Bryneithyn Hall

Cadw's description

Location

Situated about 800m NW of Figure Four crossroads, Llanfarian, at the SW end of a drive from Bryneithyn Lodge.

History

Small country house of c1825 and 1854 enlarged c1930. Marked on 1831 map as Bron yr Eithin and 1845 tithe map as Bryneithin, but originally Tynygwndwn, a farm owned by the Richardes family of Penglais. The earlier farm may survive in the almost detached range to the SW. The main house is in a unified late Georgian style but said to be of several periods: c1825 a small square house now the W rear wing; 1854 five-bay main E range added at right angles; altered in the 1920s with veranda and metal windows, restored in 1965 with new roof. There does not seem to be evidence for the suggestion that the 1854 range was single-storey, with the upper floor added 1920s and the roof 1965 over a former flat roof. Built for William Eardley Richardes (1797-1874), brother of Roderick Richardes of Penglais, resident in 1830, and in 1841 there with 5 children and 2 servants. Richardes had served at Waterloo and c1854 had the remarkable column to the Duke of Wellington erected on Pendinas hill. The house and 62 acres(25 hectares) passed to his son, Hugh, who made alterations c1890, it then passed to Hugh's nephew, E M Leir, JP, died 1919. Sold c1920 to William Chapman, cotton magnate of Manchester and a director of Marks and Spencer. The veranda and other alterations presumably made for him or possibly for next owner in 1932, Captain Napier. In the early 1940s owned by J J Lloyd Williams, Chief Constable of Cardiganshire and, from 1944, Sir Ifan ap Owen Edwards, founder of the Urdd Gobaith Cymru. Owned by the Jervis family from 1951 who reroofed the main house in 1965 and inserted some timber features from Morfa Bychan nearby including the remarkable C17 post-and-panel screen now in Ceredigion Museum. Sold in 1981 to the British Geological Survey, now a private house.

Exterior

Smaller country house, T-plan, late Georgian style,2 storeys, painted roughcast with C20 concrete tiles to shallow-pitched hipped roof with boarded wide eaves and low rendered ridge stacks. Garden front to E of 1854, 1-3-1 bays, the full-height canted centre projection with slightly narrower windows to the canted sides. Windows are large, pointed-arched to ground floor and square-headed to upper floor, glazing earlier C20 metal with small panes. Earlier C20 iron veranda around garden front and each end with 10 cast iron columns, boarded ceilings and metal balcony rail in simple pattern of diagonal crosses in rectangles. N and S ends have matching window each floor, S end has C20 full-height extension to left. Set back to right is early C19 house, now rear wing with 2-window N front with 12-pane sashes to ground floor and square 9-pane sashes above, with painted sills. W end has ground floor casement-pair window to left with side margins and entrance to right in 5-sided roughcast porch, (similar to that at Ty'n-y-Lon, Llanfarian) with slate 5-sided roof on eaves brackets. C20 half-glazed door under original overlight with Gothic interlacing glazing bars.
Range immediately right of this connects to farmhouse, with wall at angle creating odd hipped roof arrangement above, with one C20 window. Farmhouse running S is of rubble stone with stone stacks and roughcast stack to service range. Two storeys, alterations to most openings.

Interior

Interior altered, but retaining late Georgian to early Victorian detail including 6-panel doors, panelled shutters. W porch opens into corridor by sitting room with open-well staircase on N side, earlier C20 in mid-Georgian style (like that at Glanpaith, Llanfarian), with moulded tread ends, ramped handrail, column newels and twisted balusters. Arched-headed door beneath stair is former N exterior door, now into C20 kitchen extension beyond concealing 5 stone steps. Reception rooms in ground floor of front range have panelled shutters and attractive panelled reveals to pointed heads, with planted mouldings in panels. Centre library has stucco cornice and ceiling rose, fluted door frames, with lion's head motif to shoulders, and similar motif above fitted cupboards flanking fireplace. Glazed overlights to doors of flanking rooms - Gothic arched heads with interlacing glazing bars and similar door detail, also to sitting-room in rear wing. One bedroom has C19 stucco cornice.
Farmhouse section has timber lintels to openings. Staircase with stick balusters and ramped rail. Upper floor bedroom has large open fireplace with wide brick arch and oak beam. Some ground floor beams said to come from Morfa Bychan in later C20.

Reason for designation

Included as a house of consistent late Georgian character despite its extended building history, with good surviving C19 interiors.