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Listed buildings and structures are officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or cultural significance. There are over half a million listed structures in the United Kingdom, covered by around 375,000 listings.
Listed status is more commonly associated with buildings or groups of buildings, however it can cover many other structures, including bridges, headstones, steps, ponds, monuments, walls, phone boxes, wrecks, parks, and heritage sites, and in more recent times a road crossing (Abbey Road) and graffiti art (Banksy 'Spy-booth') have been included.

In England and Wales there are three main listing designations;
Grade I (2.5%) - exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important.
Grade II* (5.5%) - particularly important buildings of more than special interest.
Grade II (92%) - nationally important and of special interest.

There are also locally listed structures (at the discretion of local authorities) using A, B and C designations.

In Scotland three classifications are also used but the criteria are different. There are around 47,500 Listed buildings.
Category A (8%)- generally equivalent to Grade I and II* in England and Wales
Category B (51%)- this appears generally to cover the ground of Grade II, recognising national importance.
Category C (41%)- buildings of local importance, probably with some overlap with English Grade II.

In Northern Ireland the criteria are similar to Scotland, but the classifications are:
Grade A (2.3%)
Grade B+ (4.7%)
Grade B (93%)

Read more at Wikipedia Link

The rugged Mount Edgcumbe promontory is at the extreme southeast corner of Cornwall, bordering Plymouth Sound and across the Hamoaze from the city of Plymouth. At its heart is Mount Edgcumbe House, built in 1550 and surrounded by formal gardens, an eighteenth-century landscaped park, deer park and wooded hillsides dropping steeply to the sea.

The estate belonged to the Edgcumbe family for almost five centuries. Their original mediaeval home was at Cotehele ten miles to the north. They also owned the ancient fortified town of Stonehouse across the river.

In the twentieth century family tragedy, the impact of World War II and taxation led the sixth Earl to give Cotehele to the National Trust in 1947. The seventh Earl sold Mount Edgcumbe House and some 865 acres of land for use as a country park in 1971. With support from the then Countryside Commission the property was bought by Cornwall County Council and Plymouth City Council and managed jointly.

There is of course access by road in Cornwall. A popular way to visit from Plymouth is to take the Cremyll Ferry from Admiral's Hard at Stonehouse.

(Adapted from the excellent guide to Mount Edgcumbe by Cynthia Gaskell Brown).

Mount Edgcumbe Country Park Country park is listed as grade one on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens and is one of four designated country parks in Cornwall. The 885 acres country park is on the Rame Peninsula, overlooking Plymouth Sound and the River Tamar. The park has been famous since the 18th century, when the Edgcumbe family created formal gardens, temples, follies and woodlands around the Tudor house. Specimen trees such as Sequoiadendron giganteum, stand against copses which shelter a herd of wild fallow deer. The South West Coast Path runs through the park for nine miles along the coastline.
The park also contains the villages of Kingsand and Cawsand, as well as Mount Edgcumbe House itself. The Formal Gardens are grouped in the lower park near Cremyll. Originally a 17th-century 'wilderness' garden, the present scheme was laid out by the Edgcumbe family in the 18th century. The Formal Gardens include an Orangery, an Italian Garden, a French Garden, an English Garden and a Jubilee Garden, which opened in 2002, to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. The park and Formal Gardens are open all year round and admission is free. The park and gardens are jointly managed by Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council. Although the park covers a large area, the park has limited formal maintenance. This gives it a rough and ready rural feel in all except the Formal Gardens.