Melton Constable - Hall

Hall

Melton Constable Hall is regarded as the finest specimen of the Christopher Wren style of house. The house was re-modelled and extended by Sir Jacob Astley between 1664 and 1670. It has some fine plaster ceilings dated 1687, probably fashioned by Edward Goudge. The core of the house is Elizabethan.

Between the church and the hall there stands a tower known as Belle Vue, which has a view of Norwich and the sea.

Belle Vue is in fact in Briningham, some 2 miles (3.2 km) from the Hall and not between the Hall and the church in Melton Park, although it could just be described as between the Hall and St. Peter's Church in Swanton Novers. It was a smock-mill that was built by Sir Jacob Astley, 1st Baronet, of Melton Constable Hall in 1721. The mill was not much used. Sir Edward Astley, the 4th Baronet, replaced the wooden tower with a brick one c. 1775. The new tower was built over the existing three-storey brick, octagonal base, is the only one of its type in the county and is the oldest base in the county. It fell into dereliction and remains on the English Heritage at Risk register, as do a number of outbuildings on the estate. The following were listed as at Risk as of April 2010 - Melton Constable Hall, Melton Constable Hall stable court west and north wings, Melton Constable Hall Terraces, The Bath House Melton Constable Park, and The Teahouse Melton Constable Park.