A sprawling Derbyshire country pile with stables, cottages to let, its own pub and mini-Versailles walled garden
Hopton Hall is a sprawling, 17,400 sq ft property with gardens that truly must be seen. Penny Churchill tells more.


istorically the heart of a 3,744-acre Derbyshire country estate, Hopton Hall near Matlock was for 600 years the ancestral home of the Gell family, whose wealth derived from substantial lead-mining interests near the picturesque town of Wirksworth.
Today, the restored, 17,400sq ft Hall, listed Grade II, with its original stable block and thriving holiday-cottage complex set in 50 acres of gardens, parkland and woodland, is for sale through Savills at a guide price of £7 million.
In 1371, Robert Gyle de Hopton was leasing land in the village of Hopton; a century later, his great-grandson Ralph Gell ‘held the whole of the township of Hopton and all the people of the township were his tenants’. Thereafter, the acquisitive Gell family became one of the county’s biggest landowners and, in the late 1500s, Anthony Gell, who was knighted by Elizabeth I, reputedly built the earliest part of the present Hopton Hall.
The first Gell baronet, Sir John Gell, received the honour on the eve of the English Civil War, but fought for the Parliamentarians during the conflict. With his unpaid army of ‘ungovernable and licentious wretches’, he captured many of the fortified homes of his Royalist opponents, who, in 1644, took their revenge by sacking Hopton Hall.
The restoration of the monarchy in 1660 and the loss of important local mineral rights a year later saw the Gell family forced to borrow large sums of money and, controversially, ‘enclose’ common land in Carsington and Wirksworth, which led to longstanding disputes with their Derbyshire neighbours. It took 3rd Baronet Sir Philip Gell the later part of his life to clear the outstanding debts.
The male line ended with Sir Philip’s demise in 1719, although his nephew, John Eyre Gell, took the family name on inheriting Hopton in 1730. His grandson, another Philip Gell, who inherited in 1795, remodelled Hopton Hall, joining the two Elizabethan wings and adding the large dining room; he also built a writing room for his wife, Georgina, at the far end of the house.
Having decided that the main road past Hopton ran too close to the hall, he realigned it and built the striking, ‘crinkle-crankle’ ribbon wall with its six curves on the northern edge of the now-restored walled garden. He also instructed the builders to erect a summerhouse overlooking the garden and to carry on building until he told them to stop, before driving off to Westminster in his coach. However, his return was delayed, by which time his two-storey summerhouse had reached an impressive 30ft high.
Sign up for the Country Life Newsletter
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Gell died in 1842, leaving a life interest in Hopton Hall to his daughter Isabella and, thereafter, to his friend Henry Chandos-Pole, who died in 1902, leaving the property to his son, Brigadier General Harry Chandos-Pole-Gell. The brigadier let the estate to another family member, Philip Lyttleton Gell, but, on his return from the First World War in 1918, was compelled by mounting debts to sell Hopton Hall to a local merchant, who promptly sold it back to Philip Gell.
Much of the estate was lost to Severn Trent Water in 1978 for the creation of the vast Carsington Water reservoir, whereas the hall and its remaining land was sold in 1989 and its contents dispersed in a mammoth sale at Sotheby’s. The house was sold again in 1995.
The present owners of Hopton Hall had spent six years looking for a substantial country property that was private, but not remote in far-flung corners of Derbyshire, North Yorkshire and even Oxfordshire, when, in December 2010, they found and bought it.
Immediately, they embarked on a major renovation of the hall, its five holiday cottages, outbuildings and a magnificent walled garden. The latter is a delight, with twisting shapes interspersed by tall conifers that give it a sort of mini-Versailles look and feel. It's open to the public in the spring and summer months.
They also installed a biomass heating system that uses wood pellets to heat the entire house and the communal swimming pool.
Hopton lies on the edge of the Derbyshire Peak District with southerly views over Carsington Water and is surrounded by 325 acres of farmland, over which it holds sporting rights. The estate is set between the villages of Hopton and Carsington, yet is screened from both by banks of ancient woodland.
The main house offers extensive accommodation on three floors, including a fine panelled reception hall; a drawing room with an early-19th-century copy of an Elizabethan plasterwork ceiling; a formal dining room with original shutters overlooking the estate; and a sumptuously appointed dining kitchen.
A galleried landing leads to seven first-floor bedrooms and five bathrooms, with another six bedrooms in the north wing and 10 further rooms on the second floor.
There are also a number of facilities to cater to the holiday lets, including kitchen and laundry facilities and a tea room. The house also has its own pub, a proper time-capsule watering hole that could have escaped from pretty much any point in the preceding century. According to the listing this pub is not for the use of guests, instead being purely for the enjoyment of the owners.
Hopton Hall is for sale through Savills at a guide price of £7 million — see more details and pictures.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
-
An elegant country house that comes with 63 gloriously unspoilt acres of Devon, and 400 fascinating years of history
Penny Churchill takes a look at the beautiful Hudscott Manor.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
The flat Mick Jagger shared with Keith Richards, and more Chelsea-themed fun: Country Life Quiz of the Day, May 21, 2025
The Rolling Stones lived in squalor in the days when Chelsea was rougher around the edges — find out how much they paid for the privilege, and how much they'd need today
By Country Life Published
-
An elegant country house that comes with 63 gloriously unspoilt acres of Devon, and 400 fascinating years of history
Penny Churchill takes a look at the beautiful Hudscott Manor.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
A tranquil cottage in Essex where Grayson Perry used to do his paper round
Great Bardfield was home to a variety of famous artists, and with properties such as Vine Cottage, it's not difficult to understand why.
By James Fisher Published
-
A home of horticultural and architectural grandeur for sale near Banbury
Reception and bedrooms on the inside, garden rooms by Lanning Roper on the outside.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
22 charming country homes for sale, from £500k to £3m, as seen in Country Life
Our regular look at some of the best homes to come to the market via Country Life includes everything from thatched cottages in the West Country to sprawling estates.
By Toby Keel Published
-
An effortlessly contemporary home in Surrey for quiet contemplation
Graylings in the Surrey Hills was designed by Baufritz and is a delight of modern design.
By James Fisher Published
-
Curiosity abounds in Kent at Flimwell Grange, where an old brandy vat is now a pool house
This period delight is full of curious treasures, and offers outstanding views of the Garden of England.
By James Fisher Published
-
London is a happy city, but not the happiest city, according to new research
It is, however, a very romantic city, according to different research. So that's good.
By James Fisher Published
-
Swim above the competition in London's highest outdoor pool
The new Shard Place development is the latest amenity-filled addition to the Shard Quarter
By James Fisher Published