Gibside
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Gibside is a National Trust property located near Rowlands Gill, Tyne and Wear (pre-1974 County Durham), and Burnopfield, County Durham).
Landscaped in the 18th century, it is a former home of the Bowes-Lyon family, (Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne) It includes a chapel (Gibside Chapel, built between 1760 and 1812), a banqueting hall, a column of Liberty, an avenue of oaks, many miles of walks, and several lakes.
The main house of the estate was a celebrated stately home, now reduced to a shell after becoming vacant in the 1920s, when death duties forced the Bowes-Lyon family to scale back its lavish lifestyle and give up some of its great houses.
The house was owned by the family of Mary Eleanor Bowes, who married into the Lyon family. The Bowes-Lyon's also owned Streatlam Castle (now demolished), near Barnard Castle.
Much of the grounds is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and includes a "forest garden" currently under restoration. There are several outstanding buildings, including a Palladian chapel and others awaiting or undergoing restoration.
The chapel and Grand Walk have been in the National Trust's ownership since 1965; an additional 354 acres of the grounds were acquired in 1993.
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