Burghley House

Location

Stamford, Lincolnshire PE9 3JY

Burghley House is 1m SE of Stamford. From London, A1 2 hrs.

Rail: Stamford Station 1 1/2 m.

History

Burghley House, home of the Cecil family for over 400 years, was built as a country seat during the latter part of the 16th century by Sir William Cecil, later Lord Burghley, principal adviser and Lord Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth.

The House was completed in 1587 and there have been few alterations to the architecture since that date thus making Burghley one of the finest examples of late Elizabethan design in England.

The interior was remodelled in the late 17th century by John, 5th Earl of Exeter who was a collector of fine art on a huge scale, establishing the immense collection of art treasures at Burghley.

Burghley is truly a 'Treasure House', containing one of the largest private collections of Italian art, unique examples of Chinese and Japanese porcelain and superb items of 18th century furniture. The remodelling work of the 17th century means that examples of the work of the principal artists and craftsmen of the period are to be found here at Burghley: Antonio Verrio, Grinling Gibbons and Louis Laguerre all made major contributions to the beautiful interiors.

Gardens

The House is set in a 300-acre deer park landscaped by 'Capability' Brown under the direction of the 9th Earl. As was usual with Brown's designs, a lake was created and delightful avenues of mature trees feature largely. The park is home to a herd of fallow deer and is open to the public at all times of the year. The gardens surrounding the House are only open on certain weekends in the Spring. Please telephone for details.