Melford Hall
| Melford Hall | |
|
National Trust | |
|---|---|
 Melford Hall | |
| Grid reference: | TL867462 |
| Information | |
Melford Hall is a grand stately home in the village of Long Melford in Suffolk. It is the ancestral seat of the Parker Baronets, but is today owned by National Trust.
History
The estate of Long Melford belonged before the Reformation to the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds, and it is believed that a hall here belonging to the abbots stood here before 1065. Today's Melford Hall was mostly constructed in the 16th century, incorporating parts of the abbots' mediæval building. It has similar roots to nearby Kentwell Hall.
Melford Hall passed from the abbots during the Dissolution of the Monasteries and was later granted by Queen I Mary to Sir William Cordell. From Cordell it passed via his sister to Thomas and Mary Savage before being sold back into another male Cordell line. In 1786 it was sold to Harry Parker, son of Admiral Hyde Parker.
Beatrix Potter was a cousin of the family and was a frequent visitor to the hall from the 1890s onwards.
One wing of the hall was gutted by fire in February 1942 but rebuilt after Second World War, retaining the external Tudor brickwork with 1950s interior design.
The hall was first opened to the public in 1955 by Ulla, Lady Hyde Parker. In 1960 it passed into the care of the National Trust. It is generally open on weekend afternoons in April and October, and on afternoons from Wednesday to Sunday during May to September.
Events
The Hall grounds host a number of events including:
- The "Big Night Out" every November to celebrate Guy Fawkes Night
- The LeeStock Music Festival
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Melford Hall) |
- Melford Hall - National Trust website