the house, garden, and estate, as well as the Devonshire family.
Chatsworth House – One of England’s Finest Estates
The very first dinner held in the Great Dining Room was in honour of the 13-year-old Princess Victoria; her first banquet as an adult. Today, the Duke and Duchess only use the Great Dining Room for very special occasions. It was not until 1686 that the 1st Duke of Devonshire began a major re-building programme at the house, constructing most of what survives today. While the 2nd and 3rd Dukes largely left the architecture of the house alone, they amassed its huge collection of notable artwork, from Ancient Greek and Roman sculpture to Old Master drawings. Approaching the house, a harmonious ensemble of warm stone set against a backdrop of densely wooded hills in exquisite landscaped parkland, feels like stepping into a historical painting. Now able to offer full lift access to all floors of the historic building, Chatsworth can ensure that visitors using wheelchairs are able to share the same experience as other visitors, and see everything the house has to offer.
Chatsworth House owner mulls expanding property footprint - React News
Chatsworth House owner mulls expanding property footprint.
Posted: Fri, 25 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Andrew sold thousands of acres of land, more of the estate artwork, and transferred Hardwick Hall to the National Trust instead of a tax. Despite these efforts, it took 17 years to complete tax negotiations on the estate. The Chatsworth Settlement Trustees were established in 1946 to manage the estate. Nestling in the heart of the Peak District, Chatsworth is one of England’s architectural masterpieces – both imperiously grand and arrestingly beautiful.
Add a guided tour to your house ticket to get the most from your visit to Chatsworth. Take home a gift, a treasure, or a memento of your visit to Chatsworth from one of our gift shops. If you've booked tickets to the house, your house entry time is printed on your ticket but you're welcome to arrive at Chatsworth anytime from 10am. There is a line of Chatsworth branded foods endorsed with the Dowager Duchess's signature and available by mail order. She also established Chatsworth Design to exploit intellectual property rights to the Devonshire collections, and a furniture company called Chatsworth Carpenters, but the latter has now been licensed to an American company. Take the secret tunnel to the playground for exciting woodland adventures, with tall towers to climb, slides, swings, sand and water play.
Nikki Webster is a travel writer who covers how to travel while grinding a day job without breaking the bank. Nikki is always in search of off-the-beaten-track experiences and unique stays. She is particularly fond of Florida and writes extensively about the state. She flies around 60,000 miles annually and has visited 74 countries, 50 states, and six continents. You can read all about her travels at or follow along on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.
The 1st Duke's Chatsworth was a key building in the development of English Baroque architecture. The façade is dramatic and sculptural with ionic pilasters and a heavy entablature and balustrade. The existing heavy and angular stone stairs from the first floor down to the garden are a 19th-century replacement of an elegant curved double staircase. Like the south front it is unusual in having an even number of bays and no centrepiece. The emphasis is placed on the end bays, each highlighted by double pairs of pilasters, of which the inner pairs project outwards.
There are large open-space and smaller recreational parks as well as a public library and a transportation center. Distinctive features are the former Chatsworth Reservoir and the Santa Susana Field Laboratory. The area was home to Native Americans, who left caves containing rock art.
As a result of the social reform of the 20th century, £500,000 of death duties became due. This death tax resulted in the family selling off a vast book collection, including Shakespeare artifacts and thousands of land acres. In the 1760s, William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, redirected the approach to Chatsworth.
