National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty

The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as The National Trust, is an organisation which works to preserve and protect coastline, countryside and buildings in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The trust does not operate in Scotland, where there is an independent National Trust for Scotland.

What the National Trust owns

Historic houses and gardens

The trust owns over two hundred historic houses. The majority of these are country houses. Most of the houses have important gardens attached to them, and the Trust also owns some important gardens which are not attached to a house. The properties include some of the most famous stately homes in the country and some of the key gardens in the history of British gardening.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Coast and countryside

The Trust's land holdings total around 2,480 square kilometres (956 mile²), which is around one and a half percent of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A large proportion of this consists of the parks and agricultural estates attached to its country houses, but there are also many countryside properties which were acquired specifically for their scenic or scientific value. It owns or protects roughly one fifth of the coast in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (704 miles / 1,126 km), and has a long-term campaign, Project Neptune, which seeks to acquire more.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Other properties

In recent years the Trust has sought to broaden its activities and appeal by acquiring properties such as former mills (early factories), workhouses and Paul McCartney's childhood home.

Related Topics:
Factories - Workhouse - Paul McCartney's

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~