Kingston Lacy Estate, Dorset
A Graceful 17th Century Dorset Manor House near Wimborne Minster
Jun 26, 2009
Set in over eight thousand acres of parkland, both the park and house are open to the public for a small entrance fee. The Bankes family owned vast tracts of land, including Corfe Castle, throughout Dorset for hundreds of years before Ralph Bankes handed the Kingston Lacy estate over to the National Trust for the benefit of the nation.
The wealthy Bankes family amassed a splendid art collection, including paintings by Titian and Van Dyke, much of which can be seen in the house today. The building is open from March until November and is well worth a visit. The library has a restored Guido Reni fresco on the ceiling, the Spanish room has gilded leather wall hangings and the Egyptian room is home to a large collection of antiquities.
Snowdrop Sunday
Kingston Lacy park is open for most of the year only closing for a few weeks in December and January. It is locally renowned for its annual Snowdrop Sunday each February when the gates are opened and hundreds of visitors wander through the park gazing in awe at the thousands of snowdrops on display before partaking of tea and scones in the Stables Restaurant.
Kingston Lacy Gardens and Park
The park is a mixture of formal gardens, including a fernery, wooded areas and enclosed fields where Red Devon cattle graze. There is a variety of stately and mature trees to be seen such as cedars, oaks and limes. A small enclosed garden area is currently home to an exhibition of work by local Dorset sculptors comprising cleverly devised figures of wolves, birds of prey etc. in a variety of media including barbed wire.
Dotted throughout Kingston Lacy’s wooded area are several old tree trunks which have been made into seats with interesting carvings such as mushrooms and acorns. There are several picnic areas where a family can eat together and play areas with swings, slides and climbing apparatus for young children. There is much wildlife to be seen from birds of prey to rabbits, stoats, butterflies, bees and deer.
Shop and Restaurant
The shop is housed in what used to be the kitchen block and sells a variety of quality gifts including wine and beer. The Stables restaurant is in the old stable block and has outside seating in the sheltered courtyard area where jackdaws, pied wagtails and chaffinches can be seen foraging for food whilst house martins swoop in and out of nests feeding their young in the archway to the courtyard during the nesting months.
The restaurant sells hot and cold light lunches as well as traditional English cream teas and ice creams. Dogs are not permitted in the formal gardens or the house but are allowed on leads in the park and in the restaurant courtyard where a fresh water tap and bowls are supplied for their benefit.
Disabled Visitor Access
There is dedicated disabled parking and a buggy driven by volunteers to help less mobile visitors reach the house, shop and restaurant from the car park. Many of the pathways around the estate are wheelchair friendly. The National Trust can also provide guides in Braille and large print for visually handicapped visitors on request.
Produce from Kingston Lacy
Produce from Kingston Lacy, including Red Devon beef, vegetables, milk and eggs and other foods like chutneys and pickles can be bought at the nearby Pamphill Dairy farm shop. Pamphill Dairy is open seven days a week all year except for the period between Christmas and New Year and has other retail outlets as well.
Sources:
- National Trust Leaflet about Kingston Lacy
- Bournemouth Daily Echo - Running With the Hares ... At Kingston Lacy article 18th April 2009
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