From Jane Eyre to Northanger Abbey: how the manor influenced Gothic fiction

Henry James’ The turn of the screw is one of the most famous ghost stories in all of literature, in which a governess moves to a remote country house to care for two children, possessed or otherwise. The inspiration for Bly Manor in the story came from Hinton Ampner, a country house in Hampshire whose owners were said to be plagued by visits from ghostly servants. James heard from the Archbishop of Canterbury about Hinton Ampner, which was labeled by one of the owners as an unsuitable home for any human being. The house, which largely burned down in the 1960s and was rebuilt by the owner, now stands owned by the National Trustand is open to visitors all year round.

Ewanrigg Hall, West Cumbria

Victorian classic by Wilkie Collins The woman in white is set in two sinister country houses, starting at the fictional Limmeridge Hall in Cumbria. Collins is said to have based Limmeridge in the grand 18th century Ewanrigg Hall, a house he had visited with Charles Dickens. Ewanrigg owes its Gothic reputation to more than just literary connections. Just before Collins started writing The woman in white in 1860 the owner of the house had died and his widow had been admitted to an asylum in Gateshead. Ewanrigg fell into disrepair and became the subject of local ghost stories, with tales of ghosts haunting the corridors. The building has since been destroyed by fire and little is left.

Menabilly House, Cornwall

Daphne du Maurier’s Manderley, the setting of her most famous novel Rebekahwas inspired by two country houses. The exterior was based on Menabilly House in Cornwall, an estate that du Maurier would eventually rent from the Rashleigh family (who have owned the house since the 16th century) five years later. Rebekah‘s release. The interior, meanwhile, is inspired by Milton Hall in Cambridgeshire. Du Maurier’s haunting description of Manderley’s wild and overgrown drift reflects the dilapidated state in which Menabilly had fallen when she first encountered it in 1926. The house is still privately owned and not open to visitors, but you can visit Menabilly beach and the explore the environment. , including the popular Rashleigh Bath, a seawater tidal pool cut into the rock at Polridmouth.

Ponden Hall, North Yorkshire

by Emily Brontë Wuthering Heights is largely based on two country houses, Wuthering Heights itself and Thrushcross Grange, the home of the wealthy Linton family. The inspiration for the latter is generally thought to be Ponden Hall in the village of Stanbury, although there are questions about the attribution as Ponden Hall is much smaller in size than Thrushcross’s description suggests. Located close to the Brontës’ home in Haworth, the Hall would have had an extensive library which the Bronte children would have had access to as regular visitors. In 2014, the hall became a bed and breakfast, but since it went up for sale in 2020, its status is unclear. However, there is an AirBnB listing for the annexwhich Brontë fans are sure to enjoy.

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