Little Moreton Hall, Cheshire

This is one of the most fascinating timbered houses I've seen. We took a tour and the guide was most entertaining and knew his subject.

Under the National Trust, the house was first built in 1216 and added to by various generations of the Moreton family over centuries. It is basically a farm house that was owned by a wealthy farming family, so a practical house that pronounced their wealth and political leanings. For the latter, it was confiscated and went into degeneration to be restored to the family survivor in Victorian times and finally handed over to the Trust.

Because it has no foundations, it has sagged and leaned throughout and had to be reinforced to allow it to survive. Walking through it, it gives you the peculiar sensation of being out of control or drunk. Every room leans differently and even within a room, there are differing angles.

The history of it and the people in it was delightfully enlightening and interesting.