Was it happenstance that led the Haywards on their honeymoon to visit Beaudesert Hall - the country seat and estate of the Paget family, the Marquesses of Anglesey?
Located on the southern edge of Cannock Chase in Staffordshire, it was set to be demolished because the depression in Britain had left this country estate devastated by family debt and - like so many others - uneconomic to run.
Beaudesert Hall was obtained by the Pagets in 1546 and before this it had been the Bishops of Coventry and Lichfield’s hunting lodge. They were relieved of it following Henry VIII dissolution of the monasteries. The King gave the newly acquired house to Sir William Paget, his Secretary of State. In 1551, for his services to the Crown, he was created the 1st Baron Paget and also given extensive areas of Cannock Chase and the original Beaudesert Hall.
The 3rd Baron Paget extensively rebuilt the hall in between 1573 and 1583, incorporating the original medieval section as the rear of the now much expanded house. The Elizabethan house remained largely untouched until 1771 when the 9th Baron Paget employed James Wyatt to remodel Beaudesert to incorporate many neo-Gothic features.
Further renovations only occurred following a large fire in 1909 and these extensively altered the interior. Earlier changes were stripped away and the rooms restored according to various architectural periods. The Great Hall was restored to how it would have been in the 1500s with a large mullioned window recreated in the west wall and the original oak roof - which had been hidden behind a false ceiling - was restored.
By 1919, the heavy taxation was taking its toll. Lord Anglesey ceased to live at Beaudesert and went to live permanently at Plas Newydd prompting a limited sale in 1921 of the furniture he couldn't take with him. A further sale was held in July 1935 of the fittings of the hall and stables with the hall itself sold to a Leicestershire firm of demolition contractors. In total around 20,000 square feet of panelling and other fittings were taken away.
So here was all the history you could wish for and about to be turned into architectural salvage. The Haywards purchased windows, doors, fireplaces, oak panelling and the famous 'Waterloo' staircase. They shipped the items back to Adelaide and had them incorporated in to the design of their new house Carrick Hill.
Beaudesert now only lives on in name - and a few forlorn ruins which only survive as the demolition contractors went bust before they could finish the job. In 1937 Lord Anglesey donated 124 acres to be used for recreation by scouts, guides and other similar associations and this ground was opened in 1938.
