Photo source: waterborough, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
About this place
Godolphin Estate stands at Godolphin Cross, about four miles north-west of Helston in Cornwall.
The Grade I listed house was built up over centuries by the Godolphin family, whose fortune came from the tin mines that once covered this stretch of west Cornwall.
Its granite colonnaded front, added in the 1630s, is unlike anything else on a Cornish manor house.
The National Trust looks after the estate today, alongside its farmland and ancient gardens.
Read more on WikipediaHistory
The Godolphin family held land here from at least the 15th century, building and remodelling the house from the late 1400s onwards. Their wealth from tin mining funded successive rebuilding through the Tudor and Stuart periods. In the twentieth century the Schofield family restored the house after decades of decline before it passed to the National Trust in 2007.
Architecture
The house grew in phases from a medieval hall, with its most distinctive feature being the granite colonnaded front added around the 1630s, an unusual survival for a Cornish manor of this date.
Gardens & grounds
The gardens retain a layout thought to date from the medieval period, making them one of the least altered formal garden plans surviving in England.
Facilities
Plan your visit
Nearest station: Hayle Rail Station (4.3 miles)
Open to the public for the first week of every month (first Saturday to Thursday), except January. Check the official National Trust website for specific dates and opening times.
Nearby properties
Penrose, Cornwall
View Penrose, Cornwall on heritage mapSt Michael's Mount
View St Michael's Mount on heritage mapTrencrom Hill
View Trencrom Hill on heritage mapEast Pool mine
View East Pool mine on heritage mapChysauster Ancient Village
View Chysauster Ancient Village on heritage mapHistoric places nearby
Within 5 miles of Godolphin Estate (TR13) there are 1 historic properties, including 1 historic building.
Within 10 miles of Godolphin Estate (TR13) there are 11 historic properties, including 7 historic buildings and 2 historic houses, across National Trust, English Heritage and Historic Houses sites.
Within 20 miles of Godolphin Estate (TR13) there are 27 historic properties, including 14 historic buildings, 6 archaeological sites and 3 historic houses, across National Trust, English Heritage and Historic Houses sites.
Facts
A Cornish manor with a 1630s granite colonnade and a garden layout barely changed since medieval times.
- Type
- historic building
- Location
- Cornwall, England
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