Overview
Restoration House is the amalgamation of two medieval buildings which were combined in the late 16th or early 17th-century to create a mansion house just outside the city wall of Rochester.
Over the past ten years the present owners have uncovered various parts of the decorative scheme which were the “run up” for King Charles II's visit on the eve of his Restoration to the throne. These provide fascinating examples of fashionable mid-17th century Continental taste seen through provincial eyes at a time when such innovations had been quashed by Cromwell.
Within these "interiors of rare poetry and historical resonance" (Jeremy Musson, Country Life) is a collection of beautiful English pictures and furniture, with nine Gainsboroughs.
The walled gardens enclose a stunning parterre, topiary and other formal features, along with herbaceous borders, greenhouses, and a cutting garden. An amazing early 17th-century Italian garden, with wide terraces on three levels, statues, ponds and beautiful brickwork is now nearing completion.
Opening
2020
28 May to 25 September: Thursdays and Fridays, 10am to 5pm.
Find us
Located just off Rochester High St, in Crow Lane, opposite The Vines park.
We are a 5 min walk from Rochester station with services from Victoria, Charing Cross and HI Speed from St. Pancras (30 min).
- Offers bike storage
Admission
Historic Houses members visit for free
House and Garden: £8.50, Concessions: £7.50
Garden only: £4.50
Students and under 16: half price
Pre booked guided tour: £11
Accessibility
- Wheelchair ramps/routes
Group Visits
Groups are welcome, please contact for more information.
Please check the website for further information, admission times and details for our special events
Visit websiteUpcoming Stays
Invitation to Stay
Weddings
Opening
2020
28 May to 25 September: Thursdays and Fridays, 10am to 5pm.
Find us
Located just off Rochester High St, in Crow Lane, opposite The Vines park.
We are a 5 min walk from Rochester station with services from Victoria, Charing Cross and HI Speed from St. Pancras (30 min).
- Offers bike storage
Admission
Historic Houses members visit for free
House and Garden: £8.50, Concessions: £7.50
Garden only: £4.50
Students and under 16: half price
Pre booked guided tour: £11
Accessibility
- Wheelchair ramps/routes
Group Visits
Groups are welcome, please contact for more information.
Other opening
School Visits
We offer tailored school visits for primary and secondary schools based on how people lived in houses before electricity.
Things to See
Queen Christina of Sweden's harpsichord
Salvator Mundi by Perugino
Gainsborough's earliest landscape
Statue of Castor with spurting beaver between his legs
Fun Facts
- Charles II stayed here on the eve of his Restoration to the throne.
- The house's dramatic architecture of towering gables, vertiginous chimneys and Mannerist facade all in seared red brick, punctuated by dozens of ancient windows of several types, inspired Dickens to situate Miss Havisham here in Great Expectations.