Kirby Hall is an

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...

country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peop ...

, located near Gretton, Northamptonshire, England. The nearest main town is

Corby Corby is a town in North Northamptonshire, England, located north-east of Northampton. From 1974 to 2021, the town served as the administrative headquarters of the Borough of Corby. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 Census, the built-up ...

. One of the great Elizabethan houses of England, Kirby Hall was built for Sir Humphrey Stafford of

Blatherwick Blatherwick is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * David Blatherwick (artist) (born 1960), Canadian painter and video artist *David Blatherwick (diplomat) (born 1941), British diplomat *Francis John Blatherwick (born 1944), Canadi ...

, beginning in 1570. In 1575 the property was purchased by

Sir Christopher Hatton Sir Christopher Hatton KG (1540 – 20 November 1591) was an English politician, Lord Chancellor of England and a favourite of Elizabeth I of England. He was one of the judges who found Mary, Queen of Scots guilty of treason. Early years Si ...

of Holdenby, Lord Chancellor to Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

. It is a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house. Construction on the building began in 1570, based on the designs in French architectural pattern books and expanded in the Classical style over the course of the following decades. The house is now in a semi-ruined state with many parts roof-less although the Great Hall and state rooms remain intact. The gardens, with their elaborate "

cutwork Cutwork or cut work, also known as ''punto tagliato'' in Italian, is a needlework technique in which portions of a textile, typically cotton or linen, are cut away and the resulting "hole" is reinforced and filled with embroidery or needle lace. ...

" design, complete with statues and urns, have been recently restored.

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...

stayed at Kirby on 9 August 1605 while her husband King James stayed at

Rockingham Castle Rockingham Castle is a former royal castle and hunting lodge in Rockingham Forest approximately two miles north from the town centre of Corby, Northamptonshire. History 11th – 14th centuries The site on which the castle stands was used in th ...

. King James stayed for three days in August 1616. During a royal progress Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox died at Kirby of the "spotted ague" on 30 July 1624. The building and gardens are owned by the

Earl of Winchilsea Earl of Winchilsea is a title in the Peerage of England held by the Finch-Hatton family. It has been united with the title of Earl of Nottingham under a single holder since 1729. The Finch family is believed to be descended from Henry FitzHerbe ...

, and are managed by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

. Kirby Hall has been used as a filming location in many productions. These include the following: episode 6 ('Protest and Communication') of

Kenneth Clark Kenneth Mackenzie Clark, Baron Clark (13 July 1903 – 21 May 1983) was a British art historian, museum director, and broadcaster. After running two important art galleries in the 1930s and 1940s, he came to wider public notice on television ...

's ''Civilisation'', and

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

's '' Mansfield Park'' and ''

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. ''A Christmas ...

'' for

Ealing Studios Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever ...

in 1999. In 2014 it was the venue for an edition of

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

's ''

Antiques Roadshow ''Antiques Roadshow'' is a British television programme broadcast by the BBC in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom (and occasionally in other countries) to appraise antiques brought in by local people ( ...

''.

Images

Kirby Hall - geograph.org.uk - 1451744.jpg, The

giant order In classical architecture, a giant order, also known as colossal order, is an order whose columns or pilasters span two (or more) storeys. At the same time, smaller orders may feature in arcades or window and door framings within the storeys tha ...

is exceptionally early for England Kirby Hall - north front from inner courtyard.jpg, North front from inner courtyard File:Kirby Hall - geograph.org.uk - 1303015.jpg, Rear facade File:Gretton, UK - panoramio (20).jpg, Oblique view (side & rear) KirbyHall2JonesViews1829.jpg, Kirby Hall in 1829 Nicholas Hilliard 006.jpg, The builder, Christopher Hatton by

Nicholas Hilliard Nicholas Hilliard () was an English goldsmith and limner best known for his portrait miniatures of members of the courts of Elizabeth I and James I of England. He mostly painted small oval miniatures, but also some larger cabinet miniatures, ...

, 1588-1591

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline, Kirby Hall, Northamptonshire, Kirby Hall
English Heritage : visitor informationHistoric England : list entry summaryTeachers' resource kit : English HeritageWatercolour painted between 1746 & 1800 (British Museum)
Country houses in Northamptonshire Gardens in Northamptonshire Tourist attractions in Northamptonshire English Heritage sites in Northamptonshire Historic house museums in Northamptonshire Grade I listed buildings in Northamptonshire North Northamptonshire