Hilton Hall is an 18th-century mansion house now in use as an Office and Business Centre at Hilton, near

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...

, in

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands C ...

. It is 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 ...

History

The original manor house was commissioned by Sir Henry Swinnerton early in the 14th century. In 1547 the marriage of Margaret Swynnerton to Henry Vernon of

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes) ** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal el ...

, Derbyshire took place: both were members of an important

recusant Recusancy (from la, recusare, translation=to refuse) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign ...

families. The house and estate were inherited by Margaret in 1562, on the death of her father Humphrey Swynnerton, the deed being dated 8 May 1564, and incorporated into the Vernon estates on her death in 1587. The house was altered, in early Georgian style, in the early 1720s by Henry Vernon,

High Sheriff of Staffordshire This is a list of the sheriffs and high sheriffs of Staffordshire. The sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. The sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities ass ...

. It was substantially extended in the early 1830s, when a third storey was added to the main building, skilfully replicating the Georgian design and raising the 1720s' pediment with its coat of arms to the higher level; the moat was partly filled in and a lower extension created at the rear of the main house for kitchens and service facilities. The main block has giant corner pilasters capped by urns. The Vernon family erected an unusual hexagonal tower in the grounds, which they dedicated to the memory of Admiral

Edward Vernon Admiral Edward Vernon (12 November 1684 – 30 October 1757) was an English naval officer. He had a long and distinguished career, rising to the rank of admiral after 46 years service. As a vice admiral during the War of Jenkins' Ear, in 173 ...

and his capture of Portobello, Panama from the Spanish in 1739. The monument is Grade II listed. The family sold the estate to the nuns of the Order of St Joseph of Bordeaux for use as a convent in 1955. Between 1986 and 1999 it was occupied by Tarmac plc as a corporate headquarters. It is now a commercial office and business centre.

References

External links

Official websiteEnglish Heritage listing
{{coord, 52.6444, -2.0724, type:landmark_region:GB-STS, display=title Grade I listed buildings in Staffordshire South Staffordshire District

History

See also

References

External links