Banwell Castle

History of Weston-super-Mare Castle: Before 1753 the property and land was owned by the Bishop of Bath and Wells. In that year, it was sold to John and Joan Landown. Symon Sympson was owner in 1837, his son Joseph Dyer Sympson, a solicitor of 7 Golden Square, London, together with his wife Amelia Louisa, had the mansion house built. It was completed by June 1847. They later had Banwell Abbey rebuilt to Han's Price design. The castle was built in Gothic revival style, common to the eccentricity of the wealthy landowners at the time. It is set in 25 acres of gardens and grounds together with Banwell Garden Centre. It has outstanding views south across the Loxton Valley to the Mendip Hills and north across the moors to the Bristol Channel and Welsh hills.From 1854 until 1874 the Castle was let to Henry and Elizabeth Pigou.It was then let to Sir William and Lady Frances Baker. In 1883 the estate was sold to Wolseley Partridge and Elizabeth Ellen Emerson. Wolseley being a retired barrister, and Elizabeth's second husband. Elizabeth was daughter of James Yates (Ironfounder) of Oakwood Hall, Rotherham. When her father died, as the only surviving child, she was left very rich. She had 5 children. After she died, in 1897, the family moved to the Isle of Wight and the castle was left empty. The Brown family being the caretakers. In 1905 Kate Behrens of Ballisfield Park, Whitchurch, Shropshire purchased the freehold from Elizabeth's son Ernest Bentley Shaw-Yates. She married Henry Oliver Hope in 1907. In 1911 she gave the estate to her husband. In 1917 Richard and Constance Calvert from Churchill Court were the next owners. He was a solicitor whose family had been in the cotton trade in Bolton. They had one adoptive daughter Bunty. Apart from the war years it remained Mr Calvert's home until he died in 1962 (the estate was taken over by the RAF as Area Head Quarters for the Barriage Balloon Section. The Gatehouse being used by the local ARP).Mr and Mrs Calvert had the Bristol architect, Sir John Oatley do work on the Castle in 1919. Mrs Calvert died in 1956 after which the Eccles family moved in to look after their uncle, Richard. When he died, they had Rhodyate Lodge built in the grounds. The estate was then sold to Simon and Phillipa Wills (of WD and HO Wills, Bristol), who with their 2 children lived here until 1976 when they moved to Walton Manor in Gordano. The next owners being Charles Skilton, a book and Postcard publisher, together with Jean Desebrock from South Africa. Jean still owns the East Wing. When Charles Skilton moved to Whittingehame House, near Edinburgh in 1988, William and Hugh Parsons purchased the main house having been on the estate since 1969 from a farming family in Cheddar. The castle remains a family home. It is a listed grade 2 star. It is peaceful and romantic, and chicken, peacock and turkey run free with rare sheep and pot bellied pigs in the grounds; also wild deer, badgers, pheasants and bats.

Copyright © 2005, Weston-super-Mare Castle