Tredegar House, South Wales - Welsh

Tredegar House was home to the Morgan family (later Lords Tredegar) for over 500 years. The Morgans were a very proud Welsh family, who claimed descent from the great Welsh princes. They were hugely influential on the political, social and economic life of Newport and surrounding counties. The Tredegar Estate once covered 53,000 acres in south-east Wales and was home to industrialists, fifteen High Sheriffs, 22 MPs, a military hero and happy family life. It has also known wild parties, lunacy and the occult. John ap Morgan's support of Henry Tudor in 1485 established the Morgans as a powerful family who built a Tudor house to reflect their new status, and entertain King Charles I in 1645. That building was of cheap, readily available grey stone, and was largely replaced by the present red-brick mansion between 1664-74. As the Industrial Revolution transformed South Wales, the Morgans recognised the commercial potential of their extensive estates, investing in financial, industrial and commercial projects to exploit their mineral wealth, often leasing land for coal mines or iron works. They established the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, served in the Crimean War (Godfrey Morgan was one of only two officers to survive the Charge of the Light Brigade in 1854). Evan, last of the Morgans to live at Tredegar, was one of the bright young things of the 1920s, making the house the infamous scene for wild weekend parties with nude bathing in the lake and experiments with the occult. He was friends with many of the leading artistic figures of the era, from Jacob Epstein to Charlie Chaplin, Augustus John to Nancy Cunard, Aldous Huxley to H G Wells. Another friend was Aleister Crowley, 'the Beast'. Evan had converted to Catholicism, and served as a Privy Chamberlain at the Vatican, despite being a covert homosexual. This guide to the history of the family and the house brings the history of Tredegar House to the present day. Containing floorplans and an extensive family tree, it tells the stories of the fascinating characters who built and lived in the house, both above and below stairs.