Rupertswood is a

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...

and country estate located in Sunbury, 50 km north-northwest of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in Victoria,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It known for being the birthplace of

the Ashes urn The Ashes urn is a small urn made of terracotta and standing high, long believed to contain the ashes of a bail (cricket), cricket bail or the burnt remains of a lady's veil. It was presented to Ivo Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley, Ivo Bligh, the ca ...

, which was humorously presented to English cricket captain Ivo Bligh to mark his team's victory in an 1882–83 Test match series between

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Rupertswood is one of the largest houses constructed in Victoria and, although now subdivided, has significant farm land. The estate also had its own private railway station (until closure in 2004), and artillery battery. It is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...

. The foundation stone for Rupertswood was laid on 29 August 1874 with around 1,000 people in attendance. The house was the country seat completed in 1876 for Sir William Clarke, a land owner and pastoralist who was one of Australia's wealthiest men and the first Australian-born

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

. It was designed by local

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

George L. Browne in the Free Classical style. From 1874 to 1876, Sir William Clarke employed landscape designer William Sangster to design and create the surrounding gardens.Foster, John H. (1989) Victorian Picturesque: The Colonial Gardens of William Sangster. University of Melbourne History Dept. p. 44. The estate was sold in 1925 to Hugh Victor McKay, a wealthy industrialist and inventor of the Sunshine Harvester. When McKay died in 1926, Rupertswood was bought by pastoralist William Naughton. In 1927, the estate was bought by the Salesian Society, which used the mansion and surrounding property as a male boarding school. The school later became

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

, relocated into separate premises nearby, and is known as Salesian College, Rupertswood. In March 2006, the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

Queen's Baton Relay The King's Baton Relay is a relay around the world held prior to the beginning of the Commonwealth Games. The baton carries a message from the Head of the Commonwealth, currently King Charles III. The relay traditionally begins at Buckingham P ...

travelled to the area, where a re-enactment of the handing over of the Ashes to the English took place in front of a small local crowd. The mansion was restored with the help of interior designer and Victorian architecture specialist Jacqui Robertson and converted into a hotel that was often used for weddings and other formal events until its closure in 2014. The contents were auctioned on-site in July 2014 by Glenelg Auction Centre. The building is now used as administration offices for Salesian College.

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External links

{{coord, display=title, -37.572772, 144.738538, type:landmark_region:AU Houses in Victoria (state) Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne Victorian architecture in Victoria (state) Australian cricket in the 19th century Hotels in Victoria (state) 1874 establishments in Australia Sunbury, Victoria Buildings and structures in the City of Hume Houses completed in 1874

See also

References

External links