Caerhays Castle or Carhayes Castle (translation of ''caerhays'' into English: "enclosed castle") is a semi-castellated

country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

built in 1808, south of the village centre,

St Michael Caerhays St Michael Caerhays ( kw, Lannvihal) is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is about seven miles (11 km) south-southwest of St Austell. The population as of the 2011 census was 96 St Michael Caerhay ...

, Cornwall, England. It overlooks Porthluney Cove on the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. The garden has a large collection of

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

History

In the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

, the manor belonged to the

Arundell family The Arundell family of Cornwall are amongst the few Cornish families of Norman origin, and there are still fewer of French extraction who have for so long a period (at least five or six centuries) been, like them, traceable in that county. Lanh ...

. The earliest record of the name is ''Karihaes'' in 1259, and is recorded as ''Carihays'' in 1379, but its original meaning is obscure. In about 1379, it passed by marriage to the Trevanion family after the marriage of Robert Trevanion to Johanna Arundell, daughter and heiress of Rudolph Arundell of Caerhays. John Trevanion inherited the estate in 1703 after which he improved the

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

existing on the site and developed gardens. With the death of William Trevanion in 1767, the estate passed to his sister's son, John Bettesworth. John's son, John Bettesworth-Trevanion, built the present castle on a site close to the former manor house between 1807 and 1810; his architect was the Anglo-Welsh John Nash. The castle was built close to the site of the original ancient home that had itself undergone expansion during the reign of

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disag ...

. After Bettesworth-Trevanion left for Paris, unable to pay his bills, Michael Williams II purchased Caerhays from his creditors in 1854. As the house had been unoccupied for over a decade and had not been watertight for some of that time, his younger brother

Sir William Williams, 1st Baronet, of Tregullow ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

(1791–1870), with his son John Michael Williams (1813–1880), JP, DL, initiated an extensive repair programme. Michael Williams II died in 1858 and left Caerhays to his eldest son John Michael Williams (1813–1880), whilst he left

Scorrier House Scorrier House, located near the village of Scorrier, Cornwall, England, UK, is a country house and the seat of the Williams family of Caerhays and Burncoose, Williams family. Scorrier House is also home to an important Cornish garden, Scorrier Ho ...

to his sixth son George Williams (1827–1891), DL, JP,

High Sheriff of Cornwall Sheriffs and high sheriffs of Cornwall: a chronological list: The right to choose high sheriffs each year is vested in the Duchy of Cornwall. The Privy Council, chaired by the sovereign, chooses the sheriffs of all other English counties, ot ...

in 1875. After the death of John Michael Williams in 1880 his second son,

John Charles Williams John Charles Williams (30 April 1861 – 29 March 1939) was an English Liberal Unionist politician and a noted gardener at Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, where he grew and bred rhododendrons and other plants. An important group of camellia cultivars, ...

(1861–1939), then aged 18, inherited the Caerhays estate. (His elder brother was Michael Williams (1857–1899) of Gnaton Hall, who died without progeny). John Charles Williams married in 1884, at which time the house again went through restoration and alteration. He became a

plantsman A plantsman is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable gardener (amateur or professional), nurseryman or nurserywoman. "Plantsman" can refer to a male or female person, though the terms plantswoman, or even plantsperson, are sometimes used. The word is ...

, sponsoring plant-hunting expeditions in order to fill the castle garden with new acquisitions. Seeds brought back from China by

Ernest Henry Wilson Ernest Henry "Chinese" Wilson (15 February 1876 – 15 October 1930), better known as E. H. Wilson, was a notable British plant collector and explorer who introduced a large range of about 2000 Asian plant species to the Western culture, West; ...

in 1903 were donated to J.C. Williams by

Harry Veitch Sir Harry James Veitch (24 June 1840 – 6 July 1924) was an eminent English horticulturist in the nineteenth century, who was the head of the family nursery business, James Veitch & Sons, based in Chelsea, London. He was instrumental in establi ...

. The current owner in 2012 is Charles Williams.

Construction

Main entrance gatehouse to Caerhayes Castle - geograph

The exterior, bearing the appearance of a

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

castle, was built of rough stone quarried from the immediate neighbourhood. The front entrance, in length, has a southern exposure and is elevated on an

embattled A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

terrace. The principal rooms toward the south and east, joined by a large gallery room. Painted glass adorns the windows of the dining room, staircase, and entrance hall. Parts of the original manor remain, including the ancient chapel as well as an old walkway to the sea which retains the name of the Watchhouse Walk.

Historical preservation

The castle became a

Grade I listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

on 15 November 1988. Other Grade I listed buildings associated with the castle include the garden wall with gateways and

folly tower A folly tower is a tower that has been built as an architectural folly, that is, constructed for ornamental rather than practical reasons. Folly towers are common in Britain and Ireland, and often do have some practical value as landmarks, or as vie ...

that is attached to the west and east of the castle, the Higher Lodge, the Lower Lodge with attached screen walls, and also the service buildings attached to the south-west of the castle.

Garden

The castle's garden covers almost , traversed by four named routes, and navigated by trails, grassy paths, and steps. The garden is home to 600 varieties of plants, including trees and shrubs, such as

azalea Azaleas are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections ''Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and '' Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, and Octob ...

s and

camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controversy ...

s. By 1917, it had over 250 types of

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

. Its

trees are accredited with

Plant Heritage Plant Heritage, formerly known as the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (NCCPG), is a botanical conservation organisation in the United Kingdom and a registered charity. It was founded in 1978 to combine the talents of bot ...

under the

National Plant Collection The National Plant Collection scheme is the main conservation vehicle whereby the Plant Heritage charity (formerly the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens) can accomplish its mission: to conserve, grow, propagate, docume ...

scheme.

In modern popular culture

Caerhays was used as the outside shots for the 1979 miniseries adaptation of ''Rebecca''. Filming for ''Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children'' took place over three months on the estate and at Porthluney Cove in 2015. Caerhays features in the later

Poldark ''Poldark'' is a series of historical novels by Winston Graham, published from 1945 to 1953 and continued from 1973 to 2002. The first novel, '' Ross Poldark'', was named for the protagonist of the series. The novel series was adapted twice ...

novels, where Ross and Demelza Poldark's son Jeremy meets a love interest at Caerhays. The novels stress both the magnificence of the castle, and the ruinous cost to the Trevanions of rebuilding it.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caerhays Castle Grade I listed houses Grade I listed buildings in Cornwall Houses completed in 1810 Mock castles in England Manors in Cornwall Grade II* listed parks and gardens in Cornwall Country houses in Cornwall