A National Trust property just 40 minutes from Nottingham boasts an incredible network of hidden tunnels. National Trust properties are renowned for their secret rooms and rich histories, but a select few offer something even more intriguing.
Several of these properties feature hidden tunnels beneath them or their gardens, with one such property located just 20 miles from Nottingham. The beautiful Calke Abbey is already a fantastic destination for a day trip, particularly in the summer when its stunning gardens transform into a vast playground for curious young minds.
However, the interior of the property is equally impressive, housing a plethora of trinkets and collector’s items. The National Trust describes Calke Abbey as “Calke Abbey is the house where time stood still vividly portraying a period in the twentieth century when many country houses did not survive to tell their story.
“Rather than restoring Calke to its former glory, we’ve undertaken necessary repairs to halt the decay of the house and its collections. As you wander through the mansion, you’ll discover abandoned rooms, peeling wallpaper and a vast collection of strange and unique objects presented exactly as we found them.”
“Calke Abbey was once the home of the reclusive and private Harpur Crewe family, who kept Calke hidden away until the estate and its collections were handed to the National Trust in 1985. When the gates were unlocked and the shutters opened, a country house in decline was revealed. Abandoned rooms were packed full of treasures, the courtyards overgrown and the park had become a haven for wildlife. Three decades later, there are still areas of Calke that are rarely seen and many stories yet to be discovered.”
While the gardens and house at Calke Abbey, in Ticknall, Derbyshire, are worth the trip alone the estate’s crowning glory for inquisitive minds is the network of stunning hidden tunnels.
These passageways run through the cellars and brewhouse to another set of agricultural outbuildings. Additional tunnels allow gardeners to move throughout the grounds without disturbing the family.
Fitted with subtle lighting, the tunnels offer an atmospheric journey and are surprisingly extensive.