Exton Hall is an English country house on the western edge of the village of Exton, Rutland, England, standing in its own extensive park, and is the country seat of the Earls of Gainsborough.
Exton Hall is an English country house on the western edge of the village of Exton, Rutland, England, standing in its own extensive park, and is the country seat of the Earls of Gainsborough.
Exton Hall was previously the seat of the family of Sir James Harington. An earlier mansion, which burnt down in 1810, is now a ruin, with grand gables and beautiful chimneys, as in many Elizabethan houses. [2] [3] The ruins are on Historic England's Heritage at Risk Register, at priority category: C - "slow decay; no solution agreed". [4]
The present Exton Hall was built in the 19th century close to the ruins of the original house. In 1869 a Roman Catholic chapel, dedicated to St Thomas of Canterbury was added, to a design by Charles Alban Buckler. [5] [6]
The house was used by elements of the U.S. Army Air Force during the Second World War.
In 1948, Anthony Noel, 5th Earl of Gainsborough, granted the United Steel Companies a lease to quarry ironstone in the Park. Sundew, the world's largest walking dragline, worked the land from 1957 until 1974, when mining ceased. Sundew then slowly walked to Corby. Material was moved by a standard-gauge railway with a loop of nine miles and a link to the exchange sidings at what is now Rutland Railway Museum's site to the West of Cottesmore Village. The railway was mostly operated by Yorkshire Engine Company steam and diesel locomotives, Yorkshire Engine Company being a United Steel Companies subsidiary.
The house is one of the stately homes of England associated with the Legend of the Mistletoe Bough. It is now the private home of Henry Noel, Viscount Campden, the son and heir of Anthony Noel, 6th Earl of Gainsborough. Although not normally open to the public, it is available for hire for a limited number of private weddings. [7]
In the park is Fort Henry, a pleasure-house built in 1788 in the Gothick style, which overlooks lakes formed by the North Brook. [8]
There is an extensive description of the parkland surrounding the hall in its own English Heritage listing. The park is extensive and spreads across the parishes of Exton, Cottesmore, Greetham and Horn. [9] [10]
Earl of Gainsborough is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation ended in extinction when the sixth Earl died without heirs. However, the title was revived in 1841 for a female-line relative.
Cottesmore is a village and civil parish in the north of the county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England. In terms of population it is the largest village in Rutland, and the third-largest settlement after Oakham and Uppingham. This is due in part to the presence of Kendrew Barracks.
Exton is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Exton and Horn, in the county of Rutland, England. The population of the parish was 607 at the 2011 census. On 1 April 2016 the parish was abolished and merged with Horn to form "Exton and Horn".
The ancient position of Lord-Lieutenant of Rutland was abolished on 31 March 1974.
Cottesmore is a boarding preparatory school in the United Kingdom, founded in 1894.
Sir Gerard Noel Noel, 2nd Baronet, of Welham Grove in Leicestershire and Exton Park in Rutland, known as Gerard Edwardes until 1798, was an English Member of Parliament.
Cirencester Park is a country house in the parish of Cirencester in Gloucestershire, England, and is the seat of the Bathurst family, Earls Bathurst. It is a Grade II* listed building. The gardens are Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.
Charles Noel Noel, 1st Earl of Gainsborough, known as Charles Edwardes until 1798, as Charles Noel between 1798 and 1823 and as the Lord Barham between 1823 and 1841, was a British peer and Whig politician.
The Cottesmore Hunt, which hunts mostly in Rutland, is one of the oldest foxhound packs in Britain. Its name comes from the village of Cottesmore where the hounds were kennelled.
Edward Noel, 1st Earl of Gainsborough, 4th Viscount Campden was a British peer, styled Hon. Edward Noel from 1660 to 1681.
Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden was an English politician. He was Lord Lieutenant of Rutland, Custos Rotulorum of Rutland and the Member of Parliament for Rutland.
Anthony Gerard Edward Noel, 5th Earl of Gainsborough KStJ was a British peer.
Henry Noel was an English politician during the reign of Charles II. A younger son of Viscount Campden, he inherited a large estate from an uncle in infancy. Returned as a court candidate for Stamford in an expensive by-election, he died less than a year later.
Thomas Noel was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1728 and 1788.
Elizabeth Noel, Viscountess Campden, formerly Lady Elizabeth Bertie, was the fourth wife of Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden, and the mother of nine of his children.
Exton and Horn is a civil parish in Rutland, England, formed in 2016 upon the merger of the historic parishes of Exton and Horn.
The North Brook is a small watercourse in Rutland in the East Midlands of England. It is a tributary of the River Gwash and part of the River Welland catchment.
Anthony Baptist Noel, 6th Earl of Gainsborough, styled as Viscount Campden between 1950 and 2009, is a British peer.
The Church of St Peter and St Paul is a church in Exton, Rutland. The Church of England parish church lies within the park of Exton Hall, slightly apart from the village. It is a large medieval church and contains an impressive collection of monuments, including work by Joseph Nollekens. It is a Grade I listed building.
Chipping Campden Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street, Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire, England. The building, which is the meeting place of Chipping Campden Town Council, is a Grade II* listed building.