The best way to tour Oakwell Hall is to visit. Until you get here, you can enjoy a virtual trip around this wonderfully authentic 16th-Century Manor House.
Oakwell Hall boasts some hidden gems, little rooms, nooks and crannies tucked away between the main rooms on our virtual tour. You can find out more about them here.
The costume room:
try out some costumes, based on how the Batts would have dressed. You’ll find them in the porch chamber.
The alcove table:
spot this charming little table in an alcove near the New Parlour Chamber.
The small study:
sited off the Minstrel’s Gallery, this is probably where John Batt contemplated the estate’s accounts and family affairs. The 1611 inventory of Robert Batt of Oakwell Hall shows him to have over 60 books. This was at a time when books were costly and few people could read.
The Green Room:
here, you can find out about Oakwell’s Bronte connections. Hear in some of the author’s own words how it came to appear in Charlotte Bronte’s novel “Shirley” as “Fieldhead”.
The Grand Staircase:
peeping down the stairs (sadly no longer in use) gives you a sense of the opulence of life here at Oakwell in its heyday.
The Westmoreland bed:
named after its place of origin, find it in the Little Parlour Chamber. This is a fine example and dates from around 1525. The Oakwell Broiderers created the bedcover and hanging. The design is by Barry Lockwood. It is based on the Jacobean Tree of Life, using animal and floral motifs typical of the period. It is worked in crewelwork, an early form of embroidery. The chest at the foot of the bed is one of the oldest at Oakwell, dating from the mid-16th century. The linen-fold panels on the front and sides are similar to those on the bed in the Painted Chamber. On loan from V & A Museum.
The bed’s headboard:
this still shows the initials HF on the headboard, together with three curious J’s on the footrail. The low bed on wheels underneath is a truckle bed. It was wheeled out at night for servants or children. On loan from V & A Museum.
The Tapestries:
tapestries on walls provided both decoration and warmth. Both of those in the Little Parlour Chamber are reproductions based on original designs.
The Buttery:
originally a storeroom for food and drink, this now contains information about the Batts. It tells how their fortunes were affected by the choice to follow the Royalists during the English Civil War. Spot the canon balls and create your own coat of arms.
The Ghost Story:
if you hear mysterious voices as you move around the upper floor, don’t panic. It’s not the ghost, just one of our “talking pictures” tucked away in an alcove telling you the whole story. You can find out more about the ghost on this site as well.
Hover over the images to see a description, click on them to see larger versions.
