Cornish Gardens and Great English Country Houses Cornwall with pictures

From the splendour of High Victorian Country Houses, to St Michael's Mount- the jewel in Cornwall's Crown, to the delightful Old Post Office in Tintagel.

Great Houses in the care of the National Trust

Five of Cornwall's best loved historic houses : Lanhydrock, Cotehele, Anthony, Trerice, and St Michael's Mount ,are owned, protected and opened to the public by the National Trust. All of the houses have tea-rooms or restaurants and gift shops featuring the best of local produce.

Lanhydrock House (NT) nr Bodmin. Perhaps the grandest house in Cornwall, with 50 rooms open including the famous kitchen quarters and nursery wing. A High Victorian Country House though the north wing and gatehouse are some three centuries older. With its own parish church. Beautiful woodland and formal gardens. A superb vista to the River Fowey. With lots of colour all year. Magnolias a picture in spring. Tulips in the parterres a spectacle. Autumn golds of the leaves delightful. Gardens open all year. Getting there. Two miles east of Bodmin, signed from both the A30 and A38.

Cotehele House (NT)Nr Callington One of the least-altered medieval houses in Britain, with a Great Hall and barn, in a secluded wooded estate, with extensive gardens, a watermill and a quay on the banks of the River Tamar. Family home of the Edgcumbes for over 500 years. Containing fine tapestries and an imposing Great Hall. The Hall is decorated from mid November in the build up to Christmas. A valley garden containing many exotic plants. A stone dovecote and medieval stewpond. There are formal garden terraces adjacent to the house. In spring Mrs Julyan's Garden, planted with varieties of Cornish daffodils is a delight. Fancy a walk through woodland? Nearby is Cotehele Mill, now restored, and Cotehele Quay alongside the River Tamar. The Quay is home to the Shamrock a Tamar sailing barge. The Tamar Valley is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and in the 19th century was renown for its daffodil and other flowers industry.

St Michael's Mount (NT) nr Penzance The jewel in Cornwall's Crown: a magical island topped by a medieval castle, home of the St Aubyn family for over 300 years. Former Benedictine priory. Separated from the town of Marazion and the mainland by a 500 yard long granite causeway, only reachable by boat when the tide is in. One of the most visited National Trust properties in Britain, and open to visitors Mon- Fri during the season. With beautiful gardens. Every room is full of history.

Trerice, near Newquay, is a hidden gem, a delightfully intimate Elizabethan house featuring fine furniture and elaborate plaster ceilings.

Antony, near Torpoint, Rame Peninsula is a beautiful early 18th-century house in extensive landscaped grounds, home of the great Cornish family of Carew.

More modest but equally delightful Trust Properties include The Old Post Office in Tintagel.

More Cornwall Gardens and Great Country Houses

Pencarrow House and Gardens Pencarrow 50 acres of mature woodland, formal and historic gardens. A mile long drive lined by rhododendrons, spectacular in late Spring. In March daffodils provide a superb backdrop to the house. Specimen conifers. A lake. A ice house. An American garden. With a plant shop. Open 1st April to Mid October.

Prideaux Place Home of the Prideaux-Brune family for approximately 400 years. The present house dates from Elizabethan times. Extensive grounds and a walled garden. All overlooking the Camel Estuary above Padstow. The house is renown for its collections- porcelain, paintings and fine antique furniture.

Please check opening days and times before setting out

Great Houses to visit in Cornwall England

From the splendour of High Victorian Country Houses, to St Michael's Mount- the jewel in Cornwall's Crown, to the delightful Old Post Office in Tintagel.

Great Houses in the care of the National Trust

More Cornwall Gardens and Great Country Houses