Knole Park: A Hidden Gem in the Kent Countryside

Knole Park,a beautiful and historic place in Sevenoaks, Kent, England, it is home to a stunning 15th-century house that was once an archbishop's palace and later a royal residence. The house is now owned by the National Trust and showcases one of the finest collections of Royal Stuart furniture, textiles and paintings in the country.

The house was built in the mid-15th century by Thomas Langley, Bishop of Durham, who bought the estate in 1419 and expanded it to 1,500 acres. The house was later enlarged and remodelled by several owners, most notably Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, who inherited it in 1603 and transformed it into a Jacobean showpiece. The Sackville family still lives in a private part of the house today, while the rest is open to the public.

Visitors can explore the magnificent showrooms, which display treasures such as the Knole settee, the silver furniture of King Charles II, and portraits by Van Dyck, Gainsborough and Reynolds. They can also climb the spiral staircase of the Gatehouse Tower, which offers panoramic views of the park and the town of Sevenoaks. The tower also houses an exhibition about Vita Sackville-West, the famous writer and gardener who was born at Knole in 1892 and inspired by its history and beauty.

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