Caerhays Castle
Encyclopedia
Caerhays Castle (alternate: Carhayes Castle) is a semi-castellated manor house
located 0.5 mi (0.80467 km) south of St Michael Caerhays
, a village in Cornwall
, England
. It is situated overlooking Porthluney Cove on the English Channel
. The castle garden hosts the largest collection of magnolia
s in England and contains one of four National Magnolia Collections under the auspices of the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
.
, the manor belonged to the Arundell family. Around 1379, it passed by marriage to the Trevanion family after the marriage of Robert Trevanion to Johanna, daughter and heiress of Rudolph Arundell of Caerhays. John Trevanion inherited the estate in 1703 after which he improved the manor house
existing on the site and developed gardens. With the death of William Trevanion in 1767, the male line of the Trevanion family became extinct, and the estate passed to his sister's son, John Bettesworth. In 1801, when Bettesworth's 21 year old son inherited Caerhays, he adopted the additional name of Trevanion, becoming known as John Bettesworth-Trevanion
.
John Bettesworth-Trevanion built the present castle on a site close to the former manor house; his architect was the Anglo-Welsh John Nash
. Bettesworth-Trevanion became a Member of Parliament
for Penryn
in 1807, the same year that construction began. It was completed in 1810. The castle was built close to the site of the original ancient home that had itself undergone expansion during the reign of King Henry VIII
.
After Bettesworth-Trevanion left for Paris, unable to pay his bills, Michael Williams II
purchased Caerhays from creditors in 1854. As the house had been unoccupied for over a decade and had not been watertight for some of that time, Williams, with his son John, initiated an extensive repair programme. John Williams died in 1880 and his son, John Charles Williams
, then age 18, inherited the estate. He married in 1884, at which time the house again went through restoration and alteration. He became a plantsman
, sponsoring plant hunting expeditions in order to fill the castle garden with new acquisitions. Seeds brought back from China by Ernest Henry Wilson
in 1903 were donated to J.C. Williams by Harry Veitch
. Since 1854, the estate has been owned by the Williams family of Caerhays and Burncoose
; the current owner is Charles Williams.
castle, was built of rough stone quarried from the immediate neighbourhood. The front entrance, 160 ft (48.8 m) in length, has a southern exposure and is elevated on an embattled
terrace. The principal rooms are located towards the south and east, joined by a large gallery room. Painted glass adorns the windows of the dining room, staircase, and entrance hall.
Parts of the original manor remain, including the ancient chapel as well as an old walkway to the sea which retains the name of the Watchhouse Walk.
Other Grade I listed buildings associated with the castle include the garden wall with gateways and folly
tower that is attached to the west and east of the castle, the Higher Lodge, the Lower Lodge with attached screen walls, and also the service buildings attached to the southwest of the castle.
s and camellia
s. By 1917, it had over 250 types of rhododendron
. The garden hosts the largest collection of magnolia
s in England.
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
located 0.5 mi (0.80467 km) south of St Michael Caerhays
St Michael Caerhays
St Michael Caerhays is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately seven miles south-southwest of St Austell....
, a village in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is situated overlooking Porthluney Cove on the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. The castle garden hosts the largest collection of magnolia
Magnolia
Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol....
s in England and contains one of four National Magnolia Collections under the auspices of the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens
The National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens , also known as Plant Heritage, is a botanical conservation organisation in the United Kingdom and a registered charity. It was founded in 1978 to combine the talents of botanists, horticulturalists and conservationists with the...
.
History
In the Early Middle AgesEarly Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
, the manor belonged to the Arundell family. Around 1379, it passed by marriage to the Trevanion family after the marriage of Robert Trevanion to Johanna, daughter and heiress of Rudolph Arundell of Caerhays. John Trevanion inherited the estate in 1703 after which he improved the manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
existing on the site and developed gardens. With the death of William Trevanion in 1767, the male line of the Trevanion family became extinct, and the estate passed to his sister's son, John Bettesworth. In 1801, when Bettesworth's 21 year old son inherited Caerhays, he adopted the additional name of Trevanion, becoming known as John Bettesworth-Trevanion
John Bettesworth-Trevanion
John Trevanion Purnell Bettesworth-Trevanion, MP, OW was a Cornish politician. He rebuilt Caerhays as a Gothic-style castle.-Early years:...
.
John Bettesworth-Trevanion built the present castle on a site close to the former manor house; his architect was the Anglo-Welsh John Nash
John Nash (architect)
John Nash was a British architect responsible for much of the layout of Regency London.-Biography:Born in Lambeth, London, the son of a Welsh millwright, Nash trained with the architect Sir Robert Taylor. He established his own practice in 1777, but his career was initially unsuccessful and...
. Bettesworth-Trevanion became a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Penryn
Penryn (UK Parliament constituency)
Penryn was a parliamentary borough in Cornwall, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England from 1553 until 1707, to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 1801 to until 1832...
in 1807, the same year that construction began. It was completed in 1810. The castle was built close to the site of the original ancient home that had itself undergone expansion during the reign of King Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
.
After Bettesworth-Trevanion left for Paris, unable to pay his bills, Michael Williams II
Michael Williams (MP)
Michael Williams was MP for West Cornwall from 19 July 1853 until his death in June 1858.He was the second son of John Williams "the Third" , the Cornish industrialist, of the Williams family...
purchased Caerhays from creditors in 1854. As the house had been unoccupied for over a decade and had not been watertight for some of that time, Williams, with his son John, initiated an extensive repair programme. John Williams died in 1880 and his son, John Charles Williams
John Charles Williams
John Charles Williams was an English Liberal Unionist politician and a noted gardener at Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, where he grew rhododendrons.He was educated at Rugby School and at Trinity Hall, Cambridge....
, then age 18, inherited the estate. He married in 1884, at which time the house again went through restoration and alteration. He became a plantsman
Plantsman
A plantsman is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable gardener , nurseryman or nurserywoman. "Plantsman" can refer to a male or female person, though the terms plantswoman, or even plantsperson, are sometimes used....
, sponsoring plant hunting expeditions in order to fill the castle garden with new acquisitions. Seeds brought back from China by Ernest Henry Wilson
Ernest Henry Wilson
Ernest Henry "Chinese" Wilson , better known as E. H. Wilson, was a notable English plant collector who introduced a large range of about 2000 of Asian plant species to the West; some sixty bear his name.-Career:...
in 1903 were donated to J.C. Williams by Harry Veitch
Harry Veitch
Sir Harry James Veitch was an eminent English horticulturist in the nineteenth century, who was the head of the family nursery business, James Veitch & Sons, based in Chelsea, London...
. Since 1854, the estate has been owned by the Williams family of Caerhays and Burncoose
Williams family of Caerhays and Burncoose
The Williams family of Caerhays and Burncoose, were, for several generations, dominant in the Cornish Industrial Revolution as owners of mines and smelting works...
; the current owner is Charles Williams.
Construction
The exterior, bearing the appearance of a NormanNorman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
castle, was built of rough stone quarried from the immediate neighbourhood. The front entrance, 160 ft (48.8 m) in length, has a southern exposure and is elevated on an embattled
Battlement
A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...
terrace. The principal rooms are located towards the south and east, joined by a large gallery room. Painted glass adorns the windows of the dining room, staircase, and entrance hall.
Parts of the original manor remain, including the ancient chapel as well as an old walkway to the sea which retains the name of the Watchhouse Walk.
Historical preservation
The castle became a Grade I listed building on 15 November 1988.Other Grade I listed buildings associated with the castle include the garden wall with gateways and folly
Folly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
tower that is attached to the west and east of the castle, the Higher Lodge, the Lower Lodge with attached screen walls, and also the service buildings attached to the southwest of the castle.
Garden
The castle garden covers almost 120 acre (0.4856232 km²), traversed by four named routes (Red Route, Blue Route, Yellow Route, and the Green Route), and navigated by trails, grassy paths, and steps. The garden is home to 600 varieties of plants, including trees and shrubs, such as azaleaAzalea
Azaleas are flowering shrubs comprising two of the eight subgenera of the genus Rhododendron, Pentanthera and Tsutsuji . Azaleas bloom in spring, their flowers often lasting several weeks...
s and camellia
Camellia
Camellia, the camellias, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalaya east to Korea and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number...
s. By 1917, it had over 250 types of rhododendron
Rhododendron
Rhododendron is a genus of over 1 000 species of woody plants in the heath family, most with showy flowers...
. The garden hosts the largest collection of magnolia
Magnolia
Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol....
s in England.