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Arley Hall is a

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire 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 Townhou ...

in the village of Arley,

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

, England, about south of

Lymm Lymm ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Warrington, Cheshire, England. It incorporates the hamlets of Booths Hill, Broomedge, Church Green, Deansgreen, Heatley, Heatley Heath, Little Heatley, Oughtrington, Reddish, Rushgreen and ...

and north of

Northwich Northwich is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire West and Chester borough of Cheshire, England. It lies on the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane, east of Chester, south of Warrington and south of Ma ...

. It is home to the owner, Viscount Ashbrook, and his family. The house is a Grade II*

listed building 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, Hi ...

, as is its adjacent chapel. Formal gardens to the southwest of the hall are also listed as Grade II* on the

National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England {{R from move ...

{{R from move ...

. In the grounds are more listed buildings, a

cruck A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which support the roof of a building, historically used in England and Wales. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally naturally curved, timber members that lean inwards and ...

barn being listed as Grade I, and the other buildings as Grade II. The hall was built for Rowland Egerton-Warburton between 1832 and 1845, to replace an earlier house on the site. Local architect George Latham designed the house in a style which has become known as

Jacobethan The Jacobethan ( ) architectural style, also known as Jacobean Revival, is the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the Engli ...

, copying elements of

Elizabethan architecture Elizabethan architecture refers to buildings in a local style of Renaissance architecture built during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England from 1558 to 1603. The style is very largely confined to secular buildings, especially the large ...

. A

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

chapel designed by

Anthony Salvin Anthony Salvin (17 October 1799 – 17 December 1881) was an English architect. He gained a reputation as an expert on Middle Ages, medieval buildings and applied this expertise to his new buildings and his restorations, such as those of the ...

was subsequently built next to the hall. By the mid-20th century, parts of the house were in poor condition and were demolished, to be replaced by five private homes in a matching architectural style. The present gardens were created in the 1830s, and were developed during the 20th century. The garden's

herbaceous border A herbaceous border is a collection of perennial herbaceous plants (plants that live for more than two years and are soft-stemmed and non-woody) arranged closely together, usually to create a dramatic effect through colour, shape or large scale. ...

was the first of its type in England. The house and its gardens have been open to the public since the 1960s, and have also been used as a film location. Stockley Farm, part of the Arley estate, is an additional visitor attraction for children and families.

Hall

History

The Arley estate has been part of the land held by the Warburton family since the end of the 12th century. In 1469 Piers Warburton moved his principal seat from Warburton in Trafford, to Arley, and built the first house on the site. It consisted of a U-shaped building with the centre of the 'U' facing south. At the north was the

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...

, long by wide. The high table was at the west end and the west wing contained the family apartments. The east wing was the servants' wing and included the buttery,

pantry A pantry is a room or cupboard where beverages, food, (sometimes) dishes, household cleaning products, linens or provisions are stored within a home or office. Food and beverage pantries serve in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen. Etymol ...

and kitchens. The original Arley Hall was constructed as a

timber-framed Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

building, and was surrounded by a square

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

. A three-storey south front was added in about 1570, making the house a complete square with a large internal

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

. In the 18th century the structure of the house was deteriorating, so in 1758 Sir Peter Warburton, 4th Baronet, completely encased the building in new brick walls. These were finished with

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and ...

to make Neoclassical

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

s. The massive old chimneys were removed and replaced with small

flue A flue is a duct, pipe, or opening in a chimney for conveying exhaust gases from a fireplace, furnace, water heater, boiler, or generator to the outdoors. Historically the term flue meant the chimney itself. In the United States, they a ...

s within the new walls. Between 1760 and 1763

Elizabeth Raffald Elizabeth Raffald (; 1733 – 19 April 1781) was an English author, innovator and entrepreneur. Born and raised in Doncaster, Yorkshire, Raffald went into domestic service for fifteen years, ending as the housekeeper to the Warburton baron ...

, author of one of the century's most successful cookery books, ''

The Experienced English Housekeeper ''The Experienced English Housekeeper'' is a cookery book by the English businesswoman Elizabeth Raffald (1733–1781). It was first published in 1769, and went through 13 authorised editions and at least 23 pirated ones. The book contains s ...

'', worked as the housekeeper at Arley. Structural problems continued. In 1813 the house and estate were inherited by Rowland Egerton-Warburton, who was only aged eight. In 1818 plans were drawn up by

Lewis Wyatt Lewis William Wyatt (1777–1853) was a British architect, a nephew of both Samuel and James Wyatt of the Wyatt family of architects, who articled with each of his uncles and began practice on his own about 1805. Lewis Wyatt is known primarily f ...

to rebuild the west front in Neoclassical style, but these were not implemented. Egerton-Warburton

came of age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can be ...

(21) in 1826 and decided to completely replace the house. His intention was that the house should reflect the antiquity of his inheritance, but that it should be constructed using techniques which were modern at the time. He chose George Latham as his architect. Latham, who was practising in

Nantwich Nantwich ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It has among the highest concentrations of listed buildings in England, with notably good examples of Tudor and Georgian architecture ...

, was at that time in his twenties and was relatively unknown. He submitted four schemes for a symmetrical Gothic house, but these were not accepted. Then Latham prepared new plans which he called "Queen Elizabethan". He suggested that this could be built for about £5,000–6,000. Every feature in the house had to have an exact model in an existing Elizabethan building. Egerton-Warburton and Latham visited 16th-century houses and studied illustrations to ensure that the features were dated correctly to Queen Elizabeth's reign. The first phase of the building took place between 1832 and 1835 when the east, north and west wings of the old building were demolished. The house was equipped with modern plumbing and it was raised on arches above the damp Cheshire clays. The second phase of building work, carried out between 1840 and 1845, replaced the old south front. The final cost of the house was almost £30,000 (equivalent to £ in ). In the 20th century Elizabeth Egerton-Warburton inherited the estate. She married Desmond Flower, who became the 10th Viscount Ashbrook, in 1934. Later in the century, parts of the south front were affected by

dry rot Dry rot is wood decay caused by one of several species of fungi that digest parts of wood which give it strength and stiffness. It was previously used to describe any decay of cured wood in ships and buildings by a fungus which resulted in a ...

and decay of the stonework; these were demolished in 1968, together with some of the servants' quarters, kitchens and offices, and notably the dining room on the site of the older Great Hall, to reduce maintenance costs. However this was considered detrimental to the building's architectural integrity, so in 1987 the lost wings were replaced by five new houses, modelled on the style of the hall. These houses were sold as private residences to raise money for the estate.

Architecture

Exterior

Designed in an "L" shape, the house is built of red brick with blue

diaper A diaper (, North American English) or a nappy (British English, Australian English, Hiberno-English) is a type of underwear that allows the wearer to urinate or defecate without using a toilet, by absorbing or containing waste products to p ...

patterning and stone dressings under a slate roof. It has two principal floors plus attics and a basement. The windows have stone surrounds,

mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid sup ...

s and transoms. The south front is symmetrical, with seven bays and a pierced stone

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

. The external bays project forwards and have canted windows. A single-storey porch extends from the central bay. The building has a segmented entrance ornamented by a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

in the

spandrel A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...

s flanked by Ionic columns. The west front includes a first-floor

oriel window An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supported by corbels, bracket (architecture), brackets, or similar cantilevers, an oriel window generally projects from an ...

. The chimneys are in Tudor style, grouped in threes and fours.

Interior

The principal entrance was formerly through the porch on the south front, but its large doors caused too many draughts. In 1862 an entrance was created in the west front, leading to the West Hall, which contains panelling from the old house. The West Hall in turn leads into the Library, which has one of Latham's most elaborate ceilings. The windows contain French stained glass, designed and made in Paris by M. Lusson. The Library leads to the former Front Hall, which was transformed into the Dining Room when the original dining room was demolished in 1968. In the Dining Room is a portrait of a noblemen, attributed to Cornelis Jonson. The Gallery was the family's principal sitting-room during the 19th century. The overmantel of the

fireplace A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design. ...

contains sculptures depicting

St George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the R ...

slaying the dragon and, on each side,

personification Personification is the representation of a thing or abstraction as a person, often as an embodiment or incarnation. In the arts, many things are commonly personified, including: places, especially cities, National personification, countries, an ...

s of

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large. As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...

and

Patience or forbearance, is the ability to endure difficult or undesired long-term circumstances. Patience involves perseverance or tolerance in the face of delay, provocation, or stress without responding negatively, such as reacting with disrespect ...

, with appropriate inscriptions. The Drawing Room is in a different style from the other rooms on the ground floor, being plastered rather than panelled, and it contains much

gilding Gilding is a decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold over solid surfaces such as metal (most common), wood, porcelain, or stone. A gilded object is also described as "gilt". Where metal is gilded, the metal below was tradi ...

. The room is devoted to the memory of Rowland Egerton-Warburton and contains a number of family portraits. Its coved ceiling, also designed by Latham, has a

frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

depicting birds eating grapes. The final room on the ground floor open to the public is the Small Dining Room. It has a

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

-shaped ceiling, again designed by Latham. In the room is a

virginal The virginals is a keyboard instrument of the harpsichord family. It was popular in Europe during the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. Description A virginals is a smaller and simpler, rectangular or polygonal, form of harpsichord. ...

dated 1675 by Stephen Keene, and is one of the oldest surviving English

keyboard instrument A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument played using a keyboard, a row of levers that are pressed by the fingers. The most common of these are the piano, organ, and various electronic keyboards, including synthesizers and digital piano ...

s. Its front is decorated with portraits of Charles II and Queen Catherine. The Grand Staircase is considered to be Latham's finest work in the house. The staircase itself and the doorways are made of

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

, and the decoration is in plasterwork and

strapwork In the history of art and design, strapwork is the use of stylised representations in ornament of ribbon-like forms. These may loosely imitate leather straps, parchment or metal cut into elaborate shapes, with piercings, and often interwoven in ...

. Above the staircase is a glass-walled domed ceiling. On the upper floor, the South Bay Bedroom was originally the principal bedroom. It contains a collection of

watercolours Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting method"Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to the S ...

by Elizabeth Ashbrook. The Exhibition Room occupies a former dressing room and contains information about the history of the hall. The Emperor's Room is named after Prince Louis Napoleon, later

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

, who stayed in the hall during the winter of 1847–48. It contains watercolours by Piers Egerton-Warburton, including pictures of

buildings in Northwest England and views of Arley and

Great Budworth Great Budworth is a village and civil parish in Cheshire, England, north of Northwich off the A559 road, east of Comberbach, northwest of Higher Marston and southeast of Budworth Heath. Until 1948, Great Budworth was part of the Arley Hall esta ...

. The final room on the upper floor open to the public is the General's Room, dedicated to the memory of Sir George Higginson, the great-grandfather of the present Viscount Ashbrook, and contains memorabilia relating to him. Leading back to the ground floor is the Small Staircase, with its

balustrade A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its ...

of oak capped with

mahogany Mahogany is a straight- grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Universit ...

Chapel

History

Rowland Egerton-Warburton, influenced by the

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a theological movement of high-church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the Un ...

, decided to add a Gothic

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

to the north-east of the house, and commissioned

for the design. The chapel was consecrated in September 1845. In 1856–57 a north

aisle An aisle is a linear space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, in buildings such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parliaments, courtrooms, ...

and entrance porch designed by George Street were added. The chapel is dedicated to St Mary. The organ was made by Kirtland and Jardine of

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

and services still take place in the chapel.

Architecture

The chapel is built in red

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 ...

and rendered brick with a slate and tile roof. The sandstone came from quarries in

Runcorn Runcorn is an industrial town and Runcorn Docks, cargo port in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England. Runcorn is on the south bank of the River Mersey, where the estuary narrows to form the Runcorn Gap. It is upstream from the port of Live ...

. Its plan consists of a four-bay nave with a north aisle, a two-bay

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

, a porch and a bell turret to the north. On the east front is a canted

supported on a

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...

. The bell turret is octagonal with eight lancet openings at the bell stage and is surmounted by a red-tiled spirelet. Inside the chapel is a richly painted iron screen, which hides the central heating, and three corona-shaped

chandelier A chandelier () is an ornamental lighting device, typically with spreading branched supports for multiple lights, designed to be hung from the ceiling. Chandeliers are often ornate, and they were originally designed to hold candles, but now inca ...

s. The stained glass in the east window, dated 1895, is by Kempe. The

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a ''typeface'', defined as the set of fonts that share an overall design. For instance, the typeface Bauer Bodoni (shown in the figure) includes fonts " Roman" (or "regul ...

is a richly carved stone bowl on a cluster of

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

columns. In the chancel is a

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Lutherans and Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a pisci ...

and a triple

sedilia In church architecture, sedilia (plural of Latin ''sedīle'', "seat") are seats, typically made of stone, located on the liturgical south side of the altar—often within the chancel—intended for use by the officiating priest, deacon, an ...

Gardens

History

The first gardens were created in the 18th century by Sir Peter Warburton, 4th Baronet, who developed pleasure grounds, a walled

kitchen garden The traditional kitchen garden, vegetable garden, also known as a potager (from the French ) or in Scotland a kailyaird, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden – the ornamental plants and lawn areas. It is used for grow ...

and a landscape park. Sir Peter Warburton, 5th Baronet, enlarged the park and engaged

William Emes William Emes (1729 or 1730–13 March 1803) was an English landscape gardener. Biography Details of his early life are not known but in 1756 he was appointed head gardener to Sir Nathaniel Curzon at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire. He left this post ...

to develop a plan for the park and gardens. These gardens were mainly to the east of the house. In the 19th century Rowland and Mary Egerton-Warburton began to develop the area to the west of the house as pleasure gardens. The new features included a

ha-ha A ha-ha ( or ), also known as a sunk fence, blind fence, ditch and fence, deer wall, or foss, is a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier (particularly on one side) while preserving an uninterrupted view of the lan ...

designed by George Latham. The present gardens are much as the Egerton-Warburtons designed them. During the Second World War and for some years afterwards, the gardens were used to provide food for the house, and a skeleton staff prevented the pleasure gardens from total decay. In 1960 the gardens were opened to the public. They continue to be maintained in the style of a pre-war country house garden.

Description

The gardens and landscape park have been designated as Grade II* in the

{{R from move ...
. Designation as Grade II* on the Register means that the site is "particularly important, of more than special interest". They have been described as "some of the finest in Britain". The formal gardens cover an area of . The visitor approaches the hall and gardens along an avenue of pleached lime trees which are clipped each year. The main path passes under the Clock Tower (see below) and a path on the right leads into the Flag Garden, so-called because its paths are formed from flagstones. This leads to the Furlong Drive, a straight path leading in a southwesterly direction from the house to the Sundial Circle, which is exactly a

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

() in length. Parkland lies on the southeast side of the path, and this is separated from the formal gardens by the ha-ha. To the north of this path is the double

Herbaceous Border A herbaceous border is a collection of perennial herbaceous plants (plants that live for more than two years and are soft-stemmed and non-woody) arranged closely together, usually to create a dramatic effect through colour, shape or large scale. ...

, which was the first of its type in England. It consists of four pairs of

flowerbed A flower garden or floral garden is any garden or part of a garden where plants that flower are grown and displayed. This normally refers mostly to herbaceous plants, rather than flowering woody plants, which dominate in the shrubbery and wo ...

s which are backed on one side by a 19th-century wall and on the other by a

yew Yew is a common name given to various species of trees. It is most prominently given to any of various coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus '' Taxus'': * European yew or common yew (''Taxus baccata'') * Pacific yew or western yew ('' Taxus ...

hedge. Between the sections of the border are yews which have been pruned into decorative shapes. To the south of the herbaceous border is the Ilex Avenue which consists of seven pairs of holm oaks clipped into the shape of cylinders high and in diameter. In the angle between the Herbaceous Border and the Ilex Avenue is the Shrub Rose Garden. Arley Hall Ilex

At the southwest end of the Furlong Drive is the Sundial Circle, which contains a

sundial A sundial is a horology, horological device that tells the time of day (referred to as civil time in modern usage) when direct sunlight shines by the position of the Sun, apparent position of the Sun in the sky. In the narrowest sense of the ...

surrounded by a lawn and borders of shrub-roses and other flowering shrubs. From the Sundial Circle a path leads into an area known as the Rootree. This was created in the 19th century as an alpine

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small ...

but since 1960 it has been planted with flowering shrubs. From the Rootery paths lead to the Fish Garden, a small sunken garden containing a pond, and to the Rough, a semi-wild area. From the north end of the Ilex Avenue a gate leads into the Walled Garden. This was formerly one of the

s and was redesigned in 1960. It contains a pond surrounded by statues of four

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

beasts which were originally on the roof of the house. In the centre of the pond is a modern flower sculpture designed by Tom Leaper. This garden also contains lawns, trees and shrubs. To its east is the Kitchen Garden, where vegetables as well as flowers and crab apples are grown. To the east of the Kitchen Garden are two small gardens, the Herb Garden and the Scented Garden, the former containing

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

s and the latter strongly scented flowers and shrubs. The latest area to have been developed is the Grove, to the north and northeast of the hall. This formerly contained the path leading from Arley Green to the chapel but by the early 20th century it had become neglected. Beginning in about 1970 the area has been cleared and planted with a variety of trees, shrubs and bulbs. At the extreme east of the Grove a woodland walk has been created.

Other features

The main entrance to the grounds is through an arch over which is the 19th-century Clock Tower. The clock it contains has only one hand. Extending from the south of the Clock Tower is a building now known as The Ride. This was originally a barn built in 1471 and converted into an indoor riding school in the 19th century. It is a

timber framed Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs. If the struc ...

building with brick infill on a stone

plinth A pedestal or plinth is a support at the bottom of a statue, vase, column, or certain altars. Smaller pedestals, especially if round in shape, may be called socles. In civil engineering, it is also called ''basement''. The minimum height o ...

with a slate roof. Internally there are seven

truss A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as Beam (structure), beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so ...

es. This building is listed Grade I. A Grade I building is one which is "of exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important." In the other direction, extending to the north of the Clock Tower is another barn, this one dating from about 1602. It is built in brick with stone dressings and has a slate roof. It is now used as a tea shop and kitchen, and is listed Grade II. A Grade II building is "nationally important and of special interest". The forecourt walls and gate piers at the south front of the hall, and the balustrade to the east of the hall are listed Grade II. Both the Walled Garden and the Kitchen Garden are listed Grade II. At the western end of the Herbaceous Border is a structure known as The Alcove which was built about 1790. This is a garden seat enclosed in a decorated surround built in brick, rendered brick and stone. It is listed Grade II. Arley Hall Clock Tower

Attached to the north wall of the Kitchen Garden is a

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

known as the Vinery which was built in 1872–73. It contains

fig trees ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending in ...

which were planted shortly after it was built. Originally this had a curved rood but this was replaced in 1921 by the present straight roof. It is listed Grade II. A

in the south forecourt of the house is also a Grade II listed structure. It dates from the 18th century and consists of a lead figure of a kneeling American Indian in a

loincloth A loincloth is a one-piece garment, either wrapped around itself or kept in place by a belt. It covers the genitals and sometimes the buttocks. Loincloths which are held up by belts or strings are specifically known as breechcloth or breechclo ...

on a stone base with the dial on his head and a 20th-century

gnomon A gnomon (; ) is the part of a sundial that casts a shadow. The term is used for a variety of purposes in mathematics and other fields, typically to measure directions, position, or time. History A painted stick dating from 2300 BC that was ...

. To the north of the Shrub Rose Garden is a

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

building known as the Tea Cottage. This was built in the mid-19th century and was used by the family for

afternoon tea Tea is an umbrella term for several different meals consisting of food accompanied by tea to drink. The English writer Isabella Beeton, whose books on home economics were widely read in the 19th century, describes meals of various kinds an ...

and garden parties; it now contains panels bearing verses, which were previously part of the tower above the south front of the main house (demolished in 1968). In the Kitchen Garden are two structures. One is a seat enclosed by an arch of

Malus ''Malus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 32–57 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including the domesticated orchard apple, crab apples (sometimes known in North America as crabapples) and wild apples. The genus i ...

trees, known as the Malus Seat. Opposite this is a highly decorated

arbour Arbor(s) or Arbour(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Arbor (installation), ''Arbor'' (installation), a 2013 public artwork in Indianapolis, Indiana, US * Arbor, a counterweight-carrying device found in theater fly system#Arbors, fly syste ...

made from white-painted wirework. The estate occupies an area of , which includes Stockley Farm's . Stockley is an

organic farm Organic farming, also known as organic agriculture or ecological farming or biological farming,Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2024 on organic production and labelling of ...

growing fruit and other crops, and also has 200 milking cows. It is open to the public and is organised as a tourist attraction, particularly targeted at children.

Present day

The hall and estate are situated to the south east of the village of Arley, at the end of a minor road running south from Appleton Thorn. The hall was designated as a Grade II* listed building on 5 March 1959, and the chapel was given the same grading on 7 September 1979. The hall, chapel, gardens, and grounds, are open to the public at advertised times. The hall is licensed for civil wedding ceremonies. Parts of the hall can be hired for private and corporate functions. The hall has been used as a location for filming. A variety of events take place in the hall and its grounds, which, along with the Tudor Barn, are available for corporate or private hire. In January 2009, a further venue was opened. This was converted from former barns, is named ''Olympia'', and has facilities for corporate events, weddings and parties. The Tudor Barn has been converted to a licensed restaurant, and a shop and plant nursery are nearby. In 1987 the gardens won the ''Christie's Garden of the Year'' Award. In 2008 they were selected as one of the ''Gardens of Distinction'' for Cheshire's ''Year of the Gardens''. Stockley Farm is also open to the public at advertised times. The farm was given the award of ''Farm Attraction of the year 2007'' through the National Farm Attractions Network and in 2008 was the ''Supreme Champion Farm'' in the Cheshire Farms Competition. Arley Hall is used as a location for filming and photoshoots. It appeared in the series ''Cluedo'' as Arlington Grange and has doubled as Soames' house in ''The Forsyte Saga''. It was also used as a backdrop for ''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' and has been the scene of two ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...

'' weddings. In 2016, it appeared in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

television show ''

Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1920s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to working-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...

'', doubling as a house in

Arrow, Warwickshire Arrow is a village in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. Together with the entirely rural hamlet of Weethley, it forms since 1 April 2004 the civil parish of Arrow with Weethley. The parish lies midway between Redditch an ...

, the home of the main character, Thomas Shelby. The

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

drama, '' Fool Me Once'' was filmed here. A small part of the 2024 film ''Kraven the Hunter'' was also filmed at Arley Hall.

References

;Sources * * * * *

External links

* {{Authority control 1845 establishments in England Houses completed in 1845 Gardens in Cheshire Historic house museums in Cheshire Tourist attractions in Cheshire Grade II* listed buildings in Cheshire Clock towers in the United Kingdom Country houses in Cheshire Jacobethan architecture

Hall

History

Architecture

Exterior

Interior

Chapel

History

Architecture

Gardens

History

Description

Other features

Present day

See also

References

External links