Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens

Last updated

Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens
Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens Parterre - North Garden.jpg
The Parterre in the North Gardens
Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens
Location Castle Bromwich, Solihull, England
OS grid SP142898
Coordinates 52°30′21″N1°47′32″W / 52.50591°N 1.79222°W / 52.50591; -1.79222
Area10 acres (40,000 m2)
Operated byCastle Bromwich Hall Gardens Trust
Website castlebromwichhallgardens.org.uk

Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens are situated adjacent to the west side of Castle Bromwich Hall, a Jacobean Mansion. They are in the old centre of Castle Bromwich, a large village in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull of the English West Midlands area.

Contents

History

Castle Bromwich Hall was built between 1557 and 1585 by Sir Edward Devereux, the first MP for Tamworth. Sir Orlando Bridgeman bought the Hall and Gardens in 1657 for his son, Sir John Bridgeman I. He made changes to both around the year 1700 advised by his cousin, Captain William Winde. The gardens were designed as a formal arrangement of self-contained garden areas. Some of these were ornamental and some working. They were separated by walls, hedges or level-changes at terraces. On the death of Sir John Bridgeman I in 1710 his son, Sir John Bridgeman II, continued to extend the Gardens westwards until they reached their present size of 10 acres (40,000 m2). He also improved the Hall.

The Gardens were developed by further generations of the family, later to become the Earls of Bradford. Lady Ida Bridgeman was the last member of the family to live at the Hall before her death in 1936 and the Gardens were well looked after again under her care. The Hall was then rented out and they fell into decline. A planning application was made in 1982 for the building of housing. Luckily, the planning inspectors employed by West Midlands County Council realized the importance of the Gardens and resisted development. The housing proposal went to appeal and was refused. It was decided that restoration was essential and work started to clear the undergrowth and repair the damage caused by vandals. The Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens Trust was formed to restore and maintain them. In 1986 the Gardens and adjoining Parkland was listed as Grade II*.

Features

The hall and gardens from the air, August 2012 Castle Bromwich Hall and Gardens from the air 02.jpg
The hall and gardens from the air, August 2012

These 10 acres (40,000 m2) walled Baroque gardens are listed grade II* [1] and are the only remaining example in the country of a formal English garden design. They are being restored as near as possible to the period 1680–1740, which was when they were at their best, and contain over 600 species of plants from the time.

The Holly Maze is a mirror image of the one at Hampton Court Palace designed by George London and Henry Wise. The Kitchen and Fruit garden is based on a design by Batty Langley from his book "New Principles of Gardening". [2]

The Hall and other buildings are privately owned. Castle Bromwich Hall itself is now a hotel. All buildings and the gardens closest to the house can be seen from the Gardens or roads.

A DVD of the gardens by Great Britain Online is available.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle Howard</span> Stately home in North Yorkshire, England

Castle Howard is a stately home in North Yorkshire, England, within the civil parish of Henderskelfe, located 15 miles (24 km) north of York. It is a private residence and has been the home of the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years. Castle Howard is not a fortified structure, but the term "castle" is sometimes used in the name of an English country house that was built on the site of a former castle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowood House</span> Country house in the United Kingdom

Bowood is a Grade I listed Georgian country house in Wiltshire, England, that has been owned for more than 250 years by the Fitzmaurice family. The house, with interiors by Robert Adam, stands in extensive grounds which include a garden designed by Lancelot "Capability" Brown. It is adjacent to the village of Derry Hill, halfway between Calne and Chippenham. The greater part of the house was demolished in 1956.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingston Lacy</span> Country house near Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England

Kingston Lacy is a country house and estate near Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England. It was for many years the family seat of the Bankes family who lived nearby at Corfe Castle until its destruction in the English Civil War after its incumbent owners, Sir John Bankes and Dame Mary, had remained loyal to Charles I.

Earl of Bradford is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was first created in 1694 for Francis Newport, 2nd Baron Newport. However, all the Newport titles became extinct on the death of the fourth Earl in 1762. The earldom was revived in 1815 for Orlando Bridgeman, 2nd Baron Bradford. The Bridgeman family had previously succeeded to the Newport estates. The title of the peerage refers to the ancient hundred of Bradford in Shropshire, and not, as might be assumed, to the city of Bradford, Yorkshire, or the town of Bradford-on-Avon in Wiltshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wimpole Estate</span> Country estate near Cambridge, England

Wimpole Estate is a large estate containing Wimpole Hall, a country house located within the civil parish of Wimpole, Cambridgeshire, England, about 8+12 miles southwest of Cambridge. The house, begun in 1640, and its 3,000 acres (12 km2) of parkland and farmland are owned by the National Trust. The estate is regularly open to the public and received over 335,000 visitors in 2019. Wimpole is the largest house in Cambridgeshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle Bromwich</span> Human settlement in England

Castle Bromwich is a large suburban village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the West Midlands, England. It borders the rest of the borough to the south east, Sutton Coldfield to the east and north east, Shard End to the south west, Castle Vale, Erdington and Minworth to the north and Hodge Hill to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weston Park</span> House in Weston-under-Lizard, Staffordshire

Weston Park is a country house in Weston-under-Lizard, Staffordshire, England, set in more than 1,000 acres (400 ha) of park landscaped by Capability Brown. The park is located 10 miles (16 km) north-west of Wolverhampton, and 8 miles (13 km) east of Telford, close to the border with Shropshire. The 17th-century Hall is a Grade I listed building and several other features of the estate, such as the Orangery and the Stable block, are separately listed as Grade II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middleton Hall, Warwickshire</span>

Middleton Hall is a Grade II* listed building dating back to medieval times. It is situated in the North Warwickshire district of the county of Warwickshire in England, south of Fazeley and Tamworth and on the opposite side of the A4091 road to Middleton village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Somerleyton Hall</span> Grade II* listed house in Suffolk, United Kingdom

Somerleyton Hall is a country house and 5,000-acre (2,000 ha) estate near Somerleyton and Lowestoft in Suffolk, England owned and lived in by Hugh Crossley, 4th Baron Somerleyton, originally designed by John Thomas. The hall is Grade II* listed on the National Heritage List for England, and its landscaped park and formal gardens are also Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. The formal gardens cover 12 acres (4.9 ha). Inspired by Knepp Wildland, Somerleyton is rewilding 1,000 acres (400 ha) of the estate to which he has introduced free-roaming cattle, large black pigs and Exmoor ponies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houghton Hall</span> Country house in Norfolk, England

Houghton Hall is a country house in the parish of Houghton in Norfolk, England. It is the residence of the 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle Bromwich Hall</span> Jacobean mansion in Birmingham, England

Castle Bromwich Hall is a Jacobean mansion in the Castle Bromwich area of Birmingham, England. It is a Grade I listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Mary and St Margaret's Church, Castle Bromwich</span> Church in Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, England

St Mary and St Margaret Church, Castle Bromwich is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England in Castle Bromwich, Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Langley Castle</span> Grade I listed castle in Langley, Northumberland, United Kingdom

Langley Castle is a restored medieval tower house, now operated as a hotel, situated in the village of Langley in the valley of the River South Tyne some 3 miles (5 km) south of Haydon Bridge, Northumberland, England. It is a Grade I listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melbourne Hall</span> Building in Derbyshire, England

Melbourne Hall is a Georgian style country house in Melbourne, Derbyshire, previously owned by William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, British Prime Minister from 1835 to 1841. The house is now the seat of Lord and Lady Ralph Kerr and is open to the public. The house is a Grade II* listed building; more than twenty features in the grounds are Grade I listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crewe Hall</span> Grade I listed English country house in Cheshire, United Kingdom

Crewe Hall is a Jacobean mansion located near Crewe Green, east of Crewe, in Cheshire, England. Described by Nikolaus Pevsner as one of the two finest Jacobean houses in Cheshire, it is listed at grade I. Built in 1615–36 for Sir Randolph Crewe, it was one of the county's largest houses in the 17th century, and was said to have "brought London into Cheshire".

Walpole Park is a 28 acres (110,000 m2) Grade II municipal park, situated in Ealing, England. Currently governed by Ealing Council, it was initially the grounds of Pitzhanger Manor, the early 19th-century country home of Sir John Soane. It was acquired by Ealing Council in 1899 and opened to the public for the first time on 1 May 1901.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willersley Castle</span> House in Derbyshire, United Kingdom

Willersley Castle is a late 18th-century country mansion above the River Derwent at Cromford, Derbyshire, outside Peak District National Park. The castle has been a Grade II* listed building since April 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rode Hall</span> English country house in Cheshire, UK

Rode Hall, a Georgian country house, is the seat of the Wilbraham family, members of the landed gentry in the parish of Odd Rode, Cheshire, England. The estate, with the original timber-framed manor house, was purchased by the Wilbrahams from the ancient Rode family in 1669. The medieval manor house was replaced between 1700 and 1708 by a brick-built seven-bay building; a second building, with five bays, was built in 1752; the two buildings being joined in 1800 to form the present Rode Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Townhill Park House</span> House (now used as a school) in Southampton, Townhill Park / Chartwell Green

Townhill Park House is a Grade II listed former manor house between the neighbouring housing estates of Townhill Park in Southampton and Chartwell Green in Eastleigh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caludon Castle</span> Grade I listed castle in the United Kingdom

Caludon Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and Grade I listed building in Coventry, in the West Midlands of England. A second moated site 190 metres (620 ft) to the south is a Scheduled Ancient Monument in its own right. The castle is now a ruin, and all that remains is a large fragment of sandstone wall. What remains of the estate is now an urban park, owned and run by Coventry City Council, but much of it was sold and developed into housing estates in the early 20th century.

References

  1. Historic England. "Castle Bromwich Hall (1000118)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  2. University of Rochester