Knole facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Knole |
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Knole in 2009
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| Type | Country house |
| Location | TQ53955420 |
| Area | Kent |
| Built | Mostly 1455–1608 |
| Architectural style(s) | Jacobean architecture with other earlier and later styles |
| Owner | National Trust |
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Listed Building – Grade I
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| Official name: Knole | |
| Designated | 14 April 1951 |
| Reference no. | 1336390 |
| Official name: Knole | |
| Designated | 1 May 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1000183 |
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Knole (/noʊl/) is a huge country house and a former palace for archbishops. It is owned by the National Trust, a charity that protects historic places. Knole is located inside Knole Park, a 1,000-acre (400-hectare) park near Sevenoaks in west Kent, England. It is one of the five largest houses in England, covering about four acres!
The house you see today was mostly built between the mid-1400s and the early 1600s. It is a Grade I listed building, which means it's very important. This is because it shows a mix of building styles from the late Middle Ages to the Stuart period. In 2019, a big project called "Inspired by Knole" helped restore the buildings and protect its amazing collections. The surrounding deer park has also been looked after for over 400 years.
Knole's Story
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Where Knole is Located
Knole is found at the southern edge of Sevenoaks in west Kent. The land around Sevenoaks has sandy soil and lots of woodland. In the Middle Ages, these woods were used for grazing animals and getting timber. Knole estate sits on well-drained land.
It was close enough to London for its owners to easily travel for important government work. King Henry VIII once said it was on "sounde, parfaite, holesome grounde" (healthy, perfect ground). The land also had plenty of spring water. The small hill in front of the house helps protect it. The wooded area provided wood and food for a large household. It was also a perfect place for a deer park, which was set up before the late 1400s.
Early Days of Knole
The first known owner of the main part of the estate was Robert de Knole in the 1290s. We don't know much about his property there. Other families owned the estate until the 1360s, and the "manor of Knole" was first mentioned in 1364.
In 1419, Thomas Langley, who was the Bishop of Durham, bought the estate, which was then over 800 acres. By 1429, he had made it even bigger, to 1,500 acres. The Langley family owned it until the mid-1440s. Then, James Fiennes, the first Lord Saye and Sele, bought it. He also made the estate larger by buying more land nearby. Lord Saye and Sele started building at Knole, but his work was not finished when he died in 1450.
Archbishop Bourchier's Palace
In 1456, James Fiennes's son sold Knole to The Most Rev. Thomas Bourchier, who was the Archbishop of Canterbury. He already had a large property nearby, but he liked Knole's drier, healthier location. Archbishop Bourchier likely started by making big improvements to the existing house.
Between 1456 and 1486, Bourchier oversaw a lot of building work on the house we see today. The house was ready for him by 1459, when he first stayed there. He spent more and more time at Knole in his later years. In 1480, Thomas Cardinal Bourchier, as he became in 1473, gave the house to the Archdiocese of Canterbury.
Over the next few years, Knole House continued to grow. A large courtyard, now called Green Court, and a new entrance tower were added. It was once thought that a later archbishop built these, but studies suggest Bourchier was responsible. He used the peaceful time after King Edward IV returned to power in 1471 to invest more in his property.
Knole in Tudor Times
After Cardinal Bourchier died in 1486, the next four archbishops lived at Knole. These included John Morton, Henry Deane, William Warham, and Thomas Cranmer. Sir Thomas More even performed plays there for Archbishop Morton. King Henry VII sometimes visited Knole in the late 1400s.
Cardinal Bourchier had fenced off the park to create a deer park. King Henry VIII often visited Archbishop Warham to hunt deer. After Warham died, and before a new archbishop was chosen, Henry used Knole and his other property at Otford Palace as homes for his daughter, Mary. She stayed at Knole from November 1532 to March 1533.
Thomas Cranmer, the next archbishop, took over all the church properties, but they came with many debts. King Henry VIII kept asking Cranmer to exchange church lands for other properties. This happened between 1536 and 1546. In 1537, the manor of Knole and several other church lands were "exchanged" with Henry VIII. In return, Cranmer received former abbeys and priories.
Knole was given to Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, in August 1547, at the start of King Edward VI's rule. But after Somerset was executed in 1549, it went back to the Crown. Queen Mary I gave the house back to her Archbishop of Canterbury, Reginald Cardinal Pole. However, when they both died in 1558, the house returned to the Crown again.
In the early 1560s, Queen Elizabeth I gave Knole to Robert Dudley. He returned it in 1566 but had already rented it out to Thomas Rolf for 99 years. The agreement allowed the landlord (Dudley) to stay in the main house whenever he wanted. The tenant could also change or rebuild the house. Meanwhile, Elizabeth might have given the estate to her cousin, Thomas Sackville, who was then called Lord Buckhurst.
There was competition for the Knole estate. Rolf died soon after, and a wealthy local lawyer, John Lennard, bought the rest of the lease. He had been buying properties around Sevenoaks. Lord Buckhurst was also trying to get the lease. Knole became a big part of Lennard's land in the area around 1570. However, Buckhurst still had some rights, including owning some of the deer in the park. John Lennard moved to Knole, and his son Sampson rented part of it.
Knole in the Stuart Era and the Sackville Family
Since Robert Dudley had rented Knole for 99 years, Thomas Sackville had to buy out the remaining 51 years of the lease for £4,000 in 1603. Lennard was happy to sell because he had debts and wanted to gain the Dacre title, which he did in 1604. This was likely not a coincidence, as Thomas Sackville was involved in granting the title.
Thomas Sackville's family, the Earls and Dukes of Dorset and Barons Sackville, have owned or lived in Knole ever since. Thomas Sackville, then Lord Buckhurst, had looked at other places to build a grand house. But he chose Knole because it had many benefits: good spring water, plenty of timber, a deer park, and it was close to London.
He immediately started a huge building project. This was supposed to be done in two years, with about 200 workers. But records show that a lot of money was still being spent even in 1608–1609. Sackville had a successful career under Queen Elizabeth and then became the Lord High Treasurer for King James I. This meant he had the money for such a big project. He might have hoped the King would visit Knole after his renovations, but this didn't happen. Thomas Sackville died in April 1608, while the building work was still going on.
Thomas's son, Robert Sackville, the second Earl of Dorset, described his father's work at Knole. He mentioned the new buildings, courts, gardens, and ponds, saying it cost at least £30,000. The second earl did not enjoy Knole for long, as he died in January 1609. His two sons, Richard and Edward, then inherited the titles and estates. None of these earls lived at Knole permanently. The third earl, Richard, mostly lived at court, but he kept his hunting horses and hounds there.
Lady Anne Clifford, the wife of the 3rd Earl, lived at Knole for a while. A list of the household staff from this time still exists. It shows the names and jobs of servants, including two African servants: Grace Robinson, a laundry maid, and John Morockoe, who worked in the kitchen. In 1623, a large part of Knole House burned down.
Knole During the English Civil War
Edward Sackville, the fourth Earl of Dorset, was a royalist (a supporter of the King). In the summer of 1642, during the English Civil War, he was suspected of hiding weapons at Knole for King Charles I. On August 14, 1642, Parliament sent soldiers to seize these weapons. The soldiers caused damage to the house and took away five wagonloads of arms. Edward accepted this, saying it was part of the war.
Parliament set up committees to govern the counties they controlled. For about 12 to 18 months, the Kent Committee was based at Knole. The county treasury was also there, along with a bodyguard of 75 to 150 men. The committee used the Knole estate for supplies and even rented fields from local landowners, including Lady Sackville (Sir John's wife). Meetings were held in the room now called Poets' Parlour. They spent money on sheets, table linen, carpets, silverware, and other items. They also spent money to remove the rails and level the ground in the chapel, which shows the religious changes happening during the war. By April 1645, the committee had moved to Aylesford Priory.
When Edward Sackville died in 1652, his son Richard inherited the earldom and estates, but they were heavily in debt because of fines from Parliament. Richard worked to reduce the debt. His marriage to Lady Frances Cranfield was important for Knole. When her brother died, she inherited other estates, and many of their valuable items were moved to Knole. These included copies of Raphael cartoons and many portraits and pieces of furniture. Charles Sackville, the sixth Earl of Dorset, sold one of these estates in 1701, and more contents were moved to Knole, making its collection even richer.
Charles Sackville was an important person in the court of King Charles II. He was a poet and supported other artists. The "Poets' Parlour" at Knole became a place for writers to meet. John Dryden, a famous poet, was a guest at Knole. Charles supported him with money even after Dryden lost his job as poet laureate. Other poets of that time also visited Knole. The Poets' Parlour is still part of the private Sackville-West family apartments today.
Knole Since the 1700s
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Lionel Sackville, born at Knole in 1688, became a key supporter of the Hanoverian Succession (when the Hanover family became kings of Britain). King George I rewarded him by making him a Knight of the Garter in 1714 and the Duke of Dorset in 1720. He later became the lord lieutenant of Ireland. Lionel died peacefully at Knole House in 1765. His wife, Elizabeth, was a maid of honor to Queen Anne. Her friend, Lady Betty Germain, lived at Knole for so long that her rooms are still named after her.
Lionel's grandson, the 3rd Duke, was very important for Knole. He loved collecting art and had the money to buy many things. He brought back old master paintings from his Grand Tour in 1770. He also supported artists of his time. Sir Joshua Reynolds painted a full-length portrait of him, and the Duke bought several other paintings by Reynolds. Eleven of these are still on display in the Reynolds Room at Knole.
John Frederick's only son died young in 1815. Knole was then left to his daughter Mary, Countess of Plymouth, in 1825. She died without children in 1864, leaving it to her sister Countess De La Warr. The house eventually passed to her fourth son, Mortimer Sackville-West, 1st Baron Sackville. However, Lord Sackville did not have enough money to keep up the house and its collections. He started selling some of the family treasures to maintain the estate.
The Sackville-West family includes the famous writer Vita Sackville-West. Her book, Knole and the Sackvilles, published in 1922, is a classic about English country houses. It has a romantic style and is based on her access to the old family papers.
In December 1922, Vita met Virginia Woolf, who became her friend. Woolf wrote Orlando in 1927–1928. This novel was inspired by the history of Knole and Vita's ancestors. The Sackville family tradition meant that Vita could not inherit Knole when her father died in 1928, because only sons could inherit. Woolf's book was a fantastical version of Knole, and Vita wrote to Virginia, "You made me cry with your passages about Knole, you wretch." The book also used Vita as a model for some of the photos. When Vita's father died, the house went to his younger brother, Charles.
Art and Architecture at Knole
The House's Design
Knole has a very complex history, but it is most important for its 17th-century design. One expert said that Knole "looks almost exactly now as it did in the year Thomas Sackville died." It has stayed "motionless" since the early 1600s.
When Thomas Sackville rebuilt parts of Knole, his work wasn't seen as the most modern. In 1673, John Evelyn called it "a great old fashioned house." It didn't look like the popular classical style of the time. Knole still looks like a serious, strong group of buildings, partly because it's made of dark Kentish ragstone. However, another expert, Town, says that Sackville did a great job of combining the old parts of the house with the new. He turned a large, late-medieval house for archbishops into a grand Jacobean country house.
Even though it looks Jacobean on the outside, you can still see many parts of the older house. For example, the northern part of Stone Court has high-status apartments on the upper floors. These rooms have large towers for toilets (garderobes) sticking out on the north side. The cellars below also have some wall paintings from the late 1400s.
In 2013, Knole received £7.75 million to help with conservation and repair work. As part of this work in 2014, archaeologists found scorched and carved marks on the old wooden walls and roof timbers. These marks are sometimes called "witch marks." They are believed to be apotropaic marks, meaning they were made to ward off fire damage or evil spirits. Many of these marks are from the late Middle Ages and were covered up during the 17th-century rebuilding.
Inside the Rooms
Many of Knole's state rooms are open to visitors. They hold a collection of 17th-century royal Stuart furniture. These pieces were given to the 6th Earl because he served King William III in the royal court. The collection includes three state beds and rare silver furniture, like torchieres (candle holders), a mirror, and a dressing table. There are also beautiful tapestries, textiles, and the famous Knole Settee.
The art collection has portraits by famous artists like Van Dyck, Gainsborough, Sir Peter Lely, Sir Godfrey Kneller, and Sir Joshua Reynolds. Reynolds was a personal friend of the 3rd Duke. His portraits at Knole include a self-portrait and paintings of Samuel Johnson, Oliver Goldsmith, and Wang-y-tong, a Chinese page boy who lived with the Sackville family.
You can also see older English Renaissance features, like a delicate Italian-style staircase. The Great Chamber has a wonderfully carved fireplace and overmantel. The "Sackville leopards," which hold shields and sit on the banisters of the main staircase (built 1605–1608), come from the Sackville family's coat of arms. The chapel room and its crypt are older than this period and still have their original pews.
The organ in Knole's private chapel might be the oldest playable organ in England. It has four sets of oak pipes and a keyboard at the top. Its exact age isn't known, but some suggest it was built in the 1620s. The organ's pitch is sharp, and its foot-pumped bellows still work!
Knole's Collections
The National Trust has a digital record of most of the Knole collection. It holds very important collections, especially of 17th-century state furniture.
Knole Today: Ownership and Use
The National Trust looks after Knole House and opens it to the public. The 4th Baron Sackville donated the house to the Trust in 1947. However, the Trust only owns the house and a small park of about 52 acres (21 ha). Much of the house is still lived in by the Sackville family or their family trust. They own the rest of the deer park and allow public access for events.
There's a popular story that Knole is a "calendar house," meaning it has 365 rooms, 52 staircases, 12 entrances, and seven courtyards. While the number of rooms is roughly correct, the number of staircases has changed over time. Traditionally, there are seven main courtyards: Green Court, Stable Court, Stone Court, Water Court, Queen's Court, Pheasant Court, and Men's Court.
In January 2012, the National Trust started a seven-year plan to preserve and restore the house. They asked the public for £2.7 million to help with this work.
Knole's Gardens
Knole has a 26 acres (11 ha) walled garden. It has a unique medieval feature: a smaller walled garden inside the larger one. The gardens also have other old features that are not common in country-house gardens today. These include clair-voies (openings that give a clear view), a patte d'oie (a three-pronged path), two avenues, and bosquet hedges (formal groves of trees). The herb garden by the orangery was designed in 1963.
Knole Park
The house is set within its 1,000-acre (400 ha) deer park. This park has been kept in its traditional condition. The deer population is controlled and doesn't have access to all parts of the park. Because of its rich woodland, Knole Park is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The park also hosts the annual Knole Run, a cross-country race for schools.
Knole in Movies and Music
Knole was used for filming the Beatles' music videos for "Penny Lane" and "Strawberry Fields Forever" in January 1967. The stone archway where the Beatles rode horses can still be seen on the southeastern side of the Bird House. This visit to Knole Park also inspired another Beatles song, "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" John Lennon wrote it after buying an old poster in a nearby antique shop.
Knole also appeared in the 2008 film The Other Boleyn Girl, along with nearby Penshurst Place and Dover Castle. It has been featured in several other movies, including Burke and Hare (2010), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
The British Film Institute has a free family home video from 1961 that shows what the park looked like back then. An amateur film from 1950, made by the Sevenoaks Ciné Society, features the house in Hikers' Haunt.
See also
- John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
- Lionel Bertrand Sackville-West, 6th Baron Sackville
