Comfortable seclusion is on offer at three historic houses, each beautifully presented and set in glorious landscapes worthy of God’s own county

From a 17th-century country house to a small but idyllic clifftop retreat, Amy McPherson compiles some of the best coastal properties currently for sale

Three historic country houses in Yorkshire, a stone’s throw from the most northerly of Britain’s 16 white chalk horses, offer comfortable contemporary living and fascinating backstories

Bucklesham Hall, Bucklesham, Ipswich, Suffolk. A renovated, 15th-century hall set in formal gardens with spring-fed lakes, including one with a Japanese-style bridge and an island. It has beamed ceili

Susan Taylor celebrates New Year in Cornwall with bracing walks and fancy dress I could feel it in the air – almost reach out and touch it. Not the wind and rain; even that was strangely quiet, mirror

Owning listed properties means stepping into centuries of craftsmanship and character, plus, perhaps, a few quirks, but buyers who truly love history wouldn’t have it any other way