A visit to Whitley court and Gardens.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ก.ย. 2024
- Witley Court, in Great Witley, Worcestershire, England, is a ruined Italianate mansion. Built for the Foleys in the seventeenth century on the site of a former manor house, it was enormously expanded in the early nineteenth century by the architect John Nash for Thomas Foley, 3rd Baron Foley. The estate was later sold to the Earls of Dudley, who undertook a second massive reconstruction in the mid-19th century, employing the architect Samuel Daukes to create one of the great palaces of Victorian and Edwardian England.
The declining fortune of the Dudleys saw the sale of the court after the First World War to a Kidderminster carpet manufacturer. In 1937 a major fire caused great damage to the court, the estate was broken up and sold and the house was subsequently stripped of its fittings and furnishings. Forty years of decay followed before the house and grounds were taken into the care of The Department of the Environment in 1972. Since that point, significant restoration and stabilisation have secured the house as a spectacular ruin.
Witley Court, and the attached Church of St Michael and All Angels, are both Grade I listed buildings
The two immense fountains survived the fire and subsequent despoliation of the house. They were designed by Nesfield and executed by James Forsyth and William Forsyth, who were carrying out sculpture in the house and the church. The largest, the Perseus and Andromeda Fountain, has been restored to working order by English Heritage. For working times, see the Witley Court English Heritage website . The remnants of Nesfield's parterres can also be seen. James Forsyth also made the large triumphal arch style drinking fountain in Dudley market place, adorned with sea horses and dolphins, presented in 1867 to the town by the Earl of Dudley.
In more recent times, the original plans and designs for the formal gardens have been discovered, and they are in the process of being restored. The main area of the gardens, the South Parterre, between the house and the Perseus and Andromeda fountain, has already been completed. Meanwhile, work on the East Parterre region is ongoing.
Another wowcha moment Steven..what a beautiful ruin ..&such a shame it ended up the way it has ..we have some amazing heritage in our country &im so proud..thanks guys again 😊
Thanks For the Wowcha moment Ruth...so glad we decided to visit this wonderful old building
Now there's a gorgeous place to visit...especially with the rhododendrons in bloom!! Awesome!! Hope now you have yourselves a wonderful weekend!!
Thanks Bruce...yes the blooms around the woodland gardens were pretty spectacular
Amazing place to relax. ENjoyed watching
Glad you enjoyed
Beautiful and I loved the accompanying music. 👍
Glad you enjoyed it..Thanks Mike
Hi we visited last year and loved it so much was nice to see it again. The gardens look stunning out in flower. What a shame it was destroyed by fire must have been stunning in its day. The fountains are amazing we remember waiting in anticipation for them to start. A beautiful video against a lovely sky. The church is stunning isnt it. Thank you for sharing. Best wishes Dave and Dawn ❤️
Hi Folks...we loved our visit...That church sure was stunning, there were signs up saying no photography so didnt really get a chance to film it properly...there was quite a crowd waiting for the fountain to kick in and rightly so , it looked amazing....thanks folks....always nice to hear from you
Looks on a par with Chatsworth. Shame it was never rebuilt and returned to its former glory. Another excellent video
Thanks Gavin
Wow really enjoyed this visit. Looks a lovely place to explore and good history too. Our kind of place for sure.
Great tour guys. 👏🏻👏🏻
Lovely place mate....can't be a million miles from your neck of the woods.
Ey up me duck.
What a wonderful, beautiful place. Such a shame fire took out what must have been a very grandiose interior.
My thoughts exactly
What a lovely place, must put on todo list 👍
Yes put it on your list, it's a lovely place.
So interesting and beautiful place. Nice video. Thank you for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed it
This really is a fantastic place to visit. It’s a huge building. Too bad about the fire. At least the church part seemed to be okay. The garden is so nicely maintained. 👍25
Thanks Craig...it was a lovely way to spend a few hours
What a beautiful video Steven. You both looked so relaxed. So many places of interest to visit. Admit I have never heard or been to Whitley Court, or visited Worcestershire. Great photography. Much enjoyed and garden flowers blooming.
Thanks Shanita...we visited on our return from Devon...just a short detour from the motorway
Great views you took of this place, so sad it's a ruin. So many places to see, wish I could spend a year just touring.
Thanks...we pulled off the motorway to visit on our way home from Devon...so glad we made the effort.
Beautiful parkland. When seen from the distance it's hard to believe the house is a ruin. What a good day out you must have had.
Thanks Michael...we enjoyed our wander around the grounds and Garden
Thats a lovely old place to visit 👍 the gardens are really nice
Thanks Glyn...so glad we made a detour to visit it
Looks a great place to visit
What a shame they didn't rebuild it
The grounds and gardens looked beautiful those fountains were spectacular
Some pretty colours
The Church was lovely
Looks like you had a pretty decent day weather wise. All we've had this last week is rain
Hope you are both well. Have a great weekend 😊
Evening folks...yes i think the fountain was the star of the show.
That beautiful sharing ❤❤❤I love this views thank you for sharing
Thanks...that's real kind of you
One of the great houses of England such a sad story of its fire and destruction
It’s a grand ruin mind and those fountains are amazing aren’t they Steven 🤠👍
Brilliant tour regards to Karen👍
Best wishes Simon 👌🏻
Thanks Simon...i am guessing this is quite close to you.
@@atrampinthehills.841 yes very close Steven a beautiful place just a shame it wasn’t rebuilt 🥲
Wow, that's a right pad. Good job it's not near me. The council would have granted planning to flatten it and put a housing estate on it
Good old Chesterfield council
Beautiful..😍🥰
Thank you! 😊
Nice place to visit 😊
Thanks...yeah nice place to spend a couple of hours.
My goodness the gardens are looking impressive now. Paul and I went there in 1994 - we proposed an event on the grounds before it was de-flowered so to speak. Amazing - thanks for sharing steve. All the best. Mark
Hi Mark...it's a beautiful spot...glad you enjoyed taking a look..we decided to call in for a look on our way home after visiting the West country...so glad we made the short detour off the motorway...thanks mate.
@@atrampinthehills.841 It's always worth going off piste eh? Especially when it's as pleasant as this - am English country garden. Lovely. Did you hear that Paul and I visited? Or was that enjoyed taking a look referring to that?
@@WyeExplorer Thanks mate...yeah enjoyed taking a look at the video....i am sure you and Paul had a great time here too
@@atrampinthehills.841 Me and Paul had a memorable time thanks. Not sure what video Steve.
What a beautiful place!
Thanks Age....yes a lovely place to spend a couple of hours
Lovely music for this one Steven, very well suited. English Heritage too, looks decent.shame about the fire but those ruins are spectacular! I wonder who is in charge of the gardens. Very well kept! Some cracking fountains too.what a Herbert, should have rebuilt! The Chapel looks intact.
Thanks folks...yeah the attached chapel was amazing, it was not run by English heritage and there was a no Filming/ Photographs policy...couldnt really film it well, just a couple of Stealthy shots.
Goodness me that is spectacular.
Terribly sad. Wish they rebuilt it 😏
Thanks Phil...it sure was pretty spectacular