Hatfield House

Me and my OH visited Hatfield House on a beautiful sunny saturday. We were there from the time it opened to the time it closed and loved it! I highly recommend a visit. I only have one small gripe that 18 pounds for everything serms a bit steep.

Als Fan der englischen Königin Elisabeth I. wollte ich mir Hatfield House ansehen, wo sie den Großteil ihrer Kindheit verbrachte. Ein Teil des alten Palastes von 1485, in dem sie wohnte, ist noch vorhanden. Der Rest wurde abgerissen, als das heutige Hatfield House von 1608 1611 erbaut wurde. Elisabeths Nachfolger, König James I., tauschte 1607 Hatfield House gegen einen anderen Landsitz ein. Es ist bis heute der Sitz der Familie Salisbury, die in einem Teil des Hauses lebt.
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Etliche Räume von Hatfield House wurden in einen historischen Zustand versetzt und können besichtigt werden. In der Woche nur mit Führung, am Wochenende können die Besucher sich die Räume allein anschauen. Wir waren an einem Mittwoch dort, also nahmen wir an einer Führung teil. Sie war sehr interessant. Unser Führer erzählte uns viel über das Haus und etliche Anekdoten dazu. Dadurch dauerte die Führung etwas länger als geplant, ca. 90 Minuten.
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Vom alten Palast ist eine Banketthalle erhalten. Dort finden heute Empfänge, Hochzeiten etc. statt. Sie erinnerte mich an die Hallen in deutschen Burgen. An den Wänden hängen Porträts diverser Adliger, darunter von Kaiser Wilhelm II. Vermutlich kam er zu dieser Ehre, da er der Enkel von Queen Victoria ist. Sowohl Heinrich VIII. als auch Queen Victoria sollen Hatfield mehrmals besucht haben.
Elisabeth hat in Hatfield erfahren, dass sie Königin von England ist. Angeblich saß sie gerade unter einer Eiche und las die Bibel, als Boten aus London kamen, um ihr dies zu verkünden. Unser Führer bezweifelte diese Legende. Er meinte, dies geschah Ende November 1558. Zu dieser Jahreszeit säße niemand mehr im Garten und liest.
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Wer sich für englische Herrenhäuser und/​oder englische Geschichte interessiert, sollte sich Hatfield House unbedingt ansehen. Nur muss man des Englischen mächtig sein, da die Führungen in englischer Sprache stattfinden.
Hatfield House befindet sich direkt gegenüber dem Bahnhof. Das Gelände ist Mittwoch Sonntag von 11 17 h geöffnet. Das Haus ist von 12 17 h zu besichtigen.

Hatfield House is positioned opposite Hatfield train station, so is ideal for visitors arriving by train and is equally accessible by car and is well signed.
We got maried at Hatfield House in October 2007 and would thoroughly recommend it as a venue and the staff were extremely helpful and professional in all the preparations. We actually got married in the Old Palace which is part of the house, but next to the actual House and is was one of the childhood homes of Queen Elizabeth I. It is a stunning hall with amazing tapestries on the walls and there are banquets held every friday with a disco which are supposed to be amazing too — we saw the end of one when we went to look around and it looked great fun!
The Old palace is also situated in the Maze Garden which is truly beautiful and worth a look at too.
When visiting the actual house there is a shop and café /​restaurant. They also do many events such as shows throughout the year.

This is a great historic manor. They have lots of different events through the year. The craft fair is great and from last year, has been relocated to new grounds.
There is a Christmas fair which is nice to attend as well.
We went to a Rose weekend one year and visited the house as there was an offer for entry.
They have a lovely café which serves a good cream tea.
I haven’t been to an Elizibethan banquet, but heard they are quite fun.
They have added a new entrance in the Old Hatfield side of town and built a new children’s play area, with a replica Hatfield House. It is fantastic.
New shops have opened up in the riding school too.

Hatfield House is a beautiful stately home located conveniently opposite the train station in hatfield, so access is very easy indeed.
The house itself is steeped in history, the grand old oak tree is still there where queen Elizabeth 1^st was sitting when she was told she was queen.
The guided tours are worth doing to get the best out of your visit. the grounds are beautiful and hatfield residents get free entry all year round, so it’s worth applying for a pass.
There are numerous events going on all year round, from craft fayres to christmas markets, there is something going on pretty much most weekends it seems.

Hatfield House is a lovely day out from London. It is about a 25 minute train ride north of London. Hatfield House is the family home of the Marquess of Salisbury, and was built by Robert Cecil (Chief Minister to James I, and son of William Cecil) from 1607 – 1611. The house is gorgeous, and has loads of beautiful furniture and art. Also on site is Old Hatfield Palace, where Elizabeth I spent much of her childhood. Elizabeth was out on the grounds at Hatfield when she learned that she was now queen, following the death of her sister Mary.
Hatfield has somewhat limited opening hours, and is closed (except for the grounds and for special events) during the winter. Check the website (great info) for details. I recommend going at the weekend: during the week you must take a guided tour of the home. The guide was knowledgable and entertaining, but we had to keep moving ahead of the group behind us, so did not have time to savor all of the wonderful things about Hatfield. I will definitely go back.