Rainthorpe Hall

Rainthorpe Hall is a Grade I listed[1] Elizabethan country mansion near Tasburgh in Norfolk, England, about 8 miles (13 km) south of Norwich.[3] It is notable for its medieval stonework, wood carvings, rare 17th-century leather wall-coverings[1] and 19th-century Victorian mirrors.[4] The hall's grounds extend to 18.7 acres.[3]

Rainthorpe Hall
Rainthorpe Hall in 2015
Location within Norfolk
General information
Type	Private house; stately home
Architectural style	Tudor
Coordinates	52.527851°N 1.245525°E / 52.527851; 1.245525
Listed Building – Grade I
Official name	Rainthorpe Hall including garden wall with gate and gatepiers
Designated	2 October 1951
Reference no.	1050699[1]
National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens
Official name	Rainthorpe Hall
Designated	18 September 1987
Reference no.	1000292[2]
Grade	II

There is evidence that the Hall dates back to the 15th century or earlier in some form and that most of the original structure was destroyed by a fire around 1500.[5] In 1579, the lawyer Thomas Baxter purchased the property and set about adding to it and altering it to include two new wings, before selling the property in 1628.[6] The next owner of note was Frederick Walpole, youngest son of Horatio Walpole, 3rd Earl of Orford, who purchased the property in 1852; his influence on the house can be seen in the hall chimney, stone windows and stained glass.[6]

Colonel Sir Charles Harvey, who later became the 2nd Baronet Harvey of Crown Point, Trowse, Norfolk, bought Rainthorpe Hall in 1878,[6] and the following year constructed the stable block and the castellated gardener's cottage which sits to the right of the property.[7][8] Harvey added the five bay window extension at the front in 1885.[6]

After this, Rainthorpe Hall was purchased by the economist J Maurice Hastings,[9] who, according to his good friend, Maurice Bowra, held "wild parties" at the Hall.[10] The Hall was subsequently inherited by his son, George Hastings,[11] who sold it to the barrister and businessman Alastair Wilson QC in 1990.[3][12]