Photo: Rokeby Park by Oliver Dixon, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Rokeby Park is a Grade I listed historic house in County Durham, and a member of Historic Houses. Read about its history and architecture, plus how to visit and what's nearby.
About Rokeby Park
Completed in 1735 by Sir Thomas Robinson, Rokeby Park is a Palladian country house near Barnard Castle in County Durham.
It holds a rare surviving print room and a set of eighteenth-century needlework pictures by Anne Morritt.
Historic Houses covers the property, which remains the private home of the Morritt family.
Diego Velázquez's Toilet of Venus, now known as the Rokeby Venus, hung in the house for approximately 90 years before being acquired for the National Gallery in 1906.
Read more on WikipediaHistory of Rokeby Park
Sir Thomas Robinson, an amateur architect of some reputation in Georgian circles, built and owned the house, then known as Rokeby Hall, until 1769, when he sold it to J.S. Morritt. The Morritt family has held it ever since, with Sir Andrew Morritt the current owner. Sir Walter Scott was a frequent visitor and set his 1812 narrative poem Rokeby in its grounds, lending the house its enduring literary association.
Architecture of Rokeby Park
Robinson designed the house in strict Palladian proportion, following the ideals of Andrea Palladio, and it is considered one of the purest expressions of the style built in northern England.
Worth knowing
Sir Walter Scott stayed often at Rokeby and used it as the setting for his poem of the same name, published in 1812.
Plan your visit to Rokeby Park
Nearest station: Shildon Rail Station (11.9 miles)
Places to visit near Rokeby Park
Bowes Museum
View Bowes Museum on heritage mapBarnard Castle
View Barnard Castle on heritage mapBowes Castle
View Bowes Castle on heritage mapHistoric places nearby
Within 5 miles of Rokeby Park there are 4 historic properties, including 2 historic buildings, across English Heritage and Historic Houses sites.
Within 10 miles of Rokeby Park there are 11 historic properties, including 4 historic buildings and 3 castles, across English Heritage, Historic Houses and Churches Conservation Trust sites.
Within 20 miles of Rokeby Park there are 24 historic properties, including 7 historic buildings, 7 castles and 4 churchs, across English Heritage, Historic Houses and Churches Conservation Trust sites.
Facts
The Palladian house that gave Sir Walter Scott his poem and once housed the original Rokeby Venus.
- Type
- historic house
- Location
- County Durham, England
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