Fenton House, London, Besucherguide & was in der Nähe unternehmen

Fenton House is a mansion on Hampstead Grove in Hampstead, London, built in 1686 and now cared for by the National Trust. It is known for its collection of early keyboard instruments and for its walled garden, high on the hill above the city.

The story behind it

The house dates from the late seventeenth century, when Hampstead was a village on a hill well outside London. In the eighteenth century the village became a popular place for Londoners to come for fresh air and spa waters. Later it drew writers, painters and thinkers, a reputation it has kept ever since. Fenton House is one of the grandest survivors from that early period, with a red-brick front and a calm garden behind it.

The house is best known today for its harpsichords, clavichords and spinets, many of them centuries old. They stand in panelled rooms and are still played. Lady Binning, the last private owner, left the house to the National Trust in 1952. Like many old houses, it has local ghost stories, but they are tales rather than documented history.

What to look for

• The warm red-brick front of the house, set back behind trees and a gate, which still looks like a country house although it stands in a London suburb.
• The early keyboard instruments inside, including harpsichords and spinets, whose painted lids and slim cases look very different from a modern piano.
• The walled garden, with its borders and its orchard, which feels far removed from the busy streets below.
• The steep, quiet lanes around Hampstead Grove, where the old village layout is still easy to read.

Tips for your visit

• Allow about an hour for the house and garden, and longer if you want to explore the lanes around it.
• Check current opening hours and entry arrangements with the National Trust before you go, as the house and garden can follow different schedules.
• Morning or early afternoon in dry weather suits the garden best, and the walk up through Hampstead is part of the pleasure.
• Hampstead Heath, Admiral's Walk and the village centre are all close by, so Fenton House fits easily into a longer wander.

See it on a quest

Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows in Hampstead, London is a good way to see Fenton House. You reach it on foot as one stop on a longer route through Hampstead, the app tells you about the place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle on the spot. One ticket covers the whole group, and you can start whenever you like, with no guide and no set departure time.