Shrigley Hall facts for kids
Shrigley Hall is a large, old country house located in Cheshire, England. It was first built as a grand home. Over time, it changed uses. It became a school for a while, and a chapel was added then. Later, it was turned into a hotel and country club.
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A Look Back: Shrigley Hall's Story
Shrigley Hall was built around 1825. It was made for William Turner, a wealthy mill owner from Blackburn. He was also a Member of Parliament (MP), which means he was a person elected to help make laws for the country. The architect who designed it was Thomas Emmet senior.
In the 20th century, the building became a school. A religious group called the Salesians of Don Bosco used it. In 1936, they added a chapel to the south side of the house. This chapel was dedicated to Saint John Bosco. Philip Tilden, an architect known for the Arts and Crafts style, designed the chapel. Later, in the mid-20th century, an attic floor was added to the house. In 1989, the house and its chapel were changed again. They became a hotel and country club.
Exploring Shrigley Hall's Design
Shrigley Hall shows off the Regency style of architecture. It is built from brown sandstone blocks and has slate roofs.
The Main House
The house has two main floors and an attic. The front of the house is symmetrical, meaning it looks the same on both sides. It has eleven sections, called bays. The middle three bays and the bays at each end stick out a little.
At the very center, five steps lead up to a special entrance area called a portico. This portico has four tall columns with fancy tops, known as Ionic columns. These columns hold up a triangular part called a pediment. Inside the pediment, you can see a design with a lion and a cross.
The windows are sash windows, which slide up and down. The windows at the ends of the house have three panes of glass. Other windows have single panes. The main doorway has a curved frame and a rectangular window above it, called a fanlight. At the back of the house, there are two wings made of rough stone.
Inside, the entrance hall used to be open all the way up to a dome and a skylight. It also had a grand staircase. This staircase has since been removed, and a new floor was put in. The inside of the house still has beautiful plasterwork in a style called Neoclassical. Shrigley Hall is considered a very important historic building. It is listed as Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England.
The Chapel
The chapel is built from rough sandstone and has a slate roof. It has an octagonal (eight-sided) main area called the nave. There are also transepts, which are parts that stick out like arms, at each of the four main compass points. Small chapels spread out between these transepts.
The ground floor of the chapel has features from Romanesque architecture, like round-headed arches. Above these arches, there are tall, narrow windows called lancet windows. The ceiling over the nave is a domed vault. The chapel also used to have special seats for priests, called sedilia, on each side. The architect of the chapel painted the Stations of the Cross and the altarpiece. However, when the building became a hotel, these original features were removed. The chapel is also a listed building, designated as Grade II.
