Wimpole Hall Estate, now in the care of the National Trust, includes a grand stately home, a working farm, lovely gardens and grounds (excellent for long walks), a cafe, shop and bookstall, and also includes an historic parish church.
The history of the site dates back 2,000 years, though the Chicheley family who owned the estate from 1428 to 1686 began the core of the house we see today. The estate then passed through the hands of a dizzying array of nobility (the Earls of Radnor, the Duke of Newcastle, the Earl of Oxford and then the Earls of Hardwicke).
Philip Yorke (1690-1764), 1st Earl of Hardwicke rebuilt the north and south fronts, but is also notorious for a judgement made while he was Attorney-General, which maintained that slaves brought to the UK remained enslaved while on British soil.
The house passed to Viscount Clifden in 1894, before being bought by Captain George and Mrs Elsie Bambridge in 1942. The daughter of Rudyard Kipling, Elsie used her wealth to refurbish and furnish the hall, and is largely responsible for the condition in which we find it today.
The hours for viewing the house are slightly more restricted than the rest of the grounds, but it is still well worth a visit. The former stables include a shop and bookshop, and nearby in the Old Rectory (behind the church) is a very nice café, serving usual range of light meals, cakes and teas that the National Trust is well known for.
My favourite part of the site is the extensive walled garden, which from spring to autumn is a riot of colour, mostly herbaceous perennials. The church is also well worth a visit; this functions as the parish church, and was largely rebuilt in the late 18th century. However, it retains a 14th century mediaeval chapel (the Chicheley Chapel) which contains an impressive array of monuments of the nobility who have owned the Hall down the years.
The estate now (2025) has a large series of car parks and a new, purpose-built visitor centre with toilets, about 250m from the house. Those with accessibility needs are advised to look at the National Trust website, which has details about access. read more