England

Shropshire

Staffordshire

Weston-Under-Lizard, near Shifnal

52.6929

-2.288

1671 w/later alterations and additions

Fully Extant

Grade I

Grade II

No

II, 592, 1897. XCVIII, 818, 864, 910, 1945. XCIX, 904 [Sporting pictures], 1946. C, 1006 [Portraits], 1946.

2.S. Vol. V, 1829.

By Appointment

Yes

01952-852-100

01952-850-430

Private Non-Profit

Conference Center

Owned by The Weston Park Foundation and used as conference center, wedding venue, and exclusive accommodation.

Newport family. Sir Thomas Wilbraham, 17th century. Bridgeman family, later Earls of Bradford, until 1986.

Sir Thomas and Lady Wilbraham

Set on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border and noted for its warm and welcoming atmosphere, Weston Park is a brick house with stone dressings built by Sir Thomas and Lady Wilbraham in 1671. Eleven bays wide and three stories high, its three ranges originally enclosed a courtyard. In 1865 the East Facade was given its Porch and converted into the Entrance Facade. The Entrance Hall contains a screen of two Roman Doric columns complemented by a wrought iron staircase railing of 1899. The Bridgemans, later Earls of Bradford, inherited the Estate in 1762 and remained seated here until the late 20th century. At the death of the 6th Earl of Bradford in 1981 a Capital Transfer Tax of £5.5 million came due on the Estate, which prompted the creation of a non-profit foundation (1986-87) that took ownership of the House, Estate, and contents. The Weston Park Foundation came into being with the help of the National Heritage Memorial Fund, which gave £7,762,222 to purchase the House and some of the contents. (We are most grateful to Gareth Williams, Curator to the Weston Park Foundation, for this history.)

The collection at Weston represents the collecting interests of several generations of the Newport and Bridgeman families and spans almost every type of fine and decorative art. The collection boasts works by Holbein the Younger, Thomas Gainsborough, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and George Stubbs. The family patronized Thomas Chippendale and his sensational chairs line the walls of the Entrance Hall, alongside works by Morel & Hughes, royal furniture makers to the Prince of Wales, later King George IV. Weston’s collection of ceramics includes Chinese and Japanese porcelain, in addition to pieces by Derby, Worcester, Wedgwood, and Coalport. The collection is also rich in silver, displayed in a custom-built treasury, the star of which is the Stem Cup fashioned from Charles II’s Great Seal of England. The Tapestry Room houses a superb set of Gobelins tapestries featuring the “Love of the Gods” commissioned for Weston (or possibly the family’s London house) by Sir Henry Bridgeman in the 1760s. Bassano’s "Christ on the Way to Calvary" was sold to the National Gallery (London) in 1983. Some contents were sold in 1986-87. The following paintings were sold to remain on site: Sir Anthony Van Dyck’s "Sir Thomas Hanmer," Claude-Joseph Vernet’s "Coastal Scene," and John Constable’s "Henry Greswolde Lewis." (We are grateful to Gareth Williams for this overview of the collection at Weston Park.)

The Park was landscaped in the 18th century, possibly by Capability Brown, and is particularly noted for its collection of follies. The Stables, eleven bays long, are of 1688. A huge brick barn, described by Christopher Hussey as "one of the noblest architectural products of the agricultural 'revolution' worked by the great landowners of the late eighteenth century," is in a position of prominence. The follies include the Temple of Diana, by James Paine, one of the most notable of its type in the country, with wall paintings by G.B.I. Colombe, a circular Tea Room in its center, and an octagonal Music Room adjoining the Tea Room. Paine also designed the Roman Bridge. Also in the Park are the Orangery (1866), the Swiss Cottage, the Beaux-Arts Grecian Mausoleum (1870), the Obelisk, and boathouses.

Attached to the House is St. Andrew's Church, which maintains an active congregation.