PGW(Gd)59(CON)

Voelas  

II*  

01/02/2022  

Designated  

Conwy  

Ysbyty Ifan  

284918  

351503  

Gardens, Parks and Urban Spaces  

Terraced garden; terraced walled garden; picturesque park with river and woodland walks.  

1813-19; c. 1860;1957-61.  

The registered area encompasses the house, garden and park at Voelas representing the development of the site from the nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. Voelas is situated in an extremely picturesque part of the Conwy valley, with the river forming the main focus. The picturesque potential is fully exploited by the positioning of the house, by the garden, terraced walled garden, and woodland walks. The river walk to the east of the garden is particularly picturesque. Voelas has historic associations with Clough Williams-Ellis (1883-1978) who designed and built the present house in 1957-61 for Col. John Wynne-Finch and also designed the summerhouse in the garden. The grounds have important group value with the estate buildings and structures, many of which are contemporary with the earlier nineteenth-century house. The present Hall (LB: 20585) is surrounded by a small, wooded, park which lies mostly to the south and west of the house. It was mostly created in the 1860s by Charles Wynne Finch who built a predecessor house nearby and carried out major landscape improvements. Extending to either side of the river Conwy, the park is focused on the river. It is bounded on the south side by the A5 road and stretches from the Pont Rhyd-y-dyfrgi (Pont Lima in the nineteenth century) at the west end, to Pont Hendre Isaf on the east. The park was designed to take full advantage of the picturesque value of this part of the Afon Conwy with its winding course and rocky bed, full use was made of it in laying out both park and garden. The main feature of the landscaping of the park, which merges imperceptibly with the garden, are simple walks laid out along the river, chiefly on the north side. A footbridge that once allowed access to the south side of the river from the garden is now gone. The house is reached by two drives: the first from the west at Pont-y-dyfrgi with a lodge at its entrance, the second from the south across a bridge (LB: 3192) over the river Conwy, formerly a public road until the 1860s when the park was enlarged, which joins the first drive. The drive then crosses a second bridge (LB: 20608) over Nant-y-coed to the west of the house. The valley slopes to the river are largely wooded with semi-natural deciduous woodland and some coniferous planting. To the south of the garden, and to its immediate west the woodland is largely beech. There is some ornamental tree planting, mainly of conifers. Banks of rhododendrons are a feature of the park, particularly near the house, along the main drive, fringing the woodland south of the river, and in the wooded area to the east of the walled garden. A picturesque river walk from the garden eastwards through woodland crosses several small tumbling streams and on to a small gate on the park boundary. Most of the layout was in place by the 1870s with some further development, mainly planting by 1913. A summerhouse (LB: 20586) by Clough Williams-Ellis was built in the 1960s between the house and the stable yard. The garden lies to the south and west of the house, on ground sloping southwards to the river. The garden area on the west merges with the wooded park, while to the east it is bounded by the stable yard and walled garden (LB: 20589). Most of the structure of the garden probably dates from the 1860s when the house was rebuilt by Charles Wynne-Finch who designed the landscape to take full advantage of the picturesque value of this part of the Afon Conwy. The present layout consists essentially of a terrace and forecourt around the house, a terraced and sloping lawn down to the river, and a woodland walk up either side of the tributary stream to the west. The 1870s Ordnance Survey map shows a terrace in front of the house, and the present walks up the tributary stream (the dingle), and into the woodland to the west. The terrace with a wide gravel path runs along the south and west sides of the house. On the south it is bounded by a steep grass scarp, wide stone steps down to the next level, on the west it is bounded by a dry-stone revetment wall with a semi-circular projection near its north end below which the ground falls away to the stream. Below the main terrace, on the south side, is a further, narrower terrace, below which is a small scarp and then the natural grassy slope down to the river. Across the stream the lawn narrows to the west between the river and the beech wood which is ornamented with conifers and rhododendron, a path along the bank crossing the river over a stone bridge. The woodland walk to the north-west of the house is a separate part of the garden, an informal woodland area of coniferous and deciduous trees, with under-planting of rhododendrons and azaleas. A winding gravel path leads up the west side of the dingle, through the woodland, to a simple stone slab footbridge over the stream, and then winds back down the opposite side of the valley. The walled garden lies to the east of the pleasure garden, south of the stable yard and outbuildings. It was made in the 1860s, as part of Charles Wynne-Finch's improvements. It is a truncated rectangle in shape, with straight north, west and east sides, and with the curving south side following the bank of the river. It is bounded by stone walls on the north, west and east sides, and by iron railings along the river on the south side. The upper part, on the steep slope down to river level, is divided into three narrow terraces separated by stone revetment walls and linked by steps. The terraces are edged by low flat-topped parapet walls. The top terrace, backed by a high stone wall, is largely surfaced with gravel and occupied by outbuildings and glass-houses, including a peach house dating from the 1890s. The narrower middle terrace, at its west end gives access to the pleasure garden and at its east end steps climb to a rockery slope laid out informally with narrow paths. From this, narrow steps lead up to an iron gate into the woodland walk to the east. A raised section in the middle of the terrace above two flights of steps lead down to the lower terrace via a small platform with a cobbled surface. The lower terrace has steps down at either end, with a millstone set in the paving in front of the east steps. The lower part of the garden is level, laid out to lawn, with gravel cross paths flanked by beech hedges. A path runs along the foot of the terraces, to a gate into the woodland to the east and to steps at the west end. The east wall is about 3m high, topped with flat coping stones. The south side of the garden is bounded by iron fencing near the west end of which is a gate, with steps leading to the riverside walk. Setting & Significant Views: Voelas is situated in an extremely picturesque part of the Conwy valley. The picturesque potential is fully exploited by the positioning of the house, by the garden, terraced walled garden, woodland and river walks. Source: Cadw 1998: Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales: Conwy, Gwynedd & the Isle of Anglesey, 136-8 (ref: PGW(Gd)59(CON).