Everything about Knole totally explained
Knole is a
stately home situated close to
Sevenoaks in north-west
Kent, surrounded by a 1000 acre deer park. It is remarkable in England for the degree to which the early 17th-century appearance of its state rooms is preserved: the interiors of many houses of this period were altered later on. The surrounding
deer park is also a remarkable survivor, having changed little over the past 400 years except for the loss of many trees in the
Great Storm of 1987.
The house was built by
Thomas Bourchier,
Archbishop of Canterbury, between 1456 and 1486. On Bourchier's death, the house was bequeathed to the
See of Canterbury —
Sir Thomas More appeared in revels there at the court of
John Morton — but in 1538 it was taken from Archbishop
Thomas Cranmer — and enlarged — by King
Henry VIII. It is reputed to be a
calendar house, having 365 rooms, 52 staircases and 7 courtyards.
In 1566, during the reign of Queen
Elizabeth I, it was presented to her cousin
Thomas Sackville whose descendants the
Earls and Dukes of Dorset and
Barons Sackville have lived there ever since. Most notably, these include writer
Vita Sackville-West (her
Knole and the Sackvilles (1922) is regarded as a classic in the literature of English country houses); her friend
Virginia Woolf wrote based on the history of the house and the Sackville family.
The many state rooms open to the public contain a superb collection of 17th century royal
Stuart furniture,
hand me downs from the earls' service in high office in the royal court, including three state beds, silver furniture and the prototype of the famous
Knole Settee, outstanding tapestries and
textiles,
portraits by
Van Dyck,
Gainsborough,
Sir Peter Lely,
Sir Godfrey Kneller and
Joshua Reynolds (the last being a personal friend of the 3rd Earl), and a copy of the
Raphael Cartoons. The eye is especially drawn to some of Reynolds' portraits in the house: a self portrait and the depictions of
Samuel Johnson,
Oliver Goldsmith and a Chinese
page boy who was taken into the Sackville household have particular character and force. There are also extraordinary survivals from the English Renaissance: an Italianate staircase of great delicacy and the vividly carved overmantel and fireplace in the Great Chamber.
Today, the house and estate are in the care of the
National Trust, however the Trust only own the house of which half is still home to the Sackville-West's. Lord Sackville and his family still own the gardens and the surrounding estate. Knole Park is a
Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and the park hosts the annual Knole Run, a prestigious schools cross-country race.
Further Information
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