Elvaston Castle is a Grade II listed stately home located in Elvaston, near Derby, Derbyshire. It is part of the Elvaston Castle Country Park, owned by Derbyshire County Council, which also consists of 200 acres of park, woodland and formal gardens.
Before the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the Country Park was owned by Shelford Priory. In 1538, King Henry VIII sold the land to Sir Michael Stanhope of Rampton.
An Elizabethan style manor house was built on the land in 1633. Later, in the early 19th century, this house was redesigned and extended in a grand Gothic style by James Wyatt for Charles Stanhope. A new wing was added, with a great hall. Wyatt died before the work was completed, leaving Robert Walker to finish the house. It was completed in 1829. The Elizabethan south front to the house was remodeled by Lewis Nockalls Cottingham, in 1836, to match the rest of the Gothic house.
During World War II the house became a teacher training college as Derby college was evacuated. After the war, in 1947, the college left the house and grounds, it has remained empty ever since.
The house and grounds were sold to Derbyshire County Council in 1969. The council opened the estate to the public.
The house today sits empty and is in desperate need for essential repairs to be carried out which the council claim they can not afford. The grounds are open to the public.