Weston Park is a country house in Weston-under-Lizard, Staffordshire, England, set in more than 1,000 acres (4 km²) of park landscaped by Capability Brown. The park is located 10 miles north-west of Wolverhampton, and 8 miles north-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.
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History
The land on which Weston stands was first mentioned in the Domesday Book, when it was held by Norman Rainald de Bailleuil, Sheriff to Roger de Montgomery. The principal survivor of those distant times is the park which now forms part of the medieval deer park and forest. The land was then held by the de Westons of Weston and later by a branch of the Mytton family. It has been the home of the Earls of Bradford since the 17th century.
The house was built in 1671 by Lady Elizabeth Wilbraham. In fact, assisted by local craftsmen and Palladio’s First Book of Architecture, she seems to have been her own architect. Her heavily-annotated copy of Palladio’s book can still be seen in the library at Weston. The three storey twelve bayed south front was originally the entrance front but alterations and improvements to the Hall were carried out throughout the 19th century including the movement of the main entrance to the east front.
When the male line ended, Weston passed to Lady Wilbraham’s granddaughter Anne, who had married into the Bridgeman family who themselves were substantial landowners in Shropshire and elsewhere. Sir Henry Bridgeman commissioned Capability Brown to landscape the park. He also employed James Paine to add a Roman Bridge and Temple of Diana—later described by the renowned architect as "my greenhouse at Weston".
Royal venue, summit venue & festival venue
Over the years, Weston has played host to many distinguished guests including King George V's daughter Mary, and the Princess Royal, who spent part of her honeymoon amid its gracious surroundings. More recently, the G8 Summit Retreat was held at Weston in 1998, and since 1999 the grounds of Weston Park have been used as one of the sites of the annual dual-site Virgin sponsored V Festival, the other site being Hylands Park in Chelmsford.
The park also hosts the annual Midland Game Fair which takes place on the third weekend of September. The fair, which hosts traditional British country pursuits including working dog trials, fishing and animal husbandry, attracts up to 20,000 visitors from both Britain and Ireland.
See also
List of Grade I listed buildings in Staffordshire
References
- English Heritage; Images of England, photograph and detailed architectural description of Weston Hall
- English Heritage; Images of England, photograph and detailed architectural description of Orangery
- English Heritage; Images of England, photograph and detailed architectural description of Stable Block
External links
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