Cleddon Hall

Last updated
Cleddon Hall
Cleddon Hall - geograph.org.uk - 3104385.jpg
Birthplace of Bertrand Russell
TypeHouse
Location Trellech, Monmouthshire, Wales
Coordinates 51°44′01″N2°42′03″W / 51.7335°N 2.7008°W / 51.7335; -2.7008 Coordinates: 51°44′01″N2°42′03″W / 51.7335°N 2.7008°W / 51.7335; -2.7008
Architectural style(s) Tudorbethan
Governing bodyPrivately owned
Monmouthshire UK relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Location of Cleddon Hall in Monmouthshire

Cleddon Hall, formerly known as Ravenscroft, is a 19th-century Victorian country house in Trellech, Monmouthshire, Wales. In the later 19th century it was owned by Lord and Lady Amberley, and their youngest son, the philosopher Bertrand Russell, was born at the hall on 18 May 1872.

Contents

History and description

Cleddon Hall stands in the Wye Valley, 6 mi (10 km) south of Monmouth, between the village of Trellech and the A466 at Llandogo. [1] [2] In 1870 the hall, then known as Ravenscroft, [3] was purchased by John Russell, Viscount Amberley and his wife Katharine. [4] Russell, the eldest son of Earl Russell, twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and his wife, daughter of the 2nd Baron Stanley, were highly unconventional for their times. The antiquarian and genealogist Joseph Bradney, in his A History of Monmouthshire from the Coming of the Normans into Wales down to the Present Time , described the couple as "possessed of views on life in strange discord to those of the simple-minded people among whom they settled". [lower-alpha 1] [4] Religious sceptics, and supporters of women's rights and abortion, they lived in an open marriage at the hall with their children's tutor, Douglas Spalding. [5] On 18 May 1872 their son, Bertrand was born at Cleddon. [6] Within three years of his birth, his parents were dead and he was sent to live with his grandparents in London. [7]

Although initially unconvinced when her husband suggested buying the estate, Katharine Russell came to appreciate Cleddon, becoming "quite enchanted with the wildness and beauty of the place". [1] In his autobiography published in 1967, her son described the hall's isolated setting as "very lonely". [1] Cleddon is not listed by Cadw and the architectural historian John Newman does not mention the house in his Gwent/Monmouthshire volume of the Pevsner Buildings of Wales series. [8] The house is recorded by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales in their National Monuments of Wales (Coflein) database. [2] Cleddon Hall remains a private home. [9]

Notes

  1. Bradney's description of Lord Amberley descended into rudeness; "Lord Amberley was a man of remarkably short stature, being only five feet in height, and his intellect was similarly contracted". [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trellech</span> Human settlement in Wales

Trellech is a village and parish in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. Located 5 miles (8 km) south of Monmouth and 4 miles (6.4 km) north-north-west of Tintern, Trellech lies on a plateau above the Wye Valley on the southern fringes of 320 acres (130 ha) of woodland in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Three Bronze Age standing stones are situated in the village, known as Harold's Stones, which overlook the historic church of St Nicholas, a Grade I listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Russell, Viscount Amberley</span> British politician and writer

John Russell, Viscount Amberley, was a British politician and writer. He was the eldest son of John Russell, who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and father of the philosopher Bertrand Russell. Amberley is known for his unorthodox views on religion and for his active support of birth control and women's suffrage, which contributed to the end of his short career as Liberal Member of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Hendre</span> Historic country house in Monmouthshire, Wales

The Hendre, in Rockfield, is the only full-scale Victorian country house in the county of Monmouthshire, Wales. The ancestral estate of the Rolls family, it was the childhood home of Charles Rolls, the motoring and aviation pioneer and the co-founder of Rolls-Royce. Constructed in the Victorian Gothic style, the house was developed by three major architects, George Vaughan Maddox, Thomas Henry Wyatt and Sir Aston Webb. It is located in the civil parish of Llangattock-Vibon-Avel, some 4 miles (6.4 km) north-west of the town of Monmouth. Built in the eighteenth century as a shooting box, it was vastly expanded by the Rolls family in three stages during the nineteenth century. The house is Grade II* listed and is now the clubhouse of the Rolls of Monmouth Golf Club. The gardens and landscape park, mainly laid out by Henry Ernest Milner in the later 19th century, are designated Grade II* on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cwmcarvan</span> Human settlement in Wales

Cwmcarvan is a small rural village in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located 4 miles south west of Monmouth and about 4 miles east of Raglan, off the old A40 road two miles NW of Trellech.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kilgwrrwg</span> Human settlement in Wales

Kilgwrrwg is a rural parish in Monmouthshire, south east Wales, United Kingdom. It is located 7 miles (11 km) north west of Chepstow and 7 miles (11 km) south east of Usk in a network of country lanes running through the rolling hills below the Trellech ridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Llanarth Court</span> House in Llanarth, Monmouthshire

Llanarth Court is a late-18th-century country house with substantial 19th-century alterations in Llanarth, Monmouthshire, Wales. The court was built for the Jones family of Treowen and was subsequently the home of Ivor Herbert, 1st Baron Treowen, whose family still owns much of the Llanarth estate, although not the court itself. The court is a Grade II* listed building and is now a private hospital. The gardens are included on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dingestow Court</span> House in Monmouthshire, Wales

Dingestow Court, at Dingestow, Monmouthshire, Wales, is a Victorian country house with earlier origins and later additions. The architectural historian John Newman describes it as "one of the county's major houses" and Cadw notes its "entertaining confection of styles". The court is a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle House, Usk</span> House in Usk, Monmouthshire, Wales

Castle House in Usk, Monmouthshire, Wales, originally formed the gatehouse to Usk Castle. Much altered in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, it is now a private home and a Grade I listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katharine Russell, Viscountess Amberley</span> British suffragist and birth control advocate (1842–1874)

Katharine Louisa Russell, Viscountess Amberley, often referred to as Kate, was a British suffragist and an early advocate of birth control in the United Kingdom. She was the mother of the philosopher Bertrand Russell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moynes Court</span> Historic site in Monmouthshire, Wales

Moynes Court is a Grade II* listed building in the village of Mathern, Monmouthshire, Wales, about 3 miles (4.8 km) south west of Chepstow. An earlier building was rebuilt as a private residence by Francis Godwin, Bishop of Llandaff, in about 1609/10, and much of the building remains from that period. Its grounds contain earthworks thought to be the foundations of an earlier moated manor house. The gatehouse to the court has a separate Grade II* listing. The garden at the court is on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coldbrook Park</span> House in Llanover, Monmouthshire

Coldbrook Park, Llanover, Monmouthshire, Wales, was a major country house and estate. Home successively to the Herberts, the Hanburys and the Halls, the house was demolished in 1954. The estate, which remains privately owned, is listed on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Cenedlon's Church, Rockfield</span> Church located in Monmouthshire, Wales

St Cenedlon's is a parish church in the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. The dedication to St Cenedlon is unusual and the history of the saint is obscure. Some sources suggest that she was a daughter of Brychan king of Brycheiniog while others identify her as the wife of King Arthfael ab Ithel, king of Glywysing. The existing church dates from the Middle Ages but only the tower remains from that period. After the English Reformation, the surrounding area of north Monmouthshire became a refuge for Catholics and Matthew Pritchard (1669-1750), Roman Catholic bishop and Vicar Apostolic of the Western District is buried at the church. By the mid-19th century the church was in ruins and a complete reconstruction was undertaken by the ecclesiastical architects John Pollard Seddon and John Prichard in around 1860. St Cenedlon's is an active parish church in the Diocese of Monmouth. It is designated by Cadw as a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tal-y-coed Court</span> House in Llanvihangel-Ystern-Llewern, Monmouthshire

Tal-y-coed Court,, Llanvihangel-Ystern-Llewern, Monmouthshire, Wales, is a Victorian country house. Constructed in 1881–1883, it was built for the Monmouthshire antiquarian Joseph Bradney, author of A History of Monmouthshire from the Coming of the Normans into Wales down to the Present Time. A Grade II* listed building, the house is a "fine historicist essay in the Queen Anne Style, one of the earliest examples in Wales." Its gardens and park are designated Grade II on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentwyn, Rockfield</span> House in Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales

Pentwyn, Rockfield, Monmouthshire is a Victorian villa dating from the mid 19th century. Its origins are older but the present building was constructed by the Monmouth architect George Vaughan Maddox for himself in 1834–1837, and subsequently altered by him after a later sale. It was partly converted into apartments for letting in the 20th century before reverting to use as a family house. The house is Grade II* listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hygga House Dovecote, Trellech</span> Dovecote in Monmouthshire, Wales

The Dovecote, Hygga, Trellech, Monmouthshire is a late 16th-century dovecote, in an unusually complete state of preservation. Part of the service buildings for the, now demolished, Hygga House, the dovecote is a Grade II* listed building and a scheduled monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ton Farmhouse, Llangybi</span> Farmhouse in Llangybi, Monmouthshire

Ton Farmhouse, Llangybi, Monmouthshire is a farmhouse dating from the early 17th century. John Newman, in his Monmouthshire Pevsner, describes it as a "perfect Monmouthshire farmhouse". Ton is a Grade II* listed building, its listing noting that it is a "remarkably good survival" of a prosperous 17th century Welsh farmhouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great House, Llanover</span> House in Llanover, Monmouthshire

Great House, Llanover, Monmouthshire is a country house dating from the late-16th century. Extended in the mid-18th century and little altered thereafter, it is a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brynderi House, Llantilio Crossenny</span> House in Llantilio Crossenny, Monmouthshire

Brynderi House, in the hamlet of Brynderi, Llantilio Crossenny, Monmouthshire is a country house with origins in the mid-18th century. The house was extensively rebuilt in the early 19th century in a Regency style. In the later 19th century the house become the dower house for Llantilio Court. A Grade II* listed building, it remains a private residence.

<i>A History of Monmouthshire from the Coming of the Normans into Wales down to the Present Time</i>

A History of Monmouthshire from the Coming of the Normans into Wales down to the Present Time is a study of the county of Monmouthshire written by Sir Joseph Bradney and published by Mitchell, Hughes and Clarke of London between 1904 and 1932. The history comprised twelve volumes, based on six of the seven historic hundreds of Monmouthshire; Skenfrith, Abergavenny, Raglan, Trellech, Usk and Caldicot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perth-hir House</span> House in Rockfield, Monmouthshire

Perth-hir House, Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales, was a major residence of the Herbert family. It stood at a bend of the River Monnow, to the north-west of the village. At its height in the 16th century, the mansion, entered by two drawbridges over a moat, comprised a great hall and a number of secondary structures. Subsequently in the ownership of the Powells, and then the Lorimers, the house became a centre of Catholic recusancy following the English Reformation. By the 19th century, the house had declined to the status of a farmhouse and it was largely demolished in around 1830. Its ruins, and the site which contains considerable remnants of a Tudor garden, are a scheduled monument.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Turcon, Sheila. "Ravenscroft – The Homes of Bertrand Russell". McMaster University. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Cleddon Hall (36674)". Coflein. RCAHMW . Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  3. "Bertrand Russell". BBC Wales. 13 December 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 Bradney 1992, p. 147.
  5. Shuttleworth 2016, p. 421.
  6. "Bertrand Russell – biography". Nobel Institute. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  7. "The Bloomsbury Companion to Bertrand Russell". Bloomsbury Collections. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  8. Newman 2000, pp. 576–579.
  9. Henry, Graham (12 July 2012). "Nobel winner Bertrand Russell's Welsh birthplace on sale for £2m". Wales Online.

Sources