The Argoed, Penallt


The Argoed, Penallt, Monmouthshire, Wales, is a Victorian country house dating from the 1860s, with earlier origins from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It is a Grade II* listed building, and sits on a hill above Monmouth overlooking the Wye Valley. The English meaning of the Welsh word argoed is 'by a wood'.

History

In the 17th century the house was the home of the Proberts, local landowners and High Sheriffs of Monmouthshire. Richard Potter, Chairman of the Great Western Railway and father of Beatrice Webb, bought the house in 1865 and undertook extensive rebuilding. Beatrice Webb was a founder member of the Fabian Society and, in the later 19th and early 20th centuries, she entertained many prominent friends at the Argoed, including George Bernard Shaw. Shaw is rumoured to have written his plays The Man of Destiny and Mrs. Warren's Profession whilst staying at the house. In the 1980s, the Argoed was owned by Robert Plant of the rock band Led Zeppelin.

Architecture

The architectural historian John Newman describes the Argoed as "a large, two-storeyed stone house a tantalizing one." The central block is original and irregular, its "windows all 18th century sashes." Potter's re-building included a larger block to the south and a service wing to the north. The interior has been greatly reconstructed. The grounds are largely from the 19th and 20th centuries, though they include "17th century terraces of potential archaeological interest." The triangular plot has gardens which include wide gravel drives, formal lawns, terraces and ha-has which look out over the Wye valley.