Hewell Grange

Hewell Grange is a country house in Tardebigge, Worcestershire, England. "One of the most important late 19th century country houses in England",[1] the mansion was built in 1884-91 by George Frederick Bodley and Thomas Garner for the Earl of Plymouth. Constructed in the Jacobethan[1] style, it was "perhaps the last Victorian prodigy house."[1] It is a Grade II* listed building.[2] The park had been developed round an earlier house on the site by both Capability Brown and Humphry Repton[3] and is on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. The lake is a Site of Special Scientific Interest(SSSI).

Hewell Grange
Hewell Grange
General information
Architectural styleJacobethan
Town or cityTardebigge
Country United Kingdom
Construction started1884
Completed1891
ClientRobert Windsor-Clive, 1st Earl of Plymouth
Design and construction
ArchitectGeorge Frederick Bodley & Thomas Garner
DesignationsGrade II* listed

Origins

The land was originally part of the estates of Bordesley Abbey. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries the property passed to Thomas Windsor Hickman.

Development

The estate remained a seat of the Windsor-Clive family (who were made Earls of Plymouth) until it was sold to the state in the 20th century. There are several ruins of earlier houses on the estate, and a large number of listed buildings, structures and statues.[4]

Robert Windsor-Clive (1857–1923) commissioned Bodley and Garner to build the current house in 1884–91.

The ruin of the Old Grange built by Thomas Cundy

The House

The House is of Cheshire Red Sandstone[5] with a tile roof. It is of an Elizabethan E-plan, modelled on Montacute House, Somerset.[3] The exterior is Jacobethan, of three storeys, the interior Italianate.[5] The house is dominated by the massive Great Hall, comprising half the total space of the house.[6] The elaborate decoration is largely "well-preserved."[6] The Chapel in the porch contains carving by Detmar Blow.[2]

Prison

The house was used as a Borstal from 1946 to 1991, when it became HM Prison Hewell Grange, a Category D open prison.

Lodge House

At the former North West entrance to the estate on the B4096 are two Grade II listed lodge houses, dating back to the 1830s. They were designed in neo classical style with Doric columns by Thomas Cundy. These are now private residences, separate to the prison.

See also

Notes
  1. Brooks & Pevsner, p. 625
  2. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1100160)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  3. Brooks & Pevsner, p. 626
  4. Good Stuff IT Services. "Search: +Hewell +Grange". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  5. Good Stuff IT Services (15 August 1903). "Hewell Grange - Tutnall And Cobley - Worcestershire - England". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  6. Brooks & Pevsner, p. 627

References
  • Brooks, Alan; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2007). Worcestershire. The Buildings of England. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11298-6.

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