Issue 42 summer 24 web - Flipbook - Page 88
Restored and reimagined…
Wentworth Woodhouse’s
historic Camellia House
blooms again
Visitors can now take tea where the ladies of the house did in 1738, and beside some of the oldest
camellias in the Western World
From derelict shell on the Heritage At Risk Register to
beautifully restored global tea house… A new life has
dawned for Wentworth Woodhouse’s Grade II* listed
Camellia House.
on Historic England’s Heritage At Risk Register Only the
once-pampered camellias had thrived; exposed to the
elements, they had trunks the width of trees and were 30
feet tall.
Set in a secluded spot in the gardens of their prestigious
stately home in Rotherham, the building served as a
peaceful retreat for its aristocratic owners from 1738.
In 2019, a discovery by Head Gardener Scott Jamieson
gave the Trust even more reason to act swiftly. Many of
the 19 camellias existing from a collection once numbering up to 30 were originals, likely dating from the early
1800s. They were deemed some of the oldest surviving in
the Western world by the International Camellia Society.
It was originally built as a tea house where the
Marchioness of Rockingham Lady Mary Finch and her
wealthy friends would sip the most fashionable drink of
the day.
Now, thanks to a year-long, £5 million restoration funded
primarily with £4m from The National Lottery Heritage
Fund and just over £614,000 from Historic England, the
Camellia House has been saved and its precious plants
protected.
It later became home to some of Britain's first camellias
to arrive from China, each of which reputedly cost keen
collector the 4th Earl Fitzwilliam the equivalent of a
housemaid’s annual wage.
Officially launched on Friday March 22, the Camellia
House opened on April 2nd as a tea house, where people
can take tea among camellias still thriving after 200 years.
In the 20th century, it was still a beloved family haunt; Lt
Col Burton ‘Bertie’ Gething chose the Camellia House as
the idyllic setting to propose to Lady Donatia, third
daughter of Billy and Maud Fitzwilliam.
The menu features 32 teas from across the globe and a
food offer includes international tapas. In the evenings,
the venue will serve as an events space.
But after the family departed in the 1980s, the Camellia
House fell into decline and its blooms were forgotten.
Mondays are reserved exclusively for charities and
community groups. Partnering with Home Instead,
monthly Memory Cafes will run for people living with
dementia.
When Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust bought
the mansion for £7 million in 2017, it was one of many
buildings close to dereliction. Listed as Grade II*, it was
Below, Wentworth restored Camellia House external shot
Conservation & Heritage Journal
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