CHATSWORTH has reopened the house, garden and farmyard for the 2026 season, immersing visitors of all ages in a celebration of literature to mark the National Year of Reading.

Celebrating the UK-wide campaign by the Department for Education aimed at encouraging reading in everyday life, this year’s exhibition, House of Stories: Tales from the Chatsworth Library, brings together some of the most treasured items from the Chatsworth Library and archive for the first time, shedding new light on the nation’s rich literary history.

From annotated first editions and original manuscripts to letters, scrapbooks and drawings, House of Stories invites visitors to view Britain’s literary history from a different perspective, uncovering fresh inspiration within one of its most remarkable libraries.

First and early editions on display include works by some of the nation’s most renowned authors, from Geoffrey Chaucer, Alexander Pope and Jane Austen to Charlotte Brontë, Oscar Wilde and T.E. Lawrence.

KEY INSIGHTS: Chatsworth House Trust is marking the National Year of Reading.

placeholder image — KEY INSIGHTS: Chatsworth House Trust is marking the National Year of Reading.

Throughout the year, Chatsworth will continue its literary celebrations with an events programme including sessions such as Chatsworth in Seven Objects in May, which explores Chatsworth’s history through items from the Devonshire Collections, alongside hands-on visitor workshops.

Chatsworth’s hugely popular Celebrating Jane Austen: Regency Festival will also return in June.

Jane Marriott, director of Chatsworth House Trust, said: “The Chatsworth House Trust charity cares for these works of national significance throughout the year, and each one holds key insights into the world of our most loved and famous authors and writers – from a first edition of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice to letters from Charles Dickens.”

For more information visit the website www.chatsworth.org/events/.