Staunton Harold Hall is a large 18th-century Grade I listed country house built by the

Earls Ferrers Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...

, situated within the Staunton Harold Park in

Staunton Harold Staunton Harold is a civil parish in North West Leicestershire about north of Ashby-de-la-Zouch. The parish is on the county boundary with Derbyshire and about south of Derby. The 2011 Census (including Lount) recorded the parish's populatio ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

, England, which includes the 17th-century Grade I listed Holy Trinity Chapel (Staunton Harold church).

History

The Shirley family had lived in Staunton Harold for many generations. Sir Robert Shirley built the church in the hall grounds in 1653 in the Commonwealth era. The present hall was originally a Jacobean building built for

Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers PC (20 October 1650 – 25 December 1717)—known as Sir Robert Shirley, 7th Baronet, from 1669 to 1677 and Robert Shirley, 14th Baron Ferrers of Chartley, from 1677 to 1711—was an English peer and courtier. ...

as a family seat for the newly ennobled Shirley family and remained so until the 20th century. The fourth earl,

Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers (18 August 1720 – 5 May 1760) was an English nobleman, notable for being the last peerage, peer to be hanging, hanged, following his conviction for murdering his steward. Biography Shirley was the el ...

, was tried, condemned and hanged for killing his steward. The hall was rebuilt in its present form in 1763 for

Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers Vice Admiral Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers, FRS (26 May 1722 – 1 October 1778) was a British Royal Navy officer, hereditary peer, freemason and amateur astronomer. Early life Ferrers was the second son of Hon Laurence Shirley (fourth ...

. It is a Georgian two-storey brick house with stone dressings in the form of a square enclosing a quadrangle.

Sewallis Shirley, 10th Earl Ferrers Sewallis Edward Shirley, 10th Earl Ferrers KStJ (24 January 1847 – 26 July 1912), styled Viscount Tamworth until 1859, was a British hereditary peer. Early life and education Ferrers was the elder son of Washington Sewallis Shirley, 9th Earl Fe ...

inherited the hall in 1859 and sold most of the land.

Robert Shirley, 12th Earl Ferrers Robert Walter Shirley, 12th Earl Ferrers (7 July 1894 – 11 October 1954), was a British Conservative politician and hereditary peer. Early life and education Lord Ferrers was born in 1894, the elder son Walter Shirley, 11th Earl Ferrers and h ...

gifted the church to the National Trust and put the estate up for auction. In 1955 it was acquired by

Leonard Cheshire Geoffrey Leonard Cheshire, Baron Cheshire, (7 September 1917 – 31 July 1992) was a British Royal Air Force pilot, officer and philanthropist. Cheshire fought in the Second World War. Among the decorations Cheshire received as a pilot w ...

for use as a

Cheshire Home Leonard Cheshire is a major health and welfare charity working in the United Kingdom and running development projects around the world. It was founded in 1948 by Royal Air Force officer Group Captain Leonard Cheshire VC. Leonard Cheshire's aim ...

and sold in 1980 to be used as a

Sue Ryder Care Sue Ryder is a British palliative and bereavement support charity based in the United Kingdom. Formed as The Sue Ryder Foundation in 1953 by World War II Special Operations Executive volunteer Sue Ryder, the organisation provides care and supp ...

home. The Hall once again became a family home in 2003. The stable block is occupied by a number of small craft enterprises as th
Ferrers Centre for Arts and Crafts

References

External links

Staunton Harold Estate
official website {{Coord, 52.7844, -1.4389, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Country houses in Leicestershire Grade I listed buildings in Leicestershire Houses completed in 1763 Grade I listed houses Georgian architecture in England North West Leicestershire District