Powis Castle ~ Powys, Wales (NT)
Powis Castle is a large, beautifully positioned red stone castle which looks out onto the surrounding countryside over an old and varied garden. Huge yew trees trimmed into smooth and curvaceous shapes provide a contrast of colour and texture to the glowing sandstone above. Below the yews are terraces, replete with 18th century lead statues of pastoral figures and yet further down, the garden descends into varied and colourful planting, lawns and trees over a wide area. The Grand Lawn, now an open space from which the terraced gardens topped by the south front of the castle can be see to dramatic effect, was once an elaborate water garden, designed probably by the Frenchman Adrian Duval, brought back by the 2nd Marquess from his exile in the late 17th century.
The castle's history began as a medieval stronghold of the 12th century princes of Powys, Welshmen who were under threat from England to the east and Gwynedd to the northwest. Perhaps construction started under Owain Cyfeiliog, who was Prince of the area; at any rate it followed the usual Norman layout of a strong keep on a promontory, an inner bailey where the sun-trap of an inner courtyard is now and a defensive outer wall, later built into a new ballroom for the castle and now site of the Clive museum. In 1196 however, the castle was captured by the English under Archbishop Hubert Walter. Owain never recovered from this blow, but his son Gwenwynwyn perceived his destiny to wreck revenge on the English and attempted to expand his principality on inheritance. His ambition was not to come to fruition however and he suffered crushing defeats, dying in exile in England in the early 13th century. His son and successor, Gruffudd, also had a troubled time, caught between the English and the incursions of the powerful Lord of Gwynedd. However, having backed Edward I of England in 1277, following the defeat of the Welsh, Gruffudd was in a position to rebuild his castle. In turn his son, Owain, the last Prince of Powys, built during his time, and most of what we see today dates from around 1300. Descending through the female line, Powis eventually come into the possession of Sir Edward Herbert in 1587.
As a second son, Sir Edward made his own way in the world, although not without powerful connections (his aunt was Catherine Parr - the luckiest queen to Henry VIII). Sir Edward made substantial improvements at Powis although all that now survives is the magnificent Long Gallery, from 1593. Such rooms were the must-have accessory to fashionable living in the Elizabethan and Jacobean eras; places to walk and exercise when weather was inclement and a perfect room in which to display your family portraits and arms. The plasterwork is a good example of the period, with the fireplace carrying a fine depiction of Adam and Eve's temptation in the Garden of Eden.
During the turbulent religious upheavals of the time, the Herberts remained Catholic, with Sir Edward's son, William, marrying Lady Eleanor Percy, daughter of the 8th Earl of Northumberland and a fellow Catholic. The huge wooden rosary belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots which is now displayed in the Gateway Room came to Powis through Lady Eleanor - her father had been executed for plotting with the Queen against Queen Elizabeth. William became 1st Lord Powis under Charles I in 1629 and remained a Royalist throughout the Civil War. Parliamentary troops captured the castle in 1644, led by Sir Thomas Myddelton of nearby Chirk Castle. William's son, Percy, 2nd Lord Powis, also remained a Royalist and was sent to prison in 1651 after having been convicted of treason. After his release he may have begun the restoration of the damaged castle.
It was his son William, however who transformed Powis into a Baroque palace in the Stuart era. He inherited in 1667 and promptly set about creating a State Apartment; the Blue Drawing Room (as it is now), the Library and the State Bedroom, with its unusual balustrade marking off the actual bed from the more public room beyond it. Sadly for William, the King never did grace his fashionable Apartment, although he did bestow the title of Earl on him, which must have been some compensation. To celebrate, William created the Grand Staircase, and had the ceiling painted by Antonio Verro in an allegory thought to represent the coronation of Charles II's Queen, Catherine of Braganza. The 1st Earl retained his Catholic faith without flaunting it at the Protestant Court, but was accused of a 'Popish Plot' to kill Charles in favour of his Catholic brother James. Despite the unfounded nature of these accusations, the Earl was imprisoned in the Tower of London for five years. Feelings against Catholics were running high and a mob burned down the family's London house in 1684 after his release. On James' accession in 1685, the Earl's fortunes rose accordingly and he was created 1st Marquess of Powis and became a member of the Privy Council. However, when James was deposed in 1688, William's fortune was too closely bound with him and he and his family followed the King into exile in France, where he died in 1696.
His son, also William, suffered from his father's reputation and he too spent periods under suspicion and in exile. He returned finally to Powis castle in 1703 and continued his father's work, decorating the Staircase walls with more Baroque murals. He had his daughters' images painted into the ceiling mural in the Library and had the Marquess Gate built in 1707, both projects funded by the discovery of lead seams on his estate at Llangynog. Despite the wealth that the mine brought, the family fortunes took a turn for the worse following the reckless speculations of William's daughter, Lady Mary Herbert. Although bailed out twice by her father, when the castle and estates passed to the 3rd Marquess in 1745, he was deeply in debt. As he never married, his heir was not obvious and due to the disputes in the family over money, he left Powis to his ninth cousin, Henry Arthur Herbert of Chirbury, the first Protestant owner. He was created the 1st Earl of Powis in the second creation and solved the contentious will of William by marrying William's niece, Barbara Herbert, although he was 48 and she was only 16. They also spent money as if it was going out of fashion and he had to sell his family estate in Shropshire to Clive of India (of whom more later). Powis castle thus became the main family home and he commissioned a survey of the property, revealing a neglected roof and terrace balustrades.
His son, George, having inherited at the tender age of seventeen, like so many of his contemporaries, embarked on the Grand Tour, bringing back art works with him. He built the Ballroom to celebrate his coming of age (well, don't we all!) but couldn't afford all the other work that needed doing and spent most of his time in London, dying without an heir. Powis passed to his Edward Clive, George's nephew and grandson to Clive of India. However, as he was only sixteen, his father managed the estate and brought to Powis the oriental treasure acquired by his famous father. The display now in the Ballroom wing attests to the richness of design and skill of manufacture of eighteenth century India, with some quite stunning artifacts, armour, pieces of furniture and art work. Another stunning piece of sculpture from the Clive collection is the ancient Cat and Snake, now positioned in the Long Gallery. This dates from around the time of the birth of Christ and was purchased around 1774 in Rome by Clive for his wife, who loved cats. According to their correspondence of the time, it was an expensive piece and it is easy to see why. On attaining his majority, Edward, 2nd Earl of Powis, was in a considerably better off position than many of his predecessors, thanks to the careful management of his father and major repairs and refurbishments were made at Powis. The roof was mended and some of the interiors modernised around 1815-18 in the fashionable Adams(ish) style. The young Princess Victoria visited Powis in 1832. Edward came to an unfortunate end however, being accidentally shot by his son during a pheasant shoot in 1848.
The 3rd Earl never married and although interested in politics in his younger days, turned down Disraeli's offer of the Viceroyship of India in 1875. In 1891, his nephew George inherited Powis and he employed G.F.Bodley to make alterations and undo some of the early 19th century changes. The Elizabethan Long Gallery provided the inspiration for these changes and the Dining Room, the Oak Drawing Room and other interiors were furnished with paneled walls and plasterwork which echo the Gallery in a pleasing way. The 4th Earl suffered several tragedies however, losing his elder son, Percy in the Battle of the Somme, his wife Voilet (who revived the gardens so successfully) in a car crash in 1929 and his surviving son, Mervyn, in a plane crash during active duty in 1942. During the Second World War, Powis was home to the Welsh Girls School. He left Powis and an endowment for its upkeep to the National Trust in 1952, although the present, 8th, Earl of Powis still has an apartment here.