Knole

Important notice -

Knole House and the car park continue to be available for pre-booked members and visitors to the house only. Alternative parking can be found at the multi-storey car park in Sevenoaks (TN13 1LW). Please keep a safe distance from the wild deer herd.

Be part of a 400 year history of visiting Knole

Please book ahead before visiting Check availability

More about this place

Knole's enormous Great Hall with checkered black and white tiled floor, red walls, wooden carved panels and moulded plaster ceiling

What to expect from your visit to Knole 

Please pre-book your tickets to Knole House to guarantee entry. National Trust members can book for free.

The National Trust car park will continue to be reserved for members and paying visitors to the house only. To use the car park please pre-book tickets for every person in your vehicle. Non-members pay an additional £5 car park charge on arrival.

National Trust members who pre-book their admission to Knole for free and park in the National Trust car park can choose to visit the house or just walk in the parkland.

Knole Park is open to the general public and pedestrians can walk in for free. Non-members arriving by car just to visit the parkland can use nearby Sevenoaks Town Car Park (satnav TN13 1LW, free on Sundays and Bank Holidays).

Please avoid parking on residential roads.

The wild deer can be aggressive so take care – do not feed or touch the deer; walk away from them. Please take your litter home.

There may be some disruption to your visit due to works being carried out by South East Water to install a new water main in Knole Park.

Knole   Kent

Please book ahead before you visit Knole

Visitors must pre-book to visit Knole House and use the National Trust car park. On some days, it may not be necessary to pre-book. The team on the gatebox can let you know when you arrive.

Check availability and book
A magnificent, luxurious bedroom with four-poster bed, hung with red and gold cloth, oak panelled walls, tapestries on the wall and parquet floor

Plan a visit to Knole House this summer 

The showrooms at Knole are open. We look forward to welcoming back visitors to take in the splendour of the rooms and the historical collections.

Set off on an adventure this summer in Knole Park, Kent.

Summer holiday activities to enjoy with the kids 

Come to Knole this summer and take part in activities, fun and games. Why not explore the collection in the house and enjoy a treat from the Brewhouse Café too?

A table set with artists' materials including paints, pigments and a palette and palette knife

Discover The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio at Knole 

Take a look inside The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio at Knole and see conservation in action on objects from National Trust properties around the UK. Visit their website to find out more about when the studio is open.

A dog out for a winter stroll

Dog walking at Knole 

With over 1000 acres of parkland, there's plenty of space to walk, run and enjoy the great outdoors with your furry companion. Have a quick read of our pointers on dog walking at Knole before you set off.

The deer rut season at Knole in October

Wild deer herd at Knole 

The deer at Knole are owned and managed by the Sackville family's Knole Estate. Whilst National Trust doesn’t manage the herd, or the entirety of the park, it’s important to us that our visitors have the best experience possible, so here are some do’s and don’ts.

Take a virtual tour of Knole

Elaborate grey pannelled walls and a huge detailed marble fireplace line the walls alongside portraits of the Sackville family. In the middle of the room are piece of gilded furniture

The collection at Knole 

Take a virtual tour through Knole's showrooms to see one of the rarest collections of Stuart royal furniture, paintings, objects and textiles.

A long, narrow attic room stretches ahead, with wooden floorboards, a window at the far end, patched walls and trunks and chairs lined up against one side wall

The attics at Knole 

Take a virtual tour and discover the fascinating stories hidden in Knole’s attics, including furniture, graffiti and witchmarks.

Eddy Sackville West's bedroom in the Gatehouse Tower, including brass bedstead with white counterpane, blue armchair, blue shelves filled with books, tapestries and pictures on the walls

The Gatehouse Tower at Knole 

Take a virtual tour of the Gatehouse Tower, including climbing the spiral staircase for panoramic views over the medieval parkland.

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Knole

Eating and shopping

matt scone

The Brewhouse Café at Knole 

The Brewhouse café is open and is serving hot and cold meals and drinks, sandwiches and light snacks. We continue to maintain high standards of cleanliness and till and collection points will be screened. You can now choose to sit inside, or enjoy the Rooftop Terrace and take in the view across the park.

Display of spring items in the shop at Knole

Discover a unique shopping experience at Knole 

Both the gift shop and bookshop are open and offers something for everyone. Whether it’s environmentally-friendly swaps for a more sustainable life, a gift for a loved one, a new book or an indulgence for yourself, every purchase helps us look after Knole for everyone, for ever.

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Knole

History

Knole's enormous Great Hall with checkered black and white tiled floor, red walls, wooden carved panels and moulded plaster ceiling

A brief history of Knole 

Knole is full of treasures and was designed to impress its visitors. Originally an archbishop’s palace, the house passed through royal hands to the Sackville family – Knole’s inhabitants from 1603 to today.

Elaborate grey pannelled walls and a huge detailed marble fireplace line the walls alongside portraits of the Sackville family. In the middle of the room are piece of gilded furniture

The collection at Knole 

Take a virtual tour through Knole's showrooms to see one of the rarest collections of Stuart royal furniture, paintings, objects and textiles.

A portrait of Lady Arabella Cope wearing a dark dress, white neck ruff, red beret style hat with large pompom style decoration, surrounded by a gilt frame

Women and power 

Women weave a fascinating and rich thread throughout Knole's tale. Often wealthy and powerful in their own right, they left their mark on the house and its land, a legacy that remains with us today.

The Golden Idol from a set of the Story of Nebuchadnezzar tapestry at Knole

Knole's tapestries 

Knole is home to some of the finest 17th century Flemish and other tapestries on display. Many have been in the Sackville family for more than three centuries.

A collection of Stuart era chairs and footstools upholstered in blue and red patterns sit against a dark paneled wood wall hung with portraits in gilt frames of well known royal court personalities from the Tudor and Stuart eras

Knole's furniture 

Knole is home to some of the last surviving furniture from Whitehall and Hampton Court Palaces, among the most expensive status objects of their time.

A sumptuous four-poster bed hung with golden coloured drapes sits in a plush bedroom with tapestries on the wall, Stuart era chairs, portrait over a fireplace and silver mirrors on the walls

Knole's state beds 

The three state beds at Knole are some of the most significant surviving pieces of royal furniture in Britain.

Portrait of Eddy Sackville-West by Barbara Ker-Seymer, c.1930

Exploring LGBTQ history at Knole 

Knole has been home to and shaped by people who challenged conventional ideas of gender and sexuality. Discover their stories and the challenges they faced.

Oil painting on canvas, Victoria (Vita) Mary Sackville-West, Lady Nicolson (1892-1962) by Philip Alexius de László de Lombos

Vita Sackville-West and Knole 

Discover Vita Sackville-West's connection to Knole; her colourful life and her literary legacy as a poet, novelist, gardener, biographer and journalist.

A close-up of Lady Anne Clifford's portrait - a pale face with brown eyes, dark brown hair wearing a golden ruff round her neck

The melancholy chronicles of Lady Anne Clifford 

One of the most well recorded feminine contributions to Knole was that of Lady Anne Clifford (1590-1676), who wrote a series of diaries during the period she lived at Knole.

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Knole

Our work

A table set with artists' materials including paints, pigments and a palette and palette knife

Discover The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio at Knole 

Take a look inside The Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio at Knole and see conservation in action on objects from National Trust properties around the UK. Visit their website to find out more about when the studio is open.

A long, narrow attic room stretches ahead, with wooden floorboards, a window at the far end, patched walls and trunks and chairs lined up against one side wall

The attics at Knole 

Take a virtual tour and discover the fascinating stories hidden in Knole’s attics, including furniture, graffiti and witchmarks.

A series of witchmarks discovered in a room built to accommodate James I at Knole, a National Trust property in Kent, have been dated to the months immediately following the Gunpowder Plot.

Witchmarks at Knole and the Gunpowder Plot 

A series of witchmarks, believed to ward off evil spirits, were discovered in a room built to accommodate King James I at Knole following the Gunpowder Plot.

A grand staircase richly decorated with painted walls displaying the Five Senses, Seven Virtues & Four Ages of Man, with a large carved wooden leopard sitting on top of a stairpost

Sackville leopards on the loose 

Back in 2016, the striking carved leopards from the Great Staircase at Knole were removed during conservation work.

A huge four poster bed with rich red drapes and hangings, a large marble fireplace in the background surrounded by dark wood paneling, colourful tapestries on the walls and matching red footstools and chairs

Dismantling the Spangled Bed 

In July 2017 the glorious, 400-year-old Spangled Bed was taken apart to be sent away for conservation. Find just what it took to conserve this enormous bed.

Three letters dating back to the seventeenth century have been discovered under the floorboards at Knole in Kent.

Seventeenth century letters discovered at Knole 

Many amazing discoveries were made during the Inspired by Knole project, including three letters dating back to the seventeenth century hidden under the floorboards at Knole.

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Knole

Groups

A magnificent, luxurious bedroom with four-poster bed, hung with red and gold cloth, oak panelled walls, tapestries on the wall and parquet floor

Plan your group visit to Knole 

Find out all you need to know about a group visit of 15 or more people, and why groups need to pre-book. Pre-booked groups also get great benefits including reduced price admission, refreshments for the coach driver, free admission for the group leader and free parking for your coach.

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Knole

Learning

A group of school children dressed in school uniform stand gazing upwards at the ceiling in the Great Hall, a dark oak pannelled room with elaborate plaster ceiling

Learning with Knole 

Plan an educational visit to Knole and engage children and young adults in history, nature, conservation and their local environment. Assisted by our Children and Young People team, we've a variety of resources on offer to help you deliver an engaging learning experience.

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Knole

Join or give

Sunflowers at Rhosili and South Gower Coast, Wales

We need your support 

Our natural world and places of historic beauty are at serious risk. Give today and together, we can help nature recover, bring people closer to it, and ensure our shared history continues to inspire us all. Thank you for your continued support.

Visitors walking in the garden in spring at Belton House, Lincolnshire

Experience more with National Trust membership 

Now more than ever, we all need access to nature, fresh air and open spaces. Become a member today and you can explore more than 500 places. What's more, your membership will go towards looking after nature, beauty and history for generations to come.

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Knole

Art and collections

Our collections

Explore the objects and works of art we care for at Knole on the National Trust Collections website

Search the collections
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