Hartland Abbey
Hartland Abbey is a fascinating house. Built across a narrow, wooded valley leading to an Atlantic cove a mile away, Henry VIII gifted the Abbey to The Keeper of his Wine Cellar, whose descendants live here today. Not only can visitors experience the stunning interiors, collections, beautiful gardens and walks but the Abbey exudes the warmth and friendliness only found in a family home cherished for generations. Close family connections to Poltimore House and Clovelly Court nearby are evident. Amongst the impressive interiors spanning Mediaeval, Queen Anne, Georgian, Regency and Victorian periods you can see the three main Reception Rooms, the fabulous Alhambra Corridor by Sir George Gilbert Scott and the Gothic Library by Meadows with its fireplace by Batty Langley. Important paintings by artists including Reynolds and Gainsborough, furniture, porcelain, early photographs, a museum of documents from 1160 and changing displays of family memorabilia fascinate visitors. Much of the 50 acres of gardens and woodland walks had been lost since the First World War but since restoration began in 1996 once again there are beautiful paths through bulbs, rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and hydrangeas; the Bog Garden and Fernery, by Gertrude Jekyll, thrive again. In the three 18thC Walled Gardens climbers, herbaceous, tender perennials and vegetables delight and glasshouses protect stunning plants for display in the house. Walk through carpets of primroses, historic daffodils, bluebells and wildflowers to the newly restored (2011) Summerhouse in the woods, the Gazebo and Blackpool Mill with its beautiful beach and cottage, home to the Dashwood family in Jane Austen’s ‘Sense and Sensibility’ and the location for Rosamunde Pilcher’s ‘The Shell Seekers’. Donkeys, black sheep and peacocks roam. Children’s Quiz. Five stunning wedding venues available. Holiday cottages to rent. Hartland Abbey adjoins the SW Coastal Footpath in an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Free parking. Gift Shop. 1 mile from Hartland Quay and St. Nectan’s Church, the ‘Cathedral of North Devon’…
