Recent Campaigns

The Royal Oak Foundation raised over $250,000 in our 2021 National Trust appeal to restore an important interior at Dyrham Park, a Barqoue-era mansion in the West Country, not far from Bath, built by William Blathwayt, one the most important British government figures of the 17th century.

The Royal Oak Foundation raised over $250,000 in our 2020 National Trust appeal to support a major effort to preserve this magnificent medieval ruin and landscape garden from the devastating effects of recurrent flooding.

Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Garden is one of the most beautifully designed landscapes ever created. In 1986 it was one of the first places in the UK to become a World Heritage Site because of the harmonious whole of buildings, gardens, and landscapes…which represents over 800 years of human ambition, design and achievement.

The Royal Oak Foundation raised over $250,000 in our 2019 National Trust appeal to support a major effort to protect Blickling’s remarkable library and make its collection better known to the public.

Read on to learn more about Blickling’s rich history and the restoration projects that have been completed, as well as ones that are in the works. We hope it will entice you to make a gift and visit magnificent Blickling’s Library on your next trip to the United Kingdom.

In 2018, the Royal Oak Foundation embarked on its appeal to raise $200,000 to help the National Trust complete a major, five-year restoration of its magnificent landscapes, monuments, temples and follies. Two donors are matching our appeal dollar-for-dollar – tripling the impact Royal Oak will make to bring Stowe back to its original splendor. Read on to learn more about Stowe’s rich history and the restoration projects that have been completed, as well as ones that are in the works. We hope it will entice you to make a gift and visit magnificent Stowe on your next trip to the United Kingdom.

In 2016-2017, the Royal Oak Foundation and the National Trust launched a multi-year appeal to reinvigorate Winston Churchill’s legacy at his family home and acquire prized possessions for its worldwide public.

It has been fifty years since Chartwell, his family home, was opened to the public. The National Trust commemorated this anniversary by calling on its members, supporters, charitable institutions and public entities to help reach its fundraising goal to ensure Churchill’s story will resonate with future generations.

Over 150 National Trust houses contain some 55,000 pieces of furniture. Taken as a whole, it is probably the largest and most important furniture collection in the world, exceptional for remaining in its historic context. It deserves to be better known and understood.

These facts led The Royal Oak Foundation to provide substantial initial funding for the Furniture Research Project. The initiative will enhance information on the Trust’s online collection database, freely accessible to anyone, and to fully document an internationally significant collection that spans seven centuries. Since September 2015, more than 13,000 pieces of furniture have been catalogued and numerous publications released whose findings help showcase the collection in Britain and abroad.

One of the finest examples of Neoclassical architecture remaining in Ireland and one of the very few by the great neo-classical architect Robert Adam, the Templetown Mausoleum was erected in 1789 by the Hon. Sarah Upton in memory of the Rt. Hon Arthur Upton. The National Trust acquired the mausoleum in 1962, when Castle Upton passed from the family.

In 2014, The Royal Oak Foundation raised funds to support three major projects at Stourhead, Wiltshire: Temple Apollo, the Grotto and the Pinetum. Stourhead is foremost amongst the most beautiful and historically significant landscape gardens in the world. The Pantheon, based on the Pantheon in Rome, is one of the most iconic buildings in the landscape. Designed by Henry Flitcroft and built in 1754, it contains a beautiful interior with sculpture, fine friezes and furniture.
The 2014 Timeless Design Gala raised funds to restore three of Flitcroft’s original benches and to reinstate two neo-classical busts of Homer and Horace in the entrance porch for the first time in 20 years.

From 2012 to 2013, The Royal Oak Foundation has campaigned to raise money for the conservation of Knole’s Ballroom and its contents, with members from across the U.S. having made an impressive $1.25 million contribution. Knole is a legendary house. An ancient manor refashioned as a seat of power, Knole passed through the hands of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and thirteen generations of the Sackville family. Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, transformed it into a Renaissance palace, and it remains the largest house in England. Occupying a footprint of four acres, it is a calendar house of 365 rooms, 52 staircases, 12 entrances, and seven courtyards. It is also one of the National Trust’s most misunderstood and least visited great houses.

Situated on the banks of the Thames in south west London, Ham House sits within an historic Arcadian landscape, with Hampton Court to the west and Kew Gardens to the east. Ham is one of Europe’s most complete surviving examples of a 17th century estate.

Mount Stewart is one of the most inspiring and unusual gardens in the National Trust’s ownership. The garden reflects a rich tapestry of design and great planting artistry that was the hallmark of Edith, Lady Londonderry. The mild climate of Strangford Lough allows astonishing levels of planting experimentation. The formal areas exude a strong Mediterranean feel and resemble an Italian villa landscape; the wooded areas support a range of plants from all corners of the world, ensuring something to see whatever the season

Hidcote is an Arts and Crafts garden in the north Cotswolds, a stone’s throw from Stratford-upon-Avon. Created by the talented American horticulturist, Major Lawrence Johnston its colourful and intricately designed outdoor ‘rooms’ are always full of surprises. Many of the plants found growing in the garden were collected from Johnston’s many plant hunting trips to far away places.