Tredegar House, Newport, Torfaen

 

Owned by Newport Council, Tredegar House has now been leased for fifty years to the National Trust.  Entry is charged at £7, but I feel it makes excellent value for money compared to previous visits. Many rooms have been furnished, and a plethora of guides are ready to spill the beans on secrets long forgotten.

Rooms are dressed showing varying periods in the life of the house and reflect the changing tastes of the various Lords Tredegar.  The last, being an eccentric, had a menagerie in the garden with a kaymen in his bathroom and, believably, spent all the riches accumulated over the previous years.

The gardens are open to view, and are being improved to an even higher standard than at present. 

The house is built of red brick, which, at the time, was far more expensive and impressive than stonework. Even the stables have a grandeur, so much so that apparently when Prince Charles and Lady Diana visited, their chauffeur stopped outside the stables, believing them to be the house itself.

In the orangery is a table from Cefn Ila Court which was used for XXXX, a game similar to shove-ha'penny.  There would have been cups set along the sides to catch stray discs.  The table has been restored, but still shows the ravages of being stored in a damp cellar for many years.

Fantastic table from 1600's disappears into infinity made from one slice of tree trunk.

 

Volunteers tend the gardens and work throughout the building. It sounds an interesting place to spend your time.