Aberglasney facts for kids

Aberglasney House and Gardens is a beautiful old house and its amazing gardens. It's located in the lovely Tywi valley in West Wales, near a town called Llangathen in Carmarthenshire. Today, a special group called the Aberglasney Restoration Trust looks after it. This group is a charity, which means they work to keep Aberglasney special for everyone to enjoy. The house is also a "Grade II* listed building," which means it's a very important historical building that needs to be protected.

Where is Aberglasney?

Aberglasney is easy to find! It's just off the main A40 road, which runs between the towns of Llandeilo and Carmarthen. It's only about 3 miles (5 km) from Llandeilo.

A Look Back in Time: Aberglasney's History

The land where Aberglasney stands has a very long history. For about ten generations, it was owned by a family with roots going back to ancient Welsh princes.

The Rudd Family's Changes

Around the year 1600, the land was sold to the Rudd family. A man named Anthony Rudd, who was a bishop, helped pay for the house to be rebuilt in 1603. This was when the house likely got its famous Elizabethan promenade garden. This garden is one of the best-preserved gardens of its kind in all of Great Britain! The house stayed with the Rudd family for a few generations. However, because they supported the king during the English Civil War and had to pay high taxes (they had 13 chimneys, which was a lot!), they eventually sold the house.

The Dyer Family's Improvements

In 1710, a successful lawyer from Carmarthen named Robert Dyer bought Aberglasney. He made many improvements to the house, including adding a stylish Queen Anne-style front. Robert Dyer passed away before all the work was finished in 1720. His son, also named Robert, took over. Robert's brother, John Dyer, was a painter and poet. He even wrote two poems about Aberglasney and the beautiful Tywi valley in 1726. After a while, the family faced money problems, and the estate was put up for sale in 1798.

New Owners and Wartime

In 1803, a surgeon named Thomas Philips bought the house. He had worked for the East India Company for 30 years. After he died without children in 1824, the property went to his nephew, John Walters. John added "Philipps" to his name and put a grand porch on the front of the house.

Later, the house was inherited by Mary Anne Pryse. Her husband, Colonel Charles Mayhew, planted many rare trees in the grounds. During this time, Aberglasney was rented out for a while.

When World War II began, Aberglasney was used by the army. It became a mobile laundry for soldiers and later a place for American troops to stay before D-Day. A German bomb even fell nearby after a raid on Swansea docks!

After the war, a relative named Eric Evans and his family lived there. But when he passed away young in 1950, the family decided the property was too expensive to keep, and they sold it.

Aberglasney Today

In 1955, the estate was split up, and the house was bought by a lawyer. For many years, the house was empty and started to fall apart. There were even problems with people stealing parts of the building. The Welsh Office, a government department, had to step in to protect this important historical site.

A New Beginning

In 1995, the Aberglasney Restoration Trust took over. They worked hard to bring the house and gardens back to life. In 1999, the beautiful 10-acre (4-hectare) gardens opened to the public!

The gardens at Aberglasney are truly special and include:

• The Cloister Garden: This garden has a rare walkway around its edge. An archaeological study found clues that the site might be as old as the 13th century!
• The Upper Walled Garden: This garden was designed by a famous garden designer named Penelope Hobhouse.
• The Ninfarium: This amazing, award-winning garden is built inside the ruins of the mansion. It's filled with all sorts of unusual and exotic plants, making it feel like a tropical paradise.

Aberglasney continues to be a popular place to visit. In 2009, the famous TV show Antiques Roadshow even filmed an episode there!

Images for kids

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  Aberglasney House

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  Aberglasney House

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  Aberglasney Gardens

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  Aberglasney House

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  Aberglasney House

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  Offices at Aberglasney Garden

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  Window at Aberglasney House

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  The Cloisters at Aberglasney House

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  The Ninfarium at Aberglasney House