An introduction to Holkham Estate THE COKE FAMILY
- Slides: 10
An introduction to Holkham Estate
THE COKE FAMILY Sir Edward Coke Lord Chief Justice and founder of family fortune. (1552 -1634) Thomas Coke 1 st Earl of Leicester, builder of Holkham Hall and art collector. (1697 -1759) Thomas Coke Current and 8 th Earl of Leicester, lives in the hall with his family.
THE BUILDING OF THE HALL Palladian style – Roman/Italian influence Designed by architect William Kent 4 ‘wings’ make it symmetrical Built in 1738 – 68 Real home to the Earl of Leicester, Lady Leicester and their 4 children
CHANGES TO THE HALL 1865 - New water supply fitted 1850 s - Stable block added and Old Kitchen refurbished 1900 s - Electricity installed 2014 - Biomass boiler heating replaces oil
THE GRAND TOUR AND ART COLLECTION The 1 st Earl made a ‘Grand Tour’ of Europe for six years at age 18 He collected 250 paintings and sculptures, mainly from Italy Very famous painters, including Rubens, Van Dyck and Procaccini
HOLKHAM PARK Fallow Deer herd 1 mile long lake dug by hand Monument in memory of Thomas William Coke, who became famous for farming Ice house and Walled gardens
FARMING METHODS AND INNOVATIONS 7, 500 acres – 3, 750 football pitches Grow barley for beer, sugar beet for sugar, potatoes to eat, oil seed rape for cooking oil, wheat for flour, haylage for feeding cattle and maize for bio-gas Small herd of cows and flock of sheep are used for grazing Famous for game shooting – Grey Partridges
NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE 18 km of coastline from Burnham Overy to Blakeney Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) Habitats: Grazing Marsh, Pinewoods, Salt Marsh, Sand Dunes, Beach Protected for the wildlife Only UK breeding site for Spoonbills!
A TOURIST DESTINATION The north Norfolk Coast is a destination for day visitors and holidaymakers Tourism provides lots of jobs locally 130, 000 visitors to the hall and park per year 500, 000 visitors to the beach and nature reserve per year Cycle hire, lake activities, events, concerts, holiday activities
NOW COME AND VISIT US!
