Wentworth Mausoleum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wentworth Mausoleum |
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Wentworth Mausoleum in 2019
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| Location | Chapel Road, Vaucluse, Municipality of Woollahra, New South Wales, Australia |
| Built | 1872–1874 |
| Built for | Wentworth family |
| Architect | Mansfield Brothers |
| Architectural style(s) | Gothic Revival |
| Owner | Anglican Church Property Trust |
| Official name: Wentworth Mausoleum and site | |
| Type | State heritage (complex / group) |
| Designated | 2 April 1999 |
| Reference no. | 622 |
| Type | Mausoleum/Tomb/Funeral Vault/Ossario |
| Category | Cemeteries and Burial Sites |
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The Wentworth Mausoleum is a special mausoleum (a building for burying people) in Vaucluse, Australia. It is a heritage-listed site, meaning it is important to history. Built between 1872 and 1874, it was designed by architects Mansfield Brothers. It is also known as the Wentworth Mausoleum and site. The Anglican Church Property Trust owns it, and Sydney Living Museums helps look after it as part of Vaucluse House. This historic site was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.
Contents
History of the Wentworth Mausoleum
William Charles Wentworth's Legacy
The land where the mausoleum stands was once part of the large Vaucluse Estate. This estate grew over time to cover about 515 acres (208 hectares). Vaucluse House started as a small stone cottage. It was built for an interesting Irish knight, Sir Henry Browne Hayes, in the early 1800s. The remains of this old cottage are still part of the house today.
In 1827, William Charles Wentworth (1790-1872) bought the Vaucluse estate. He was a very important person in early Australian history. Wentworth worked to improve the estate, adding new buildings. Many of his additions, especially those seen from Sydney Harbour, were in the Gothic Revival style. This style was popular at the time and looked like old castles or churches. Wentworth chose this style to show his family's long history.
Wentworth wanted to be buried on his estate. He told his family he wished to rest near a rocky spot on the hill above Parsley Bay. This spot offered amazing views of the harbour and his estate.
The Passing of William Wentworth
William Charles Wentworth passed away in England in March 1872. His wife, Sarah Wentworth, then began planning his burial. She sent instructions for a vault to be carved out of a large rock on the hillside. Sarah wanted the vault to look natural from the outside. She also planned to bring special marble, iron gates, and railings from Europe for the vault. It was important to her that the vault be large enough for many family members to be buried there one day.
The New South Wales Government decided to honor William Charles Wentworth with a public funeral. This was a very big event. The funeral service took place at St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney, on 6 May 1873. The cathedral was decorated in black. Wentworth's coffin had wreaths made from plants found at Vaucluse. The procession from the cathedral to Vaucluse was so long it stretched for miles. The day was a public holiday, and many thousands of people lined the streets to show their respect.
Burial at Vaucluse Estate
At the burial site, the Bishop of Sydney, Frederic Barker, spoke. Sir James Martin also gave a long speech praising Wentworth's achievements. He said that even though there was no "Westminster Abbey" in Australia, Wentworth would rest in a beautiful spot. This monument would be a lasting reminder, visible to everyone entering or leaving Sydney Harbour.
After the service, Wentworth's coffin was lowered into the vault. It was built from solid rock and brick, measuring 28 feet long, 13 feet wide, and 7 feet high. It had shelves for coffins and was well-drained. The builder was Mr. Alexander Dean. Sarah Wentworth also arranged for the remains of three of their children—William Charles, Sarah Eleanor, and Isabella—to be brought from Europe and re-buried in the vault.
Sarah hired Mansfield Brothers architects to design a chapel to be built over the vault. This chapel was also in the Gothic Revival style, matching other buildings on the estate. By early 1874, the chapel was mostly finished, and a stone and iron fence was put up around it.
Over the years, houses have been built around the mausoleum. This means it no longer has the same view of Vaucluse House. However, the chapel and vault are still a special, quiet place surrounded by their original fence. In 1915, Fitzwilliam Wentworth, William and Sarah's second son, was buried there. After that, the vault was permanently sealed.
Caring for the Mausoleum
In 1927, the Church of England Property Trust took on the job of looking after the mausoleum. Later, in 1997, the Historic Houses Trust (now Sydney Living Museums) leased the mausoleum for 99 years. They are now in charge of keeping it in good condition. Even though it's separated from Vaucluse House by other buildings, the mausoleum is still seen as an important part of the original estate. It is located on Chapel Road, and its grounds are open for visitors to explore.
Description of the Mausoleum
The Wentworth Mausoleum was built for William Charles Wentworth and his family. Sarah Wentworth asked Mansfield Brothers architects to design it between 1872 and 1874. It was planned to combine both built structures and natural features. It sits over a large rock from which William Wentworth used to enjoy views of Sydney Harbour. This rock was important for the views to and from Vaucluse House.
The small sandstone chapel still has many of its original details. Its roof has colorful terracotta tiles in red and cream stripes. The tall points at each corner once had decorative tops, which were put back during restoration work around 1993. Outside, the east and west walls look like smooth stone blocks, even though they are painted over actual stone. Inside, the lower walls have marble panels, and the upper walls are plastered and painted. Angel-shaped plaster supports hold up the roof, and wooden stars decorate the ceiling.
The most striking feature inside the chapel is a large white marble sarcophagus (a stone coffin). Sarah Wentworth ordered this from Europe in 1872. The floor is made of black and white marble tiles in a checkerboard pattern. In the middle of the room, a raised slab covers the entrance to the crypt (the underground burial chamber).
On the western wall, there is a beautiful stained glass window showing the Wentworth family's coat of arms. Brass plaques on the walls remember different family members. The original wooden outer door was removed in the 1960s and replaced with a copper hood. However, the decorative iron inner gates are still the originals.
Just inside the mausoleum door, there is a black and white marble mosaic. It shows Triton, a sea god from Roman stories, blowing his shell trumpet. This mosaic was likely a copy of an ancient Roman mosaic that Wentworth bought during his travels in Italy.
The mausoleum's interior has four special plaques on its walls.
- Two plaques are on the left side. One, from around 1960, remembers William Charles Wentworth (1871-1949) and his wife Florence Denise Griffiths. The other, closer to the sarcophagus, is for Sarah Eleanor Wentworth (who died in 1847) and Isabella Christina Wentworth (1840-1856), both daughters of William and Sarah.
- On the right side, near the sarcophagus, a plaque remembers William Charles Wentworth (1827-1859), their eldest son, and Fitzwilliam Wentworth (1833-1915), their second son.
- In 2015, a fourth plaque was added to honor Sarah Wentworth herself (1805-1880).
Condition of the Mausoleum
As of June 2009, the mausoleum is in good condition. The building, its rock base, the iron fence, and the plants around it are all well-preserved. In the 1960s, a church was built on a rock area above the mausoleum, which changed the view slightly.
Changes Over Time
Around 1965, the original wooden outer door of the mausoleum was removed, probably because it was old and decaying. A copper hood was put over the entrance instead. At the same time, a footpath and stairs were added to the Wentworth Memorial Church, which is on the rock plateau above the mausoleum.
Heritage Listing
The Wentworth Mausoleum is important because it is connected to Vaucluse House. Vaucluse House is one of the few 19th-century homes on Sydney Harbour that still has a large part of its original land. The mausoleum, designed by Mansfield Brothers (1872-1874), shows a mix of built structures (like the chapel, vault, and fence) and natural elements (like the rock base and plants). This design continues the "Picturesque Movement" style, which was popular for landscapes and buildings, often using the Gothic Revival style, on the Vaucluse estate. This style was also used for Sydney's first and second Government Houses, making the inner Sydney Harbour area feature these Gothic Revival buildings at both ends.
