Why Levens Hall is the Ultimate ‘Umbrella Attraction’

Lake District heritage home, Levens Hall and Gardens, is reminding visitors that it is a fabulous ‘umbrella attraction’ and not just because of the Great Umbrella Tree, way over 300 years old and one of over 100 eye-catching pieces (including another umbrella tree) within the world’s oldest topiary garden. 

Levens Hall says the attractions of the Hall itself are well worth recalling too, especially when the weather is rather more inclement or showery.  It is one of the most gorgeous Elizabethan properties in the UK and full of items to enthral, amaze and catch the eye, whether you love royal connections, relish military memorabilia or are a fan of fabulous furniture, not to mention clocks of all shapes and sizes and harpsichords.

Things not to miss inside Levens Hall include exhibits on the ‘Wellington Trail’, where you can see items once belonging to the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte.  

If you appreciate stunning craftsmanship, you will also be in your element.  Your appreciation can start in the Great Hall, once the heart of the original medieval home that stood here.  Walls are covered and decorated with panels of local oak and plaster pargetting, whilst ornate plaster, worked by Italian craftsmen, carries the coat of arms of Queen Elizabeth I.

Wonderful stained glass windows also feature the coat of arms of the Bellingham family – early owners of Levens Hall – whilst a copper vat, dating from around 1692, was once used for brewing. Levens Hall is famous for its secret recipe Morocco Ale, so this vat could well have rustled up some of the dark and delicious tipple.

The Large Drawing Room offers a view of a magnificent overmantel carved from oak and dating to around 1595.  Its supports represent the three Greek orders – Doric, Ionic and Corinthian – and it too carries Queen Elizabeth I’s coat of arms and that of the Bellinghams.  

The overmantel in the Small Drawing Room depicts a Renaissance interpretation of Greek literature and philosophy, showing the four elements of air, fire, water and earth.  It conveys balance too, through representations of the four seasons, and depicts the five senses, as well as offering imagery relating to the Creation.

It is well worth keeping an eye on the walls, not just to view exquisite paintings but also artworks that highlight how both Levens Hall’s world-famous topiary gardens and nearby Levens Park looked a few centuries ago.  Head outside and you can then see today’s vistas.

In the Redman Room, you will be drawn to the Portuguese bed, said to have been shipped from Portugal in 1809 (probably as wood, rather than fully crafted), at a time when ships taking troops to war on the Continent typically returned with heavy ballast.  In this room, keen embroiderers will be drawn to a panel dating from the third quarter of the 18th century, showing Roman soldiers and their chariots and created in exquisite gros point and petit point by renowned needlewoman, Lady Andover.

Quilters are never able to tear their eyes away from what is regarded as the very earliest English patchwork – a set of bed hangings and a quilt worked by the daughters of another owner, Colonel Grahme, and found in the Redman Dressing Room.  Made from Indian printed cottons, banned from import by Act of Parliament in 1701, this 1708 patchwork seems to have made the most of the precious material, comprising a design of cruciform and octagon shapes very similar to the plasterwork of the ceiling of the Chapel Royal in St James’s Palace.  Colonel Grahme’s wife would have been very familiar with this ceiling, having been a Maid of Honour to Catherine of Braganza, the wife of Charles II.

More royal connections can also be appreciated when visitors come across the court dress and cloak worn by former Levens owner, Charles Bagot, when serving as a Page of Honour at George IV’s coronation when a 14-year-old boy.  A thrill for lovers of military history is also the mahogany camp bed that belonged to the Duke of Wellington.

Those loving social history will be drawn to the Levens Constable glasses hanging on the wall by the Returning Staircase, with these huge drinking glasses once having been used at Levens Hall’s infamous Radish Feast.  At this event, newcomers had to pass a sort of initiation test, crossing the bowling green in a straight line.  Simple enough?  Not perhaps after downing a constable of Morocco Ale, being blindfolded and hopping on one leg, as required.

A glance at the walls in the Levens Hall Dining Room will cause visitors to question what is decorating them.  The answer is Spanish Cordova leather – something you do not see every day and dating to 1692, some 330 years ago.  

It, and the Great Umbrella Tree, also in situ at Levens since the late 17th century, would probably have many a tale to tell about life at Levens over the centuries but you can discover all of this for yourself, by making a visit.

Entrance to Levens Hall and Gardens costs £14.50 for an adult ticket for Gardens and tour of the Hall.  A child’s ticket is priced at £5 and a family ticket at £36.  Gardens-only tickets are priced at £10.50, £4 and £26, respectively.  Hall and Gardens tickets currently have to be bought on the day, but Gardens-only tickets can be purchased online at www.levenshall.co.uk

Levens Hall and Gardens opens Sunday to Thursday (closed Fridays and Saturdays) to October 6, 2022.  Gardens’ opening hours are 10am to 5pm, with last entry at 4pm.  The Hall opens at 10am for tours (subject to availability on the day) and at 11am for general admission and is open until 3.30pm (last entry at 3pm).  

The contemporary Levens Kitchen is available to offer a variety of edible temptations to Hall and Gardens visitors but also to those just wishing to enjoy a great snack or delicious lunch.  It opens every day, from 10am to 5pm to October 6, 2022 and then closes one hour earlier thereafter, through to December 23, 2022.  There is also the Levens gift shop to enjoy, which opens from 10am to 5pm until October 6 and then closes at 3pm, until December 23, 2022.

Find out more at www.levenshall.co.uk and remember that, whatever the weather, Levens Hall and Gardens is the ultimate ‘umbrella attraction.’                                                            

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Editors notes

Levens Hall & Gardens is a historic house in the South Lakes, Cumbria, close to Kendal and home to the world's oldest topiary gardens, dating from 1694, created by French garden designer, Guillaume Beaumont. The Hall is a stunning Elizabethan house built around a 13th century pele tower and has close links to the Duke of Wellington, as well as various items which once belonged to him and Napoleon Bonaparte. Levens Park is home to the rare Bagot goats gifted to the Bagot family and a place in which to stroll and enjoy nature. Levens Kitchen is the contemporary new cafe, full of delights for cake lovers and foodies alike.