Ham House and Garden

Over het museum

Ham House was finished in 1610 for Thomas Vavasour, a courtier of James I, as a traditional red-brick house on the south bank of the Thames. It later passed to William Murray, a close friend of Charles I, whose daughter Elizabeth Murray, Countess of Dysart, kept control of the estate through the Civil War and the Protectorate.

The house reached its greatest period after Elizabeth married the Duke of Lauderdale in 1672. He held high office under Charles II, and the couple almost doubled the size of the house, built private apartments for themselves and fine suites for guests, and filled it with paintings, tapestries and furniture of the highest fashion. They also redesigned the gardens and grounds.

Later generations of the family, the Tollemaches, mainly preserved the house and its contents instead of changing them, which is why so much of the 17th-century décor survives in unusually good condition. The last Earl to live at Ham died in 1935, and the house was given to the National Trust in 1948. It was then opened to visitors, restored and studied in detail, and it is a Grade I listed building. Its formal gardens are listed Grade II*. The interiors have also been used often as a location for film and television.

Hoogtepunten

• Rare survival of 17th-century interiors, furniture, paintings and tapestries
• The apartments created for the Duke and Duchess of Lauderdale
• Grade I listed house with formal gardens beside the River Thames
• Orangery with coffee shop
• Riverside walk to Richmond and the seasonal Hammerton's Ferry

Vaste collectie

• The 17th-century house and its collections – Richly furnished rooms of the Jacobean and Restoration periods, including the Lauderdale apartments, with paintings, tapestries and furniture.

Opgericht

1610

Beheerder

National Trust

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

Prices are for house and garden, without Gift Aid (adult £19.80 with Gift Aid). National Trust members enter free; RHS main cardholders and Art Fund members are also accepted. There is no pre-booking: go to Visitor Reception at the river-facing gates on arrival.

Toegankelijkheid

• Deels rolstoeltoegankelijk
• Lift: niet aanwezig
• Aangepast toilet
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats
• Hulphonden welkom
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten: geen informatie
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie: geen informatie

The ground floor is reached by a ramp, and further ground-floor rooms by portable ramps. There is no lift, and the upper floors and basement can be reached only by stairs. The garden is level, but paths are gravel and cobbles. Manual wheelchairs can be borrowed from Visitor Reception (book ahead by email); the mobility scooter was out of service in October 2026 and visitors should check with the house before relying on it. An accessible toilet is in the toilet block opposite the shop. Extremely limited Blue Badge parking is on site and must be reserved by email. Assistance dogs are allowed throughout the house and garden.

Kinderen & gezin

• Verschoonruimte

Children under 5 enter free and children aged 5 to 17 pay a reduced ticket. Baby changing is available in the toilet block.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

Satellite navigation leads to the stables on Ham Street; carry straight on to the Ham Street Car Park. The Thames Path runs close to the entrance. Bike racks are inside the main gates.

Service & horeca

• Café
• Museumwinkel

The coffee shop is in the Orangery, and last orders are 10 to 15 minutes before it closes. There is a shop and a second-hand bookshop. Dogs on a short lead are welcome in the garden, shop and coffee shop; in the house only assistance dogs are allowed. Toilets with baby changing are opposite the shop.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

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