Bodnant House
| Bodnant House | |
| Denbighshire | |
|---|---|
 Bodnant House | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SH800723 |
| Location: | 53°14’5"N, 3°47’54"W |
| History | |
| Country house | |
| Information | |
| Owned by: | Lord Aberconway |
Bodnant House is a grand country house in Denbighshire, on the east side of the lower Conwy Valley. It belongs to the family of Lord Aberconwy, which family has held the house and estate for 130 years.
The house stands within the Bodnant Estate, itself a strikingly beautiful agricultural estate commanding spectacular views across to Snowdonia. Lord Aberconway has ensured that the stone cottages and farm buildings on the estate have been restored using traditional materials and techniques.
The garden of the house however has been separated: in 1949, Bodnant Garden was granted to the National Trust.
The estate
The estate maintains itself through its farms and a variety of holiday lets, tempting tenants with the prospect of the many miles of private woodland paths through the Estate.
Bodnant Garden Centre is run by the estate also.
History
In January 1875, the estate was bought by "new money"; Henry Davis Pochin, a prosperous industrialist amongst whose many inventions and enterprises were a means to make coloured soap and a process for the production of Cornish china clay. Pochin developed the estate with his customary vigour (the famous laburnum arch in Bodnant Garden is his), and he served as a member of parliament for a time.
Mr Pochin's daughter, Laura, married Charles McLaren MP, who in 1911 was created Lord Aberconway. He chose the title "Aberconway" from his wife's inheritance of Bodnant on the River Conway. Their son, Henry McLaren was also an MP and an industrialist; the garden as seen today is principally his creation. It was Henry who in 1949 gave the garden to the National Trust. Henry was also responsible for building the two shooting lodges on the estate, including an unusual one thatched in heather sited high above the Conwy Valley.
The current Lord Aberconway is the Manager of Bodnant Garden on behalf of the National Trust.