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Yaxley Hall

The current building dates back to the 1500s, although it has been extended and developed since then. For some 300 years Yaxley Hall was in the hands of just two families. The first were the Yaxleys themselves, who were a Catholic family aligned with other notable Norfolk Catholics such as the Howards and Bedingfields. The Hall was then acquired by the Fourth Earl of Scarsdale in the 18th century for his mistress and their illegitimate children. Miss Henrietta Nelson, the reputed ghost of Yaxley Hall, was a member of this family and her painting has recently been returned to the Hall after an absence of 100 years. The Hall remained in the hands of the Earl's descendants up until the 20th century, when Lord Henniker acquired the property and remodelled it to serve as a base for weekend guests and shooting parties. Disaster struck in 1922 when two of the five wings were destroyed in a terrible fire, which made the national press. A wayward Italian butler was blamed, but the exact circumstances remain unclear. The Hall, now reduced in size, passed into the hands of Blanche Broadwood (of the piano family), who lived here for forty years. The modernist architect Sir Basil Spence also lived here for a brief period in the 1970s. A large gothic window removed in 1905 has recently been reinstalled by the current owner.

Tour approx 3 hours, £13 including tea and coffee, home-made cakes.

www.yaxleyhall.com

To book, call the Mercury Theatre on 01206 573948
or book on-line at www.mercurytheatre.co.uk. 

Other nearby properties:

29.  Linden House, Eye
2.   The Abbey, Eye

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