Cefn Ila
| Cefn Ila | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Monmouthshire, Wales |
| OS grid | SO359004 |
| Coordinates | 51°41′58″N 2°55′40″W / 51.6995°N 2.9279°W |
| Area | 83 acres (34 ha) |
| Administration | |
| Governing body | Woodland Trust Wales |
Cefn Ila (Welsh: Coed Cefn Ila) is an 83 acres (34 ha) woodland located in Llanbadoc, a mile away from Usk, Monmouthshire, Wales, owned and run by the Woodland Trust Wales (Coed Cadw).[1][2]
History
The estate was developed as a hunting lodge, and then medieval manor house with surrounding lands. Bought in the mid-Victorian era by Edward John Trelawny, a friend of notable poets Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley, he extensively redeveloped the gardens as a then modern pleasure gardens through extensive terracing. After his death, new owner Joseph Lister employed architect Alfred Waterhouse to rebuild the property as a picturesque large cottage manor house. After his death in 1885 in a riding accident on the estate, it was bought by Gustavus Ducarel, the 4th Marquis de la Pasture.[3] His family had fled to England post the French Revolution, and although his father had by this time regained control of the family estate at Montreuil-sur-Mer, they lived mainly at the close-by Llandogo Priory.[4]
After World War I, with the estate virtually abandoned by the now again fully French-resident family, in 1925 the entire estate was annexed to Pontypool Hospital, and after redevelopment opened on 3 October 1925 as the "Kate Ayres Gustard Convalescent Home", providing care for up to 24 women and children.[5] Used from September 1939 as a child evacuation centre in the phoney war leading up to World War II, it then became a war casualty convalescence unit. Post war, in 1947 it was reopened as a maternity hospital, with accommodation for up to 18 patients.[3]
During the early hours of 14 September 1973,[6] only two weeks after a fire inspection, a fire consumed the entire main property. As today, only the stable block survived (now home to a protected roost of bats), and the patients resultantly transferred to County Hospital in Griffithstown.[3]
Present
As the house and estate fell into ruin, the surrounding lands and resultant naturally developed wood were bought at auction in 2007 by Coed Cadw.[2] The site is located a few miles away from Wentwood Forest, which is the largest ancient woodland site in Wales.[1]
Since taking ownership, Coed Cadw have since planted an additional 36,000 broadleaf trees. The long term plan is to develop a mosaic of habitats, from grasslands through wild flower meadows to an arboretum, which will be a combination of the original Victorian planting, local heritage fruit trees, plus new broadleaf varieties. The wildlife within the parklands includes a maternity roost for bats, and habitats for a number of birds including Song Thrush and Marsh Tit. Today the site is a Cadw designated Historic Park and Garden, and a priority habitat under the United Kingdom Biodiversity Action Plan.[7]
Coed Cadw are working with the Usk Rural Life Museum, to record and communicate the history of the site to visitors. In April 2014, the trust received a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £297,700,[7] to enable formal visitor groups and educational institutes to visit a fully restored walled garden and developed woodlands, together with associated visitor facilities.[6]
References
- ^ a b "More about Cefn Ila". Woodland Trust. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ^ a b "Coed Cefn Ila". Welsh Government. 31 October 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ^ a b c "Cefn Ila Maternity Hospital". BikeBrothers.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ^ "Mrs Henry de la Pasture (from Auberon Waugh's foreword to The Unlucky Family)". StarCourse.org. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ^ "Book commemorating the opening of "Kate Ayres Gustard Convalescent Home", 3 October 1925". BikeBrothers.co.uk. Retrieved 24 April 2014.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Cefn Ila woodland site boost by £297,700 heritage grant". BBC Wales. 24 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
- ^ a b "Discovering Cefn Ila's habitats, hospitals and history". Heritage Lottery Fund. 22 April 2014. Archived from the original on 26 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.