| Croft Castle | |
|---|---|
 Croft Castle in 2010 | |
| Type | Country house |
| Location | Croft, Herefordshire |
| Coordinates | 52°17′05″N2°48′33″W / 52.28486°N 2.80916°W /52.28486; -2.80916 |
| Built | 16th-20th centuries with earlier additions |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
| Official name | Croft Castle |
| Designated | 8 November 1956 |
| Reference no. | 1166451 |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
| Official name | Church of St Michael |
| Designated | 11 June 1959 |
| Reference no. | 1166506 |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Official name | Terrace Wall to South and West of Croft Castle |
| Designated | 9 December 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1166490 |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Official name | Stable block |
| Designated | 9 December 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1082080 |
| Official name | Croft Castle Park and Garden |
| Designated | 28 February 1986 |
| Reference no. | 1000878 |
  Location of Croft Castle in Herefordshire | |
Croft Castle is acountry house in the village ofCroft,Herefordshire, England. Owned by the Croft family since 1085, the castle and estate passed out of their hands in the 18th century, before being repurchased by the family in 1923. In 1957 it was bequeathed to theNational Trust. The castle is aGrade I listed building, and the estate is separately listed as Grade II*. The adjacent Church of St Michael is listed Grade I.
A building has been on the site from c.1085 when the estate was established by the Croft family. and it has from this time been the home of the Croft family andCroft baronets. The Croft family were closely linked to their neighbours theMortimers ofWigmore andLudlow. TheBattle of Mortimer's Cross took place on Croft land nearby in 1461.[1] It was the home of Sir John de Croft who married Janet, one ofOwain Glyndŵr's daughters. In the 15th century, the Croft family adopted the WelshWyvern crest, a wounded black dragon, seen as an allusion to their Glyndwr heritage. The first member of the Croft family to have owned the estate was Bernard de Croft, who is mentioned inDomesday Book.[2]
The Croft family suffered financially following theSouth Sea Bubble[2] and in 1746, sold the estate to Richard Knight (1693–1765).[3] Knight was the eldest son and heir ofRichard Knight (1659-1745), ofDownton Hall, in the parish ofDownton on the Rock inHerefordshire, a wealthy ironmaster who operated theBringewood Ironworks and founded a large fortune and family dynasty.[4] He married Elizabeth Powell ofStanage Park in Radnorshire by whom he had a sole daughter Elizabeth Knight, who marriedThomas Johnes (died 1780) of Llanfair Clydogau, MP forRadnorshire (1777–80).[5] In the 1760s, Johnes remodelled the Castle in theRococo-Gothic style to the designs of the Shrewsbury architectThomas Farnolls Pritchard (d.1777), designer of the world's first iron bridge spanning the Severn near Coalbrookdale. Georgiansash windows replacedmullion windows. Pritchard designed the plasterwork ceilings, the gothic staircase and employed master craftsmen to undertake his designs for the chimneypieces.
Croft Castle was put up for sale in 1799 by Thomas Johnes.[6][a] It was bought bySomerset Davies (c.1754–1817), MP forLudlow, whose descendants, the Kevill-Davies, sold Croft back to Katherine, Lady Croft, in 1923.[8] The castle had undergone further alterations in 1913 to the designs of the architect Walter Sarel (1863–1941) who removed the central section of the eighteenth-century Gothic entrance front replacing it with a battlemented porch and mullioned bay window above; the entrance hall was lined with oak panelling. Also removed were most of Pritchard's crenellations along the parapets. Walter Sarel redesigned the dining room. In 1937, the seventeenth-centuryservice wing to the north-west was demolished to make the house more compact.
In 1957, Croft was threatened with demolition following the destruction of eighteen other great houses in the county; thedestruction of country houses in 20th-century Britain was gathering pace across the country, and continued through the 1960s.Diana Uhlman (née Croft),[9] was determined that Croft would not suffer the same fate. An endowment was raised by some members of the family before the National Trust would agree to take on the house and remaining estate.[2] The castle opened to the public in 1960 after Michael, Lord Croft, had acquired paintings and furniture for display in the showrooms and his sister Diana established and funded the Croft Trust. The house is still occupied by members of the family.[10]
Members of the Croft family include:
The present building dates from the 1660s during the time when Herbert Croft wasBishop of Hereford, replacing an earlier house some thirty yards to the west, which was excavated by Herefordshire County Archaeologist Prof. Keith Ray and volunteers in 2002. The manor house is a quadrangular stone structure around a central courtyard with round corner towers, and a square bay on the north elevation.[14] Some stone mullion windows remain on all elevations. The castle is one of the first examples of medieval revival, and has affinities toRuperra Castle, Caerphilly, andLulworth Castle, Wareham, Dorset.
Croft Castle is aGrade I listed building.[15] The stable block,[16] and two stretches of walling, are listed at Grade II.[17][18] Three estate buildings also have Grade II listings, the GothicPumphouse,[19] Croft Lodge,[20] and Cock Gate Cottage.[21] The Church of St Michael is listed Grade I.[22] The garden and parkland surrounding the castle have their own Grade II* listing.[14]
The property has a three-acrewalled garden. It also has a Georgian stable block. The estate has an avenue ofSweet Chestnut trees which were planted over four hundred years ago.[23] Beech and oak trees line the main drive. The Fishpool Valley was landscaped in the eighteenth century[24] with descending ponds, a grotto, a Gothic pumphouse, an ice house and a lime kiln, and has undergone major restoration to bring it back to its scenic origins.[25]
The Church of St Michael dates from around the 14th century.[26] The box pews are seventeenth-century and there are some medieval floor tiles made at Malvern.[26] and the fine tomb for Sir Richard and Eleanor Croft bears a resemblance tothat of Henry VII inWestminster Abbey.[26] The ceiling above the altar is seventeenth-century and is painted with clouds and gilded stars.[26]
The parkland includes anIron Agehill fort known asCroft Ambrey.
The site is in thecivil parish ofCroft and Yarpole, 5 miles (8.0 km) north-west ofLeominster, inHerefordshire, England. It is surrounded by 1,500 acres of woodland, farmland and parkland. It is atgrid referenceSO449655.[27] TheMortimer Trail, a long-distance footpath, passes by.[27]
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