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Historic Houses (formerly, and still for legal purposes, known as the Historic Houses Association or HHA) is a not-for-profit organisation that represents well over a thousand independently owned historic country houses, castles and gardens throughout the United Kingdom. [1]
The association originated as the Historic Houses Committee of the British Tourist Authority, and was independently established in 1973 [2] to help owners maintain and conserve significant homes in the interests of the nation's heritage.
In 1974, the HHA participated in a campaign in response to the publication of a governmental green paper on a proposed wealth tax. The campaign, which also involved the National Trust and the predecessor of The Arts Society, drew public attention to the problems such a tax could cause for historic buildings and national art collections. The tax was not implemented, and the HHA subsequently continued to lobby for tax exemptions for heritage sites and to promote private ownership of historic houses. [3] Today, Historic Houses represents, advises, and helps to publicise its member properties, and runs an access scheme for the general public.
While a large majority of member places are privately owned (and most of those are still lived in), houses, castles, and gardens cared for by independent charitable trusts, local authorities, institutions, or businesses are also eligible for membership, and there are several hundred such member places represented. Typically a dwelling must be listed at Grade I or Grade II* (in England & Wales; or the equivalent level in Scotland or Northern Ireland), but a substantial minority of member places are large Grade II houses.
More than half of member properties (c. 800) open their doors in some way, from visitors on a day or, special tour, or school trip, through to film locations, weddings and events, or as memorable places to stay. Historic Houses member attractions between them receive more than 28 million visitors each year.
Historic Houses offers a 'visitor membership' to the public; several hundred participating house and garden attractions offer card-holders free entry. Several hundred more houses that do not normally open offer occassional accompanied tours, which can be booked through the association's 'Invitation to View' platform. The association publishes Historic House magazine quarterly.
Historic Houses runs five awards for its member places: The Garden of the Year, The Restoration Award, The Frances Garnham Education Award, The Sustainability Award, and The Collections Award.
Hundreds of member houses and gardens offer free entry to visitor members of the association, including:
Leeds Castle is a castle in Kent, England, 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Maidstone. It is built on islands in a lake formed by the River Len to the east of the village of Leeds.
National Trust, formally National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and independent National Trust for Scotland.
The National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland, is a Scottish conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organisation in Scotland and describes itself as "the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to enjoy".
English Heritage is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses.
Castle Howard is a stately home in North Yorkshire, England, within the civil parish of Henderskelfe, located 15 miles (24 km) north of York. It is a private residence and has been the home of the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years. Castle Howard is not a fortified structure, but the term "castle" is sometimes used in the name of an English country house that was built on the site of a former castle.
Cadw is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. Cadw works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage sites of Wales, to make them available for the public to visit, enjoy, and understand their significance. Cadw manages 127 state-owned properties and sites. It arranges events at its managed properties, provides lectures and teaching sessions, offers heritage walks, and hosts an online shop. Members of the public can become members of Cadw to gain membership privileges.
Kingston Lacy is a country house and estate near Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England. It was for many years the family seat of the Bankes family who lived nearby at Corfe Castle until its destruction in the English Civil War after its incumbent owners, Sir John Bankes and Dame Mary, had remained loyal to Charles I.
Wimpole Estate is a large estate containing Wimpole Hall, a country house located within the civil parish of Wimpole, Cambridgeshire, England, about 8+1⁄2 miles southwest of Cambridge. The house, begun in 1640, and its 3,000 acres (12 km2) of parkland and farmland are owned by the National Trust. The estate is regularly open to the public and received over 335,000 visitors in 2019. Wimpole is the largest house in Cambridgeshire.
Anglesey Abbey is a National Trust property in the village of Lode, 5+1⁄2 miles (8.9 km) northeast of Cambridge, England. The property includes a country house, built on the remains of a priory, 98 acres of gardens and landscaped grounds, and a working mill.
New Alresford or simply Alresford is a market town and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. It is 7.5 miles (12 km) northeast of Winchester and 12 miles (20 km) southwest of the town of Alton.
The Horniman Museum and Gardens is a museum in Forest Hill, London, England. Commissioned in 1898, it opened in 1901 and was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend in the Modern Style. It has displays of anthropology, natural history and musical instruments, and is known for its large collection of taxidermied animals. The building is Grade II* listed.
Dunham Massey is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The parish includes the villages of Sinderland Green, Dunham Woodhouses and Dunham Town, along with Dunham Massey Hall and Park, formerly the home of the last Earl of Stamford and owned by the National Trust since 1976. Dunham Massey is in the historic county of Cheshire, but since 1974 has been part of Trafford Metropolitan Borough; the nearest town is Altrincham. At the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 475.
Tatton Park is a historic estate in Cheshire, England, north of the town of Knutsford. It contains a mansion, Tatton Hall, a medieval manor house, Tatton Old Hall, Tatton Park Gardens, a farm and a deer park of 2,000 acres (8.1 km2). It is a popular visitor attraction and hosts over a hundred events annually. The estate is owned by the National Trust, and managed under lease by Cheshire East Council . Since 1999, it has hosted North West England's annual Royal Horticultural Society flower show.
Clifton Park and Museum is a city park and municipal museum located in Clifton Park, Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. Clifton Park Museum is located in Clifton House and is one of several publicly owned museums and visitor attractions administered by the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham. The house is the headquarters of Heritage Services, which also includes the York and Lancaster Regimental Museum and Archives and Local Studies. It is a Grade II* listed building. Clifton Park is a visitor attraction with facilities including a skate park, rockery, memorial park and children's play areas. It is also Grade II listed with Historic England.
Penrhyn Castle is a country house in Llandygai, Bangor, Gwynedd, North Wales, constructed in the style of a Norman castle. The Penrhyn estate was founded by Ednyfed Fychan. In the 15th century his descendent Gwilym ap Griffith built a fortified manor house on the site. In the 18th century, the Penrhyn estate came into the possession of Richard Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhyn, in part from his father, a Liverpool merchant, and in part from his wife, Ann Susannah Pennant née Warburton, the daughter of an army officer. Pennant derived great wealth from his ownership of slave plantations in the West Indies and was a strong opponent of attempts to abolish the slave trade. His wealth was used in part for the development of the slate mining industry on Pennant's Caernarfonshire estates, and also for development of Penrhyn Castle. In the 1780s Pennant commissioned Samuel Wyatt to undertake a reconstruction of the medieval house.
The Morrab Library is an independent library based in Penzance, Cornwall in the UK.
Bodelwyddan Castle, close to the village of Bodelwyddan, near Rhyl, Denbighshire in Wales, was built around 1460 by the Humphreys family of Anglesey as a manor house. It was associated with the Williams-Wynn family for around 200 years from 1690. It has been a Grade II* listed building since 1962 as a "Gothick castellated style in the early C19". Having been opened to the public as a historic house museum, as of mid 2019, it was up for sale and the historic building was closed to the public.
Leeds Zoological and Botanical Gardens, also known as Headingley Zoo and later Leeds Royal Gardens, was open between 1840 and 1858 in Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, approximately two miles out of the city centre and covering the area now occupied by Cardigan Road. It was established following an idea by Dr Disney Thorpe, designed by William Billinton, a Wakefield architect, and built by public subscription during the 1830s.
Clumber and Hardwick is a civil parish in the Bassetlaw district, in the county of Nottinghamshire, England. The parish includes the settlement of Hardwick Village and Clumber Park, a country park. In 2011 the parish had a population of 198. The parish lies in the north west of the county, and south west within the district. It is 125 miles north west of London, 22 miles north of the city of Nottingham, and 3½ miles south east of the market town of Worksop.The parish touches Babworth, Carburton, Elkesley, Perlethorpe cum Budby and Welbeck. The parish was formed on 1 April 1994. The area is within Sherwood Forest and has close historical associations with the Dukes of Newcastle, being part of a wider region known as The Dukeries. There are 26 listed buildings in Clumber and Hardwick.