Photo: Hartland Abbey by Greenshed, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
About this place
Henry VIII gave Hartland Abbey to the Keeper of his Wine Cellar in 1539, and his descendants, the Stucley family, still live here.
The house began life as a monastery built in 1157 and consecrated in 1160 on the wild Atlantic coast of North Devon, and it survived as a working abbey longer than any other in England.
Inside are collections built up over generations, from medieval features to Georgian and Victorian rooms, alongside Chinese porcelain and family portraits.
Hartland Abbey remains privately owned and open to visitors, with walled and woodland gardens leading down to a cove at Blackpool Mill.
Read more on WikipediaHistory
The abbey was built in 1157 and consecrated in 1160, functioning as a religious house until Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries in 1539, when the property passed into private hands and eventually to the Stucley family. The present owner is Sir Hugh George Copplestone Bampfylde Stucley, 6th Baronet, continuing a line of family ownership stretching back to the Tudor grant.
Architecture
The house shows work from the medieval, Queen Anne, Georgian, Regency and Victorian periods, reflecting continuous alteration by successive generations of the family.
Worth knowing
The estate has featured in several film and television productions, including the BBC's Sense and Sensibility and John le Carré's The Night Manager. More recently it appeared in HBO's House of the Dragon and ITV's The Long Call.
Gardens & grounds
The 18th-century walled and woodland gardens run down through a wooded valley to a cove at Blackpool Mill.
Plan your visit
Nearest station: Barnstaple Rail Station (20.1 miles)
Open April to October; check official website for current opening dates
Nearby properties
Embury Beacon camp
View Embury Beacon camp on heritage mapSandymouth Beach
View Sandymouth Beach on heritage mapTapeley Park
View Tapeley Park on heritage mapDunsland
View Dunsland on heritage mapPenhallam
View Penhallam on heritage mapHistoric places nearby
Within 5 miles of Hartland Abbey there are 1 historic properties, including 1 historic building.
Within 10 miles of Hartland Abbey there are 2 historic properties, including 2 historic buildings.
Within 20 miles of Hartland Abbey there are 6 historic properties, including 4 historic buildings, across National Trust, English Heritage and Historic Houses sites.
Facts
A Tudor gift to a wine cellar keeper became a family home now beloved by film and TV crews.
- Type
- historic house
- Location
- Devon, England
- Visit duration
- Allow 2½–3 hours including gardens and grounds.
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