Plas Brondanw
| Date | 5 July 2014 | ||
| Location | Plas Brondanw, Croesor | SH 61663 42355; 52.96065°N, 4.06098°W | |
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Plas Brondanw is a country house near the tiny village of Croesor and was home to architect Clough Williams-Ellis (1883 – 1978), best known for the Italianate village Portmeirion. Clough was given the property, which had been in his family for over 400 years, by his father in 1908. He married writer Amabel Strachey in 1915 and after the end of World War I he set about restoring the mansion as their home and designing its formal gardens. Further restoration work was completed in 1953 after the house had been damaged in a fire in 1951. The Grade II* listed building and its gardens are in the care of the Clough Williams-Ellis Foundation, which is also responsible for Portmeirion and the Brondanw Estate. The gardens are open to the public. Further Reading Brondanw (official site);
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Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw, with Cnicht in the background
Plas Brondanw
Plas Brondanw
Cnicht from the Tower
Looking down from the Tower
The Tower, a.k.a. ‘Folly Castle’, was built by Clough around 1920 with money donated by his fellow officers in the Welsh Guards as a wedding present
View of Cnicht and the Moelwynion
Looking out
The 11-metre crenellated tower with adjoining ‘ruined’ curtain wall and smaller tower
Garden Tea Room. The café occupies the former stable and was officially opened by Bryn Terfel in 2012.
Garden Tea Room
Garden Tea Room
GeoTopoi 
Great range of shots here – I climbed Cnicht at the beginning of June – one of my favourite Welsh peaks!
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Thanks! I’ve just surprised myself by learning that it was three years ago that I walked up.
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I miss Wales!!!!
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So, I hope these photos might provide some small consolation 😉
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It did! Thank you! I love tagging along with you!
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🙂
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🙂
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So beautiful. I can’t imagine how labor intensive the grounds are! 🙂
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🙂
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Beautiful pictures. It is staggering to think that someone lived like that once upon a time. It is clearly different than my tiny two-room apartment in the town center.
And then topped with ice cream. Plenty! 🙂
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Yes, these is a huge contrast between these country estate houses and most people’s homes. Anyway, it was a pleasant garden and my daughter loved the ice cream!
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These photos are superb as always. I love the distant view of Cnicht and the way your eye always finds an interesting angle or a sideways look at something that most of us wouldn’t notice. As you probably know, recently someone had a set of gates made for their residence, a direct copy of the ones at Plas Brondanw. Interestingly, it brought on some minor local controversy and the gates have now been removed…Anyway, chapeau for these shots, really enjoyable. Thanks for the link, too!
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Thanks, Iain. Tara was really taken with the folly castle and wanted to buy it. I tried explaining that it wasn’t for sale, but she’d have none of it. Give them £1000 for it, she insisted! 😉
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Wow, beautiful…and I think #4 is my favorite. 🙂
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Thanks, CW. It is a lovely place for a wander.
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Ahh, topiary, garden arch, ominous clouds, stonework and tea time. Great set, Graham.
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Glad you like them, Lynn!
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so cool 🙂
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🙂
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Great set of photos with a lovely mood. I’d love to go to Wales one day. 🙂
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Thanks, Dina. Much appreciated.
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