Hagley Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hagley Hall |
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Hagley Hall June 2011
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neo-Palladian |
| Address | Hall Drive, Hagley, Worcestershire, DY9 9LG |
| Town or city | Hagley, Worcestershire |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 52°25′27″N 2°07′09″W / 52.4242°N 2.1191°W |
| Construction started | 1754 |
| Completed | 1760 |
| Client | George Lyttelton, 1st Baron Lyttelton |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Sanderson Miller |
Hagley Hall is a grand house built in the 1700s in Hagley, Worcestershire, England. It's the family home of the Lytteltons. This special house is a "Grade I listed building," which means it's very important and protected.
The house was created by George, 1st Lord Lyttelton. He was a poet and even worked for the government for a short time. Before his father passed away in 1751, George started designing the gardens in a new, natural style called "Picturesque." Then, between 1754 and 1760, he built the beautiful house you see today. It's designed in a style called "Neo-Palladian."
In 1925, a big fire damaged the house. Most of it was fixed, but the top floor, where the servants lived, was not rebuilt. This means the roof looks a little different now than it did originally.
For a while, the estate faced some tough times. But later, Christopher Charles Lyttelton, 12th Viscount Cobham, started fixing up both the house and the park. Today, you can visit the park, and parts of the house can be rented for special events. As of 2012, the hall is still the home of Christopher Charles Lyttelton and his wife, Tessa.
Contents
The Main House: A Grand Design
The "Neo-Palladian" style of building became popular in London in the early 1700s. It slowly spread to other parts of England, reaching Worcestershire in the 1750s. Hagley Hall is one of the best examples of this style in the area.
Sanderson Miller designed Hagley Hall between 1754 and 1760. The house has a simple outside look and special corner towers with pyramid-shaped roofs. These features are typical of the Neo-Palladian style. Inside, you can see amazing plasterwork and a special collection of furniture from the 1700s. There are also many family portraits, including paintings by famous artists like Van Dyck and Joshua Reynolds.
A Fire and Restoration
On Christmas Eve in 1925, a terrible fire swept through Hagley Hall. It destroyed much of the library and many paintings. Even though melted lead was dripping from the roof, everyone inside managed to get out safely. The 9th Viscount, who owned the house at the time, was very sad to see his life's work destroyed. He and his wife worked hard to restore the house, bringing it back to life. However, they decided not to rebuild the staff quarters on the top floor.
Nearby Buildings and Church
Just north of Hagley Hall, across a small road, is a large stable block. These buildings used to house horses and carriages. Today, they are no longer stables but are used as a place for small local businesses.
A short walk west of the Hall is the local church, St John the Baptist. Many members of the Lyttelton family, who own Hagley Hall, have been buried in the churchyard since 1875. The churchyard also holds the graves of other important families and their servants from the area. Right next to the church is the local cricket ground, where Hagley Cricket Club plays. This club has been around since 1834 and has a long history with the Lyttelton family.
Exploring the Grounds and Park
Hagley Hall sits within 350 acres (about 1.4 square kilometers) of beautiful parkland. Herds of fallow deer graze here. The park was designed between 1739 and 1764. It features unique structures called "follies," which are buildings made to look old or ruined, often for decoration. These follies were designed by several people, including Sanderson Miller.
Famous Follies and Views
One famous folly is the Hagley Obelisk, built in 1764. It's a tall, pointed stone pillar that can be seen from many miles away. Another structure is a rebuilt Temple of Theseus, which was a gift to Lyttelton. This temple needs some repair work and is on a list of historic places at risk. Other follies in the park include classical-style buildings and a fake ruined castle that looks like it's from the Middle Ages.
The beautiful grounds of Hagley Park attracted many famous visitors. Writers interested in landscape design, like Alexander Pope and William Shenstone, admired the park. Monuments were later built in the park to honor them. Another visitor, the poet James Thomson, even wrote about Hagley in his poem "The Seasons."
Even Horace Walpole, who was often hard to please, loved Hagley. After visiting in 1753, he wrote that he was amazed by its beauty. In 1786, John Adams, who later became the second President of the United States, visited Hagley with Thomas Jefferson. Adams was very impressed with Hagley, though he thought its fancy style might not suit the wilder American landscape.
After many years of not being cared for, restoration work has started in the park. The Hagley Obelisk was repaired in 2010. More recently, the Palladian Bridge was rebuilt, and the view down the valley to the repaired Rotunda was opened up again.
The Gunpowder Plot Connection
About 50 years before Hagley Hall was built, the famous Gunpowder plot was discovered. This was a plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament. Two of the plotters, Robert Wintour and Stephen Littleton, escaped and came to Hagley Park. They hoped to get help from Humphrey Littleton, who was using the house at the time.
The owner of Hagley Park was Meriel Littleton, whose husband had died in prison. On January 9, 1606, the authorities found Robert and Stephen at Hagley Park. Humphrey Littleton's cook, John Fynwood, told the authorities about them because he noticed how much food Humphrey was buying. Even though Humphrey said he wasn't hiding anyone, a search was made. Another servant, David Bate, showed where the two plotters were trying to escape from the courtyard into the countryside.
More Interesting Facts
In 1780, after the death of Thomas Lyttelton, 2nd Baron Lyttelton, Hagley Hall was rented out to Bernard Dewes for some years.
The Great Western Railway built a series of steam trains named after famous halls. One of these trains, Locomotive 4930, was named "Hagley Hall." This train is now preserved on the nearby Severn Valley Railway. In 2007, on its way to be fixed up, the train even visited the real Hagley Hall and was parked right in front of it!
