Burton Constable is a large Elizabethan mansion set in a 300 acre park with nearly 30 rooms open to the public. The interiors of faded splendour are filled with fine furniture, paintings and sculpture, a library of 5,000 books and a remarkable 18th century ‘cabinet of curiosities' which contains fossils, natural history specimens and the most important collection of scientific instruments to be found in any country house. Occupied by the Constable family for over 400 years, the house still maintains the atmosphere of a home.

The superb 18th and 19th century interiors include a Gallery, Dining and Drawing Rooms, Bedrooms, Chapel and Chinese Room. A total of 30 rooms are open to view and these include some fascinating 'below stairs' areas such as an intriguing Lamp Room.

 

In 2007/8 the exhibition ‘Work & Play – Life on the Yorkshire Country House Estate' turns its attention to the great outdoors. Work and play were indivisible in many respects on the Country Estates – although whether the activity was ‘work' or ‘play' depended very much on your social position.

The Constable family have held lands in Yorkshire since the early twelfth century and have been Lords of the east riding coastal plain of Holderness since 1560. Their history is interwoven with the history of the region, touching the lives of local people through tenancy, employment, patronage and charitable works. The story of the Burton Constable estate is a fascinating one encompassing tales of Gardeners and Groomsmen, Huntsmen and Hermits, ‘Whippers-in' and Whales!

 

 

Outside the house there are gardens with statues, a delightful orangery ornamented with coade stone, a stable block and wild fowl lakes set in 300 acres of parkland landscaped by ‘Capability' Brown in the 1770's.

 

 

 

 

(Image courtesy of Peter Frankland)

To view the site plan of the Hall and Grounds click here

 

The Burton Constable Foundation, a charitable trust set up in 1992 with an endowment from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, runs Burton Constable Hall as a Country House Museum.

Registered Charity No.1010121 Registered Museum No. 604