Witley Court and Gardens

Although we are members of English Heritage we don't visit many properties in England, its usually Welsh castles when visiting our daughter. Witley Court and Gardens is in Worcestershire very near the Welsh border and, with a little detour, on the way home from Rogerstone. 

Whitley Court is now in ruins, although it was once a superb mansion house over time it has suffered in many ways and now is a skeleton  full of history.  It was quite strange wandering round ruins, usually that would be an old castle and not a stately home once filled with treasures.

Great Witley manor dates back to the mid 13th century and was passed through families to Sir William Russell in 1624. It was probably a timber framed house with a stone under croft that is still there today. Sir William was the first to begin rebuilding the house in stone. The house was bequeathed to Thomas Russell who sold it just a year later to Thomas Foley of Stourbridge, a family known for its iron industry in the West Midlands. The house would belong to the Foley family for the next 200 years. 

Thomas Foley III, Lord Foley of Kidderminster, enlarged the house and after his death in 1733 his widow and son, Thomas IV rebuilt the parish church with its famous Baroque interior. Thomas also developed the house and created the lake that lies north of the house. 

Thomas was a popular name in the Foley family; upon Thomas IV death the estate passed to his cousin Thomas Foley, 1st Lord Foley. 

Thomas 2nd Lord Foley put the estate under strain with his gambling but the 3rd Lord Foley enabled the estate to recover by marrying into a wealthy family in 1806. The house was again extended and the grounds landscaped which adding to the extravagant lifestyle of the Foleys eventually brought about the sale of Witley Court in 1837 to William Ward for the sum of £680,000.

William Ward was still a minor when the property was bought in a trust, he was also heir to iron and coal industries in Staffordshire, and plantations in Jamaica. He did not receive control of his fortune in 1845 when he reached the age of 28. Now Lord Ward he married Selina Constance de Burgh in 1851 but tragedy struck as she died in childbirth shortly after. Lord Ward focussed his time on Witley Court, rebuilding the mansion house including a vast conservatory, a curved wing and the spectacular Perseus and Andromeda fountain. 

 In 1860, aged 48 he married 19 year old Georgina Moncreiffe. They went on to have a large family, six sons and a daughter, and lived many years at Witley. Following his death the house passed to his eldest son William, 2nd Earl of Dudley

A lithograph of Witley Court in 1879

Up until 1902 the house was used for lavish parties and entertaining. The estate was especially good for shooting parties and the Prince of Wales was often a visitor. The 2nd Earl and Countess were often away with his role as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and later Governor- General of Australia. The Countess became known for her tireless charity work but with Lord Dudley having many affairs their marriage ended in 1912 when they returned from Australia.

The Countess was given a life tenancy of Witley Court but her reduced income and WWI limited the party lifestyle she had previous enjoyed. Sadly whilst on holiday in Ireland the Countess drowned and as such Witley Court's future was to dramatically change. 

Lord Dudley sold the Witley Estate to Sir Herbert Smith. He added an electric dynamo system to provide electric light and power. In 1937 there was a devastating fire destroying much of the central house and east wing and although some of the house was saved the restoration was too much for Sir Herbert. The contents of the house were sold and Sir Herbert moved away, he died in 1943.

The service courtyards at Witley were used as a jam factory during WWII but the rest of the huge house was neglected and soon became ruins with the gardens overgrown. During the 19050s and 1960s various items were sold, even the magnificent fountain was offered for sale but remained in place. In 1972 the Department for the Environment took guardianship of the estate to preserve it, some repairs were carried out to reinforce the walls. 

Whitley Court was transferred to English Heritage in 1984 and during the 1990s restoration of the formal gardens including the fountain was undertaken. In 2022 the fountain was back in working order and is still provides a stunning display although only at set times a day.

Witley Court is quite a sad place, it could have still been a magnificent house filled with furnishings and possessions of the past but sadly through time and it's varied history nothing remains but the ruins. It is an impressive building and standing at the fountain watching its amazing display it is easy to imagine life as it may have been at Witley Court.