Firle Place

About the venue

Tudor and Georgian manor house of the Gage family at the foot of the South Downs, at the heart of the 7,000-acre Firle Estate near Lewes. Hired exclusively for weddings, with civil ceremonies indoors or out, a Georgian Riding School for 300 and ten four-poster bedrooms in the house.

An inventory attached to the will of Sir John Gage, who died in 1556, shows that his Tudor house at Firle was richly furnished. Only his book of hours is still here. The Gage family has lived at Firle Place for more than five centuries, and one of them, General Thomas Gage, commanded the British forces when the American War of Independence began.

The house mixes Tudor and Georgian work and stands in parkland at the foot of the South Downs, within the 7,000-acre Firle Estate. Its collection is one of the most significant in Southern England, with paintings by Van Dyck, Reynolds and Gainsborough, Sèvres porcelain and Gillows furniture. Firle is also the only place in the country where part of the Cowper collection can be seen.

For weddings the house is hired exclusively. Civil ceremonies can take place inside or outdoors, and St Peter's Church next door holds Anglican services and blessings by arrangement. The converted Georgian Riding School takes 300, or 250 seated, and has its own bar. Formal dinners are served in the Billiard Room, and receptions in the Great Hall gather beneath one of Van Dyck's grandest paintings.

Ten bedrooms in the house have four-poster beds and pictures from the family collection. The Ram Inn is a few minutes' walk away, and the estate also has holiday cottages and room for camping in the park. Drinks can come from the estate's own winery and craft brewery. The house opens to visitors in summer and early autumn, with a tea room and terrace overlooking the park.

Gage family home for over 500 years

7,000-acre estate below the South Downs

Exclusive use for weddings

Civil ceremonies indoors or outside

St Peter's Church next door

Riding School for 300, or 250 seated

Ten four-poster bedrooms

Estate winery and craft brewery