Llanharan House is a historic house on the outskirts of Llanharan,

Rhondda Cynon Taf Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vill ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. It is located off the A473 road, just east of Llanharan and is a Grade II* listed building.

History

The house was built in 1750 by Rees Powell and stayed with the Powell family until 1795 upon which it was purchased by Richard Hoare Jenkins. Hoare Jenkins was a High Sheriff of Glamorgan who was involved in the suppression of the

Merthyr Rising The Merthyr Rising, also referred to as the Merthyr Riots, of 1831 was the violent climax to many years of simmering unrest among the large working class population of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales and the surrounding area. The Rising marked the fi ...

of 1831 and is recorded as stating that he found the execution of

Dic Penderyn Richard Lewis (1807/8 – 13 August 1831), known as Dic Penderyn, was a Welsh labourer and coal miner who lived in Merthyr Tydfil and was involved with the Merthyr Rising of 3 June 1831. In the course of the riot he was arrested alongside Lewis ...

the most difficult of his civic duties. Around 1800 some major improvements were made to the house with the addition of a three-storey circular stair hall which includes a dramatic geometrical staircase. Following the death of Hoare Jenkins in 1856 the house and the estate was passed to a Colonel John Blandy-Jenkins. Following his death in 1915 Colonel Blandy-Jenkins's wife kept the house until 1953, after which it was bought by Sir George Williams CBE MC, of the Williams family of

Aberpergwm House Aberpergwm House ( cy, Aberpergwm) is an abandoned and ruinous country house located in Glynneath, Wales. Within the grounds of the house sits the church of St. Cadoc, which is possibly of late medieval origin. Newman, J., ‘The Buildings of W ...

and

St Donat's Castle St Donat's Castle ( cy, Castell Sain Dunwyd), St Donats, Wales, is a medieval castle in the Vale of Glamorgan, about to the west of Cardiff, and about to the west of Llantwit Major. Positioned on cliffs overlooking the Bristol Channel, the si ...

. The

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 ...

Williams family established a Catholic Chapel in the house, as there was no local Catholic Church, which was in use until the early 2000s when a church was built in

Miskin Miskin ( cy, Meisgyn) is a village approximately south of Llantrisant in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The origin of the village was a small hamlet (place), hamlet known as New Mill, which grew up around New Mill farm. Miski ...

. Three members of the family served as

High Sheriff of Mid Glamorgan The office of High Sheriff of Mid Glamorgan was established in 1974 as part of the creation of the county of Mid Glamorgan in Wales following the Local Government Act 1972, and, together with the High Sheriff of West Glamorgan and the High Sheriff ...

while living at the house. The Williams family emigrated and sold the house in 2015 ending over 600 years of the family being based in South Wales. The house has been used regularly for filming for programmes such as Sherlock, Upstairs Downstairs, Doctor Who and

Pobol y Cwm ''Pobol y Cwm'' (''People of the Valley''; ) is a Welsh-language soap opera produced by the BBC since October 1974. The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, ''Pobol y Cwm'' was originally transmitted on BBC One Wales and l ...

. Actors including Sir Alan Bates,

Ruth Negga Ruth Negga ( ; born 7 January 1981) is an Ethiopian-Irish actress known for the AMC television series ''Preacher'' and the film ''Loving''. For her portrayal of Mildred Loving in the latter, Negga received several major nominations from the Ac ...

and

Ed Stoppard Edmund Stoppard (born 16 September 1974) is an English actor. He is the son of playwright Tom Stoppard and doctor Miriam, Lady Hogg. Life Stoppard was born on 16 September 1974 in London, England, the son of playwright Tom Stoppard and Miriam ...

have all performed at the house.

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

also used the house for a conference while she was Prime Minister. The Llanharan Hunt

Llanharan house has a strong historical connection with fox hunting. This Welsh pack was named ''The Llanharan'' and was established by Richard Hoare Jenkins in 1805, though the pack was renamed the Llangeinor during the period when Mr John Blandy Jenkins was the squire.''Foxhounds of Great Britain and Ireland and their Masters and Huntsmen'', written by Sir Humphrey F. de Trafford, published in 1905. The Llangeinor is now based in Coity near

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the medieval bridge over the River Og ...

References

{{reflist Country houses in Wales Grade II* listed buildings in Rhondda Cynon Taf Houses completed in 1750