Kentwell Hall

Kentwell Hall is a stately home in Long Melford.

The property is currently privately owned.

The home, gardens and grounds are open to the public.

There is also a rare breeds farm and the surrounding area is home to free roaming sheep and lambs.

There is parking, a tea room, toilets and more on site.

Check the Kentwell Hall website for opening hours and tickets.

Kentwell Hall - Home

Kentwell Hall consists of the main house, the Moat House and various outbuildings.

The house is open at various times during the year.

The decor of the hall is a mix of tudor and modern design, with many original features on show.

The Moathouse dates to the 15th Century and houses the dairy, bakery, brewhouse and stillroom.

Kentwell Hall has acres of parkland, woodland and greens.

There is a moat surrounding the house.

The grounds extend to over 30 acres, with mature trees, lawns and fruit trees.

They have a wide variety of mature apple and pear trees, with over 60 different varieties of both.

In early Spring through early Summer, there is a fantastic display of daffodils,cowslips, bluebells and snowdrops on the grounds.

There is also a working farm on site, complete with rare breed pigs, sheep, cows and horses.

Kentwell Hall has a tearoom on site called The Paddocks Tea Garden and Tea Room.

The tearoom offers a light seasonal menu and teas and coffees.

Kentwell Hall hosts events throughout the year.

This includes Tudor Reenactments and WWII Reenactments, complete with a full cast of actors in costumes.

These popular events have been running since 1979.

Many local school children (including myself) have fond memories of these educational events.

In October/November, they run the wildly popular Scaresville event.

Kentwell Hall is first referenced in the history books in 1086 as the Manor of Kentwell.

It was originally owned by the Abbey of St Edmunds and was originally named Kanewella.

The current home is much later dated than this, although earlier parts of the original buildings are still evident.

There are vague references to the property, now called Lutons, until the late 1300s.

Lutons came into the ownership of the Clopton Family in the 1370's.

They became owners when Sir Thomas Clopton married into the Mylde Family.

The house passed down generations of the Cloptons until 1563.

At this time the name Kentwell Hall started to appear in official records.

The current structure of the house was built in phases over the 15th and 16th Century.

During the Clopton family's ownership, they also rebuilt Holy Trinity Church.

After the family split and turned their hand to the New America, the house passed onto the Waldegrave family.

Their ownership was brief and it later passed to the Darcy family and then to the Robinson family.

The Moore family purchased Kentwell in 1681 and it remained under their ownership until 1823.

Robert Hart Logan purchased the hall and large parts of the interior were damaged in a fire in 1826.

Kentwell required significant restoration and a number of alterations were also made at this time.

This took a toll on his finances and he was in significant debt at the time of his death.

The Starkie Bence family purchased the hall and owned it until 1971.

Kentwell Hall was sold to the current owners Patrick and Judith Phillips.

The hall was in need of significant repair and restoration.

They opened Kentwell to the public to help fund the work needed on the hall.