Building record MDR5440 - Aston Hall, Shardlow Road, Aston-on-Trent
Type and Period (1)
- COUNTRY HOUSE (Georgian to Unknown - 1735 AD)
Protected Status/Designation
Full Description
Aston Hall. Small country house, now part of hospital. 1735, built for Robert Holden, with early 19th century alterations and with large early 19th century addition which was in turn altered in 1907 by Edward Holden, also minor 20th century additions and alterations. Grade II*. (1)
Five-bay house with central Venetian windows on both main facades. Also on both, early 19th century one-storeyed Ionic porches have been added. The original house is dated 1735 on a rainwater-head. Pretty staircase of that date. The house was much enlarged in 1907 for R S Boden. On the left of the main front a fine ballroom with two bay-windows. Gardens by T H Mawson. Now a hospital. (2)
The present Aston Hall, built by Robert Holden in 1735, probably replaced an earlier building, possibly that which had belonged to the Hunts. They had built, before 1540, a capital mansion at Aston. When the Holdens acquired the estate they may merely have modernised the former Hunt seat, which Woolley described in 1713 as 'an old seat and a good estate' and which paid tax on nine hearths in 1670. An inventory of 1692 shows that the house had 23 rooms. The new house of 1735 was built in brick with stone dressings (of Keuper sandstone from Weston Cliff). It may be the work of Francis Smith of Warwick. The entire house was painted white before 1857 and a decorative two-storey extension to the west was added in 1907. The estate was sold in 1924 and the house eventually became a special hospital (3)
Five medieval manuscripts are said to have been discovered below the floors of the present building. One is said to have been dated to 1298; a second is also of the late 13th century (4).
Aston Hall is a gentleman's residence built in 1735 for Robert Holden. It is constructed of brick on a double-pile plan and consists of three storeys and a basement. An L-plan three-storeyed service range attached to the north-side appears to be original (though much altered subsequently), as does a U-plan stable and coach house block to the north-west. At an early date a two-storeyed single-bay extension was added to the Hall at the west end of the north wall. The Hall was remodelled, probably by Edward Shuttleworth Holden, in the early 19th century. Further additions and alterations took place in 1899, including the construction of a wing of two storeys and attics on the west side of the service range. After the first World War the estate was acquired by Nottingham Corporation for a Mental Deficiency Colony, opening in 1926. As specialised accommodation was built nearby, the Hall assumed a primarily administrative function. (5)
Sources/Archives (5)
- <1> SDR5420 Bibliographic reference: DOE Listed Buildings, District of South Derbyshire, Derby 11 Mar 1987 8-9.
- <2> SDR12891 Bibliographic reference: Pevsner, N. 1979. The Buildings of England: Derbyshire. 2nd ed., revised. p69.
- <3> SDR4297 Bibliographic reference: Craven, M & Stanley, M. 1991. The Derbyshire Country House. pp 23-24.
- <4> SDR18977 Unpublished document: Mike Griffiths & Associates. 1992. Aston Hall Hospital, Aston-on-Trent, South Derbyshire.
- <5> SDR20201 Unpublished document: RCHME. 1995. Historic Building Report. Aston Hall, Shardlow Road, Aston upon Trent, Derbyshire. SMR Doc. No. 685.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred SK 4149 2916 (39m by 51m) (Centre) |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | ASTON UPON TRENT, SOUTH DERBYSHIRE, DERBYSHIRE |
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (1)
- EDR2436
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External Links (0)
Record last edited
May 8 2017 11:57AM