Sir Forgannwg Y Ty Cymreig

-888

-Glamorganshire is Wales's

-most populated county...

-..and its second largest.

-With all those people

-and all that land...

-..this may be the Welsh county with

-the richest architectural heritage.

-Welcome to Y Ty Cymreig.

-888

-888

-888

-888

-In this programme, a manor house

-in the Vale of Glamorgan.

-A Walterston house whose name

-was changed from English to Welsh.

-In Penarth, we see The Red House,

-which is actually white.

-First,

-a farm which was once a castle.

-Welcome to the programme.

-We're in Glamorganshire, the most

-highly populated county in Wales.

-Yes, over 1.5 million people

-live in this large county.

-Half of the population of Wales

-lives in this old county.

-Everyone lives here!

-It's a county which has

-a vast mixture of terrain.

-Deep valleys in the south...

-..and flat agricultural land

-which flows down to the sea.

-It stretches to Swansea

-and the Gower.

-That gives us a huge scope to find

-houses in their original condition.

-You'd be forgiven for thinking that

-but it's been a real struggle.

-It amazes me, considering the size

-of Glamorganshire.

-The grants system in the valleys...

-..transformed almost all

-of the old Victorian terraces.

-The miners' houses, in other words.

-The miners' houses, in other words.

-

-Real Welsh houses!

-Hitler left his mark on Swansea...

-..and little remains untouched

-on the Gower Peninsular.

-The problem in the Vale of Glamorgan

-is the money from Cardiff.

-People moved here from Cardiff...

-..and used their money

-to renovate old farmhouses.

-Glamorganshire

-is full of gold-plated taps!

-That's not true of this place,

-thankfully.

-It's in good condition,

-considering its age.

-It dates back to the 15th century.

-Arguably, it dates back

-to the 11th century...

-..as it was originally a castle.

-It's called Castle Farm but

-there's no castle to be seen here.

-It isn't next to a castle,

-so this may be the old castle...

-..adapted in the 15th century,

-after the times of Owain Glyndwr.

-Which part is the castle?

-Which part is the castle?

-

-This wall.

-We're standing on the old wall.

-The gable end, too.

-After Owain Glyndwr's revolution...

-..people decided to use the walls

-as a foundation for this hall house.

-We're here to see the hall.

-This is a first for Y Ty Cymreig.

-We've never before

-seen a medieval hall house...

-..where the hall

-is on the first floor.

-Well!

-Isn't it fantastic?

-We've seen several hall houses

-on Y Ty Cymreig...

-..but you see the purpose

-of this room at a glance.

-You can sense how it felt

-to stand in an open hall like this.

-Standing outside, I didn't expect it

-to look like this on the inside.

-You certainly don't expect

-to find this on the first floor.

-There are a handful of these in

-Glamorganshire and in Pembrokeshire.

-The concept stems from castles...

-..where the living accommodation

-was upstairs for security reasons.

-Is this roof structure original?

-We're looking at a castle which

-was adapted in the 15th century.

-That wall and the gable

-date back to the 11th century...

-..but the room was built

-during the 15th century.

-Most of the roof structure

-is 15th century.

-However, it was renovated

-in Victorian times.

-The fancy pieces of woodwork are

-relatively new, Victorian additions.

-It's spectacular and amazing

-that it's still intact.

-Yes, and you see how it felt

-to be in a fancy room such as this.

-The details

-reveal the status of the family.

-There are two fireplaces here.

-A small one in the old castle wall

-and a more recent one over here.

-What can you tell me about them?

-The smaller one

-was part of the castle...

-..so the castle bedroom

-had a fireplace.

-That's what we see there.

-This huge chimney is connected to

-what you see downstairs...

-..in what was

-the castle's main kitchen.

-This one looks Tudor to me.

-The shape of the stonework

-suggests that.

-This dates back to the period

-during which the hall was created.

-There are few 15th century

-fireplaces of this size in Wales.

-That's why

-this is a Grade I listed building.

-Grade I is the highest grading.

-We've left one magnificent building

-and come to another.

-Yes,

-this is a fantastic Tudor manor.

-There are a lot of Tudor houses

-in the Vale of Glamorgan.

-We're talking about the 16th century

-during the reign of Elizabeth I.

-This gable end is striking...

-..but I'm aware there is

-a much larger structure behind it.

-Was there more than one house

-within this building?

-Yes, it's a massive property.

-The floor plan

-reveals a complicated design.

-There were two kitchens here, which

-suggests two families lived here.

-We know it was built

-between 1580 and 1600...

-..and it may have been the home

-of a large extended family.

-Where's the main house?

-Where's the main house?

-

-This isn't it!

-You have to go to the front

-to see the house in its full glory.

-The front is far more striking.

-You get no sense of this

-from the gable end.

-Tudor design

-packed in lots of small gables.

-It also incorporated

-several chimneys.

-The front of this property

-has changed very little.

-The windows are in such good

-condition, they can't be original.

-You're wrong - they are original.

-Only one of the windows

-in the whole house isn't original.

-The sash window

-with the yellow bricks around it.

-All the other windows are original.

-The chimneys seem stunted,

-considering the age of the house.

-Yes, they're not tall

-for a Tudor house.

-The family chose to demonstrate

-its wealth through the huge windows.

-It looks like a modern house

-for its period.

-The windows

-were the family's status symbols.

-It's unusual to enter a manor house

-through the front door...

-..and step straight into a kitchen.

-The fireplace suggests

-it was originally a kitchen.

-The huge room next to this

-was the hall, as it were.

-This is a cosy, comfortable room.

-Life here in 16th century was

-a world away from hall house life.

-Most members of the gentry

-lived in hall houses...

-..but here you have huge windows

-and big fireplaces.

-You could heat a room like this

-and this was the modern way of life.

-Which features firmly place this

-in the 16th century?

-Many things here

-date back to the late 16th century.

-The excellent windows...

-..and the stone arch

-leading to the staircase.

-The stairs curl above the fireplace.

-It's a feature of Glamorganshire.

-There's some plasterwork

-in the parlour...

-..bearing the Tudor rose and

-the letters ER - Elizabeth Regina.

-This family who lived here used

-Tudor symbols all over the house.

-Judging by the size of the house...

-..how important

-were its original owners?

-The Tubervilles were probably

-the most powerful family in the area.

-They owned a lot of land.

-This house

-demonstrated their status.

-The village is called Sutton,

-after Sutton Manor.

-This is a spectacular staircase.

-I assume it's the main staircase.

-Yes. The oak work

-was done by a talented carpenter.

-The second staircase

-curls above the fireplace...

-..and the third staircase

-is at the rear of the house.

-This house dates from a time...

-..when the owners welcomed

-the public into their bedchambers.

-Yes - that's why the staircase

-is so well made...

-..and why the first floor fireplaces

-are so fancy.

-One still has

-the original Tudor plaster.

-It's a simple design but the fact

-it's on the first floor...

-..suggests that

-people socialized up there.

-How difficult is it to find

-houses like this in Glamorganshire?

-It isn't difficult because

-the farmland has always been good.

-If the land is good,

-there is normally money.

-That's why there are

-old houses here.

-.

-888

-888

-

-888

-Welcome back to Glamorganshire.

-This house was called

-Walterston Fawr...

-..until Non Evans,

-its current owner...

-..changed it to Trewallter Fawr.

-A lot of people

-thought we were mad to move here.

-Everyone said

-it was in the middle of nowhere.

-They didn't know

-why I wanted to live here.

-It isn't far from anywhere,

-of course.

-There's a special feel

-to this house.

-The first time I set foot in it,

-I knew this is where I wanted to be.

-Trewallter Fawr shares its name

-with the village in which it stands.

-Yes. It was built

-in the late Tudor era.

-It was built around the time of

-the death of Elizabeth I in 1603.

-We've moved down the social ladder

-from the last house.

-This is a large farmhouse.

-It's a middle-class house.

-The windows are the same style

-as the ones in Sutton Manor.

-Yes, but the design is different.

-You enter the house

-and walk into a small lobby...

-..which faces the side of the chimney

-above the front door.

-That's unusual.

-You see houses like this in

-Montgomeryshire, around Welshpool.

-These houses are rare in this area.

-The floor plan is simple.

-There are two units to it -

-a large room here and another there.

-Both rooms have huge fireplaces.

-Considering the age of the house,

-this room is very big.

-Yes, it's a lovely room but

-I think it was originally two rooms.

-This beam suggests there was

-a wooden partition here.

-It's only chamfered on one side,

-so there may have been a wall here.

-Alterations were made

-to this house in 1725.

-We know the date because

-it's carved into a windowsill.

-Thomas Richard

-lived here at the time.

-The iron spit above the fireplace

-is probably an example of his work.

-The front oven

-was also his handiwork.

-It's a stylish house...

-..and the materials which create

-that style came from local quarries.

-Yes, especially the windowsills

-at the front of the house.

-Here we see black limestone,

-which is very unusual.

-Iolo Morganwg, who lived locally...

-..said when this was polished,

-it looked like Kilkenny marble.

-That's probably why Thomas Richard

-carved his name in the limestone.

-Did you feel someone had already

-done a lot of work to the house?

-Yes, but there was also

-a lot of work still to be done.

-The windows leaked and there was

-no central heating system here.

-A lot of work needed to be done

-to the property.

-You must make it practical

-to live in a house such as this.

-For example, I should have

-a massive front door key.

-It was impractical

-to carry a huge key around with me.

-We thought long and hard about

-fitting a Yale lock in the door.

-It's important to be sensitive..

-..and strike the right balance.

-This is the lobby you mentioned,

-past the front door on the left.

-Just before we go in...

-..if you look here, you can see

-how big the fireplace was originally.

-This was the side of the mantel but

-the fireplace has been made smaller.

-There was a mantel beam here

-and there was more depth to it.

-This must have been a kitchen.

-This lovely settle probably

-dates back to Thomas Richard's time.

-It's hard to date this house because

-many of the details come from 1725.

-Things such as these beams

-are typical of 17th century design.

-The stopped chamfers, the patterns

-on the sides of the beams...

-..are typical of the 17th century.

-There are primitive finger marks

-in the plasterwork over here.

-Again,

-this is typical 17th century work.

-The settle was cut into the ceiling,

-which means it's not original.

-Settles were fashionable in 1725...

-..so this part of the house was here

-before the days of Thomas Richard.

-This shape of staircase

-is typical of Glamorganshire.

-These are unusual

-in that the treads are wood.

-Thomas Richard added the wood to

-make the stone steps less primitive.

-Can you foresee a time when

-you'd want to move away from here?

-In a box, hopefully.

-There's plenty of wood here

-to make that box!

-That was another lovely house, Greg.

-Yes, it's great to see

-the original features.

-It suits modern living,

-400 years after it was built!

-The next house

-was designed for modern life.

-The Red House, in Penarth,

-was built in around 1900.

-This is called The Red House

-but it doesn't look very red to me.

-No and it never has been red.

-There's a good reason

-for this being called The Red House.

-It was named after the home of

-William Morris, the famous designer.

-Architects did it to link themselves

-to Morris's work...

-..and to the Arts & Crafts movement.

-This design includes

-several Arts & Crafts ideas.

-Who designed it

-and why build it in Penarth?

-This was the home of the important

-Welsh architect, John Coates Carter.

-He built is for himself

-and his wife, who was Swiss.

-There are clear Alpine touches here.

-These pillars play a prominent part

-in the design.

-Yes,

-there's a mixture of styles here.

-The combination of white work and

-the red bricks is Queen Anne style.

-Queen Anne style houses

-were popular in 1900.

-The leadwork on the roof

-is striking.

-John Coates Carter used similar

-ideas at Caldey Island Abbey.

-Here too we see pillars,

-leadwork on the roof and a balcony.

-This is a Spanish-looking balcony.

-The Arts & Crafts priorities

-were to respect craftsmanship...

-..and to use the best materials.

-We've been in the garden

-and seen the house's best side.

-This is the front door,

-at the rear of the house.

-This porch is structured in such

-a way that it meets the front door.

-You weave your way

-from the door to the main house!

-Yes, it's a familiar

-Arts & Crafts idea.

-They created houses which looked

-like they evolved over centuries.

-That's why nothing was simple.

-They wanted to see several gables,

-turrets and a variety of windows.

-They wanted people to think

-the house had always stood there.

-It's nice to see the plans for

-the house as you enter the property.

-Many John Coates Carter

-original plans have survived.

-Several are kept

-at the Victoria & Albert in London.

-These plans

-explain the layout of the house.

-The front of the house

-was the service area.

-It included the kitchen,

-the bathroom and one study.

-Everything happened on the other

-side, at the front... or the rear!

-The hallway

-underlines what you've just said.

-All the braces

-are on the backs of the doors.

-Yes. When you walk in,

-you can't see the stairs.

-You can see them from the garden

-but not from what was the front door.

-The heart shape is an icon

-of the Arts & Crafts movement.

-It's significant that the doors

-leading into this huge room...

-..face the glass doors

-which lead to the garden.

-Yes, the garden

-was an important part of the design.

-People thought fresh air

-was important to their health.

-That's why there are windows

-all along this room.

-The doors to the garden

-would have been open all summer.

-The shape of the room is unusual.

-It's the width of the house.

-We're looking at a house

-built in around 1900...

-..and this is an unusual room

-for that period.

-It's an example of open plan living.

-It's completely different from

-terraced houses built in 1900.

-The panels, woodwork and fireplaces

-remind us of the Gothic period...

-..but it is, in fact,

-a very modern design.

-It represented a new lifestyle

-but some of the details are antiques.

-The owner collected German medieval

-locks from the 17th century...

-..and he also collected Swiss locks

-and fitted them on the doors here.

-Maybe he thought

-he lived in medieval times...

-..but he designed

-a very modern house.

-S4C subtitles by Eirlys A Jones

-.