Rydal Hall

Rydal Hall is a Grade II* listed house on the outskirts of the village of Rydal, Cumbria, in the Lake District, England. It has an early nineteenth-century front facade, but includes some earlier fabric.

The house used to be owned by the Le Fleming family, but now is under the ownership of the Diocese of Carlisle. The house is now used for retreats, conferences, courses and holidays near Rydal Water.

Rydal Hall is home to Fullcircle Luxury Lake District Yurts. There is also the Old School Room Tea Shop, located on the "Coffin Route" footpath, which leads to Grasmere.

The gardens are open to the public. They are included in the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest. In the mid-17th century, Sir Daniel Fleming (1633–1701) developed the landscape as an early Picturesque garden incorporating Rydal Beck and its natural waterfalls. 'The Grot' (a summerhouse designed for viewing a waterfall) became a major attraction for a succession of visiting artists and writers in the 18th and 19th century.

The formal gardens in front of the house were designed in 1909 by the garden designer and landscape architect Thomas Hayton Mawson (1861–1933). Mawson's terraces, which are in Italian style, are listed structures. These formal gardens were restored in 2005-7 by Tom Attwood. A community vegetable garden was created at the same time.

"The Grot" at Rydal Falls is described in William Wordsworth’s early poem, ‘An Evening Walk’, published in 1793. The poet moved to Rydal Mount, near Rydal Hall, in 1813 and it remained his home to his death in 1850. Towards the end of the poet's life his nephew Christopher Wordsworth went with him to "The Grot". The following is a description of their walk together from Rydal Mount.

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