Visiting Kingston Lacey - a National Trust House with an amazing art collection

I visited Kingston Lacy which is a manor house in Dorset that was given to the National Trust, which has restored the house. There is an amazing art collection in the house. Unfortunately the second floor (the third floor to us Americans) wasn't open because they didn't have enough volunteers that day. There was one room on the third floor I really wanted to see, I'll put a picture at the end which isn't quite the same as being able to see in it person, but still great to see. 

From Wikipedia: Kingston Lacy is a country house and estate near Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England. It was for many years the family seat of the Bankes family who lived nearby at Corfe Castle until its destruction in the English Civil War after its incumbent owners, Sir John Bankes and Dame Mary, had remained loyal to Charles I.

The house was built between 1663 and 1665 by Ralph Bankes, son of Sir John Bankes, to a design by the architect Sir Roger Pratt. It is a rectangular building with two main storeys, attics and basement, modelled on Chevening in Kent. The gardens and parkland were laid down at the same time, including some of the specimen trees that remain today. Various additions and alterations were made to the house over the years and the estate remained in the ownership of the Bankes family from the 17th to the late 20th century.

The house was designated as a Grade I listed building in 1958 and the park and gardens are included in the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens at Grade II. The house was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1982 after the death of Henry John Ralph Bankes, along with Corfe Castle.

If you want to learn more about Kingston Lacey - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Lacy

These three figures are made of cast iron. They're beautifully detailed and quite practical too. They're very fancy radiator covers!

This is Charles I 

After the execution of Charles I, Cromwell had the family castle of Corfe destroyed. She is holding the key to that castle and a display of key from the castle hang on the wall in the library.

Love the 3D carving on the door

Excellent garden sculptures of a lion and snake fighting. There were one of each side of stone steps going into the garden.

The hand blown glass was gorgeous

The trees are so interesting in England

There was a robot lawnmower toiling away

This is the room I really wanted to see on the third floor, but it was closed that day.  The guest room was painted to look like a Napoleonic military campaign tent.