Hagley Hall is a neo-Palladian mansion, set a beautiful landscaped park, with splendid views to the Welsh borders.
The estate was acquired in 1564 by Sir John Lyttelton who built a timber-framed house on the site.
In 1754 - 60 the present house was built by the 1st Lord Lyttelton close to the site of the original building.
The property has remained in the hands of his descendants ever since and today it is the home of the 11th Viscount Cobham.
Lyttelton commissioned his friend, the talented architect Sanderson Miller, to build the house but his designs were modified by another amateur architect, Thomas Prowse, and the little-known Palladian architect, John Sanderson.
The pink sandstone neo-Palladian house has four corner towers and was modelled on Houghton Hall in Norfolk.
However, the glory of this rather austere house is its magnificent Rococo interiors.
The house has some of the finest examples of Italian plasterwork in England and many of the rooms contain the original furnishings and works of art.
Some of the rooms were carefully remodelled after a fire of 1926. All the main rooms on the first floor or piano nobile are open to view.
The state rooms are located on the south side, whilst the smaller private rooms are to the north. These rooms are separated by the Hall and Saloon on the central axis.
The tour of the house begins in the ornate Entrance Hall- with its swirling plasterwork ceiling. Classical figures are in niches around the walls and on either side of the fireplace are massive atlantes carved by James Lovell.
The classical theme is continued with 18th century marble heads of emperors but more modern artists are represented by Rysbrack's busts of Van Dyck and Rubens.
The Library has replicas of the original bookcases bequeathed to Lyttelton by Frederick, Prince of Wales.
The Boudoir and Billiard Room were remodelled from two bedroom suites after the fire.
The Billiard Room was decorated in neo-Elizabethan style using panelling taken from the original house on the site. The paintings on display here include two by Van Dyck.
The 'public' reception rooms begin with the Saloon. When this room was repainted in 1989 most of the furniture was removed to allow the plasterwork to be fully appreciated. Portraits here include works by Henry Wootton, Allan Ramsay, Pompeo Batoni and Van Dyck (attributed).
The adjoining Drawing Room, unchanged since its completion, is considered to be one of the finest examples of Rococo taste in the country with Soho tapestries.
More fine plasterwork can be seen in the Gallery. Although some of the original furniture has been dispersed there are interesting pieces including chairs and chinoiserie pier-glasses. Many of the picture frames were carved in an old-fashioned style to accommodate a collection of portraits, bequeathed to the family in 1684.
The Dining Room has wreaths of vines on the cornice and a 17th century Mortlake tapestry.
Hagley Hall is set in 350 acres of landscaped park and commands a superb view of the over the hills towards the Welsh borders.
The nearby Clent Hills protect the park from the suburbs of Birmingham.
The architect of the house, Sanderson Miller, was also commissioned to design a ruined castle (not open to the public) in the grounds.
Following this several other ornamental garden buildings were created. The most important of these was a temple designed by James 'Athenian' Stuart in 1758 - 59. The temple stands near to an obelisk on the northern side of the A458.
2008: May 26-30 & Aug 25-29 14:00-17:00 by guided tours.
Tel: 01562 882408 Hagley Hall Website
