Brodsworth Hall, near Brodsworth, five miles north-west of Doncaster in South Yorkshire is one of the most complete surviving examples of a Victorian country house in England, and is virtually unchanged since the 1860s. It was designed by a 26 year old London architect Philip Wilkinson. Brodsworth Hall was originally a grand residence for Charles Sabine Augustus Thellusson, who inherited the estate in 1859. The house has over 30 rooms, ranging from grand reception rooms with original furnishings to the servants' quarters. The house is surrounded by Victorian period gardens which are used for special events throughout the summer.
After the First World War spiralling costs meant that parts of the house were closed down, and the hall started to fall into decay, until English Heritage took over.
The last resident of the house was Sylvia Grant-Dalton (wife of a descendant of Charles Sabine Augustus Thellusson), who fought a losing battle against mining subsidence and leaking roofs for 57 years. After her death in 1988, English Heritage made the decision to conserve the interiors "as found" rather than replacing or restoring them, recounting the tale of how a once opulent Victorian house grew comfortably old and inviting to all. It took the decision to conserve rather than restore the house.
The third wife of the last owner, whose second wife was the last family member, lives within the grounds in a house built for the head gardener.
Woodlands model village was built for the miners at Brodsworth Colliery by Lord Markham who sank the pit in 1905. The Thellusson family, who leased the land and mineral rights to the colliery company, built All Saints Church for the village.