Knole House Museum

Address: Knole House, Sevenoaks, Kent, England (near Sevenoaks town)

Website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/knole

Hours: Seasonal opening (typically late March-October; check National Trust site for current hours)

Admission: Admission varies (National Trust membership grants free entry; day tickets for non-members around £10-£15)

Knole is a late medieval and Tudor country house on the outskirts of Sevenoaks in Kent, one of England’s large historic houses with a broad range of state rooms, galleries and collections. It combines a fortified medieval structure and later domestic additions and sits within historic parkland that has been a deer park since medieval times.

Visitors see the Great Hall, state rooms and long gallery with portraits and furniture that reflect several centuries of occupation. The house has a long association with the Sackville family and has been managed for public access and conservation in partnership with the National Trust while remaining a family residence in part.

Architectural development began in the 15th century with significant changes in the 16th and 17th centuries; the house accumulated a large collection of paintings, furniture and historic fittings over that period. The estate’s parkland preserves the historic deer park setting that frames the house.

Knole is located in Sevenoaks, Kent, within commuting distance of London and set in a landscape of parkland and historic gardens a short drive from the town centre.

• Origins and associations: The house has medieval origins with major additions in the Tudor and Stuart periods and a long historical association with the Sackville family and later literary figures.
• Visiting arrangements: Managed in partnership with the National Trust, parts of the house and the park are open to the public while family apartments remain in private use.

What to See#

• House interior and collections: The main historic interior spaces including the Great Hall and state rooms that contain a large collection of portraits, period furniture and decorative arts accumulated over centuries.
• Knole Park (deer park): The surrounding medieval deer park, which retains roaming deer and historic parkland that frames the house and its landscape setting.

Knole House is near Sevenoaks, Kent. From London take Southeastern trains to Sevenoaks (approx. 30-40 minutes from London Bridge); from the station it is a short taxi or local bus ride. National Trust provides visitor information on parking and guided tours.

• Take a stroll through the Capability Brown parkland early in the morning when deer are often visible near the lake.
• The house is still lived in by the Marquesses of Salisbury - certain rooms are closed to the public, so check the guided-tour options for full access to state rooms.