Arden Hall is a historic building near

Hawnby Hawnby is a small crossroads village and civil parish in the North York Moors National Park, North Yorkshire, England. The village is about north-west of Helmsley. History The village is mentioned twice in the ''Domesday Book'' as ''Halmebi'' ...

, a village in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

, in England. The house was built in the 1680s on the site of St Andrew's Priory, although it may contain remnants of an earlier building. The south wing was added in the 1700s by the Tancred family, and the house was further extended in the 19th century. In the early 20th century, the northeast wing was added, and the original section was extended. Near the end of the 19th century, it was purchased by the

Earl of Mexborough Earl of Mexborough, of Lifford in the County of Donegal, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 11 February 1766 for John Savile, 1st Baron Pollington, Member of Parliament for Hedon and New Shoreham. He had already been c ...

as a second home. In 1958, their main home, Methley Hall, was demolished, and some of its fixtures were moved to Arden Hall. The house was

grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

in 1955. The house is built of

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

, with projecting

quoins Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th-century encyclopedia, ...

, floor bands, and roofs of stone slate, Welsh

slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

and

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland''R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref>) is an area of North West England which was Historic counties of England, historically a county. People of the area ...

slate, with

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

coping Coping refers to conscious or unconscious strategies used to reduce and manage unpleasant emotions. Coping strategies can be cognitions or behaviors and can be individual or social. To cope is to deal with struggles and difficulties in life. It ...

and shaped kneelers. It has three storeys, the top storey a later addition, a front range of seven

bays A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

, and rear cross-wings. The central doorway has a divided

fanlight A fanlight is a form of lunette window (transom window), often semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing (window), glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open Hand fan, fan. It is placed over another window or a doorway, ...

in a moulded

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...

and a segmental

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

. The windows are

sashes A sash is a large and usually colorful ribbon or band of material worn around the human body, either draping from one shoulder to the opposing hip and back up, or else encircling the waist. The sash around the waist may be worn in daily attire, ...

, those in the lower two floors with

lintels A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented/structural item. In the case of ...

and keystones. Inside, there is an entrance hall with a grand three-flight staircase. The southeast ground floor room has mid 18th-century panelling from Methley Hall, while the southwest room has reset 17th-century panelling including a frieze, and an early-18th century door. The office has a large 17th-century fireplace, while the dining room has a particularly impressive

chimneypiece The fireplace mantel or mantelpiece, also known as a chimneypiece, originated in medieval times as a smoke canopy, hood that projected over a fire grate to catch the smoke. The term has evolved to include the decorative framework around the fi ...

of about 1700, from Methley. The first floor landing has early 18th-century fittings and a

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

from late in the century. The central room has reset 17th-century panelling and an early 18th-century cornice. The southeast room has mid-18th century panelling and a marble chimneypiece from Methley, while the southwest room has reset early-17th century panelling.

References

{{Coord, 54, 18, 30.960, N, 1, 12, 10.836, W, display=title Country houses in North Yorkshire Grade II* listed buildings in North Yorkshire

See also

References