Levens Hall
Encyclopedia
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
in the county of Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
in northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The first house on the site was a pele tower built by the Redman family in around 1350. Much of the present building dates from the Elizabethan era
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...
, when the Bellingham family extended the house. The Bellinghams, who were responsible for the fine panelling and plasterwork in the main rooms, sold the house and estate in 1689 to Colonel James Grahme, or Graham, Keeper of the Privy Purse
Keeper of the Privy Purse
The Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to the King/Queen is responsible for the financial management of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom....
to King James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, who made a number of additions to the house in the late 17th century. His son Henry Graham
Henry Graham (of Levens)
Henry Graham, of Levens , also spelt Grahme, was an English gentleman, heir to a Westmorland estate, and member of parliament....
was a knight of the shire for Westmorland
Westmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
.
Further additions were made in the early 19th century.
Topiary
Topiary is the horticultural practice of training live perennial plants, by clipping the foliage and twigs of trees, shrubs and subshrubs to develop and maintain clearly defined shapes, perhaps geometric or fanciful; and the term also refers to plants which have been shaped in this way. It can be...
garden, which was started in 1694. There is also a deer park inhabited by black fallow deer and Bagot goat
Bagot goat
The Bagot goat is a breed of goat which for several hundred years has lived semi-wild at Blithfield Hall, Staffordshire, England. It is a small goat, with a black head and neck and the remainder of the body white...
s. The small collection of steam road vehicles includes several traction engine
Traction engine
A traction engine is a self-propelled steam engine used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location. The name derives from the Latin tractus, meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any traction engine is to draw a load behind it...
s which are usually steamed on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
Levens Hall is reportedly haunted, and people have claimed to have seen the ghost of a black dog who inhabits the stairs and an amicable lady in pink.