Set on the site of an Augustinian priory, Calke Abbey was never actually an Abbey. The name was given to the house in 1808 - nearly 300 years after it stopped being used for religious purposes!

A sacred site

© NTPL / Rupert Truman

Founded in the early 12th century, Calke Abbey was established by Richard, 2nd Earl of Chester, a wealthy landowner. The independent religious community at Calke was not to stand the test of time, and by the mid 1100s, religious activity was reduced to serving as a cell to the nearby priory at Repton. This state of affairs lasted until Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century.

Calke's first secular inhabitant, was John Prest, an affluent Grocer. On his death, the house passed through many different hands, until it landed with the Harpur family, who held on to the house until the National Trust in the 1980s.

The building

© NTPL / Nick Meers

Set in a hollow, and in a secluded position, Calke Abbey is a fascinating mixture of architectural styles. Nothing exists now of the original building, with the earliest masonry dating back to the Elizabethan age. Between 1701-1704, the house underwent a huge rebuilding project, resulting with the house being entirely remodelled.

The Abbey today

© NTPL / Mike Williams

By the 1980s, Calke Abbey had fallen into a state of disrepair. The Harpur family had found it difficult to maintain the house, and the soaring debts that the house generated meant that the only solution was to donate the house to the National Trust.

A huge campaign followed to save Calke, the outcome was successful, and the rest, is history...