Etruria Hall in Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

is a Grade II listed house and former home of the potter

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indus ...

. It was built between 1768–1771 by

Joseph Pickford Joseph Pickford (bap. 1734–1782) was an English architect, one of the leading provincial architects in the reign of George III. Biography Pickford was born in Warwickshire in 1734 but he moved as child to London when his father died. Pickfor ...

. The hall was sold by the Wedgwoods in the 19th century and is now part of a hotel.

History

The Wedgwoods

Etruria Hall was built between 1768-1771 by

, for

, near his new recently built,

Etruria works The Etruria Works was a ceramics factory opened by Josiah Wedgwood in 1769 in a district of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which he named Etruria. The factory ran for 180 years, as part of the wider Wedgwood business. Wedgwood kept ...

. The majority of the 'ceilings, ornamental friezes and chimney pieces' were designed by

John Flaxman John Flaxman (6 July 1755 – 7 December 1826) was a British sculptor and draughtsman, and a leading figure in British and European Neoclassicism. Early in his career, he worked as a modeller for Josiah Wedgwood's pottery. He spent several ye ...

between 1781-1787. An entry in the 1784-1785 Wedgwood company ledger indicates that at least one of the ceilings was designed by

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

, although it cannot be certain that this design was ever implemented. The hall was the site of the innovative research into photography by Thomas Wedgwood in the 1790s. There is a small commemorative plaque on the Hall. Due to financial difficulties Etruria Hall was sold in the 1840s by Francis Wedgwood, who moved to the smaller Barlaston Hall nearby.

Recent history

The building was given Grade II listed status in 1973. The house was restored as part of the 1986

Stoke-on-Trent Garden Festival The Stoke-on-Trent National Garden Festival was the second of Britain's national garden festivals. It was held in the city from 1 May to 26 October 1986, and was opened by the Queen. Preparation of the site involved the reclamation of l ...

, the second of Britain's national garden festivals, and incorporated as the centre-piece of the festival to lend it a 'historical dimension'. After the end of the festival, the hall was one of the few buildings on the site allowed to remain. It was developed as part of the four-star Stoke on Trent Moat House, a member of the

Best Western Best Western International, Inc. owns the Best Western Hotels & Resorts brand, which it licenses to over 4,700 hotels worldwide. The franchise, with its corporate headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, includes more than 2,000 hotels in North America. ...

chain of independent hotels. The hotel's meeting and events centre and the rooms were named after Josiah's business colleagues and friends including the Prince of Wales and Earl Granville. The walls of the hall are lined with prints of the Wedgwood family and Wedgwood pottery. The cellars beneath Etruria Hall were where Josiah Wedgwood performed some of his work developing new pottery bodies. In 2020, the hotel was taken over by the Hilton group and now forms one of their

DoubleTree DoubleTree by Hilton is an American hotel chain managed by Hilton Worldwide. DoubleTree has been the fastest growing Hilton brand by number of properties since 2007, and by number of rooms from 2007 to 2015. As of December 31, 2019, it has 587 p ...

chain.

Architecture and design

The hall consists of a central block of three storeys flanked by two pavilions, both of two storeys. The building is built in the

neo-classical style Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

, with the central block featuring a large

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...

. The majority of the work is in brick, with stone dressings. There is some evidence that the upper floor may have been rebuilt during extensive 19th century remodelling.

References

External links

* http://www.thepotteries.org/walks/etruria/1.htm {{Stoke-on-Trent Houses completed in 1771 Buildings and structures in Stoke-on-Trent Grade II listed houses in Staffordshire Hotels in Stoke-on-Trent Country houses in Staffordshire