Pre-history, Roman and Early Medieval The archaeology of Attingham Park is diverse covering many different periods of history and human habitation. People have lived around the area of the estate for around 4,000 years since the
Bronze Age, utilising the rich
alluvial soils for agriculture. There are seven scheduled ancient monuments across the wider estate including an
Iron Age settlement, Roman forts and a significant portion of the fourth largest
civitas in
Roman Britain,
Viroconium, on the site of the nearby village of
Wroxeter. A recent large scale magnetometer survey has revealed the existence of two Roman villas and a cemetery along with evidence of some Iron Age or
Romano-British farms. There are also traces of several
Roman roads to the west of Wroxeter. There are also the archeological remains of Anglo-Saxon palaces in form of two rare 25m-long timber halls dating to around 650 AD, highlighting a significant and well-resourced Anglo-Saxon community in the region. By the mediaeval period, a village, Berwick Maviston, is recorded. This has not survived, but today the remains of a
moat and fish ponds from the old manor can still be seen. The manor and the village dated back to the
Norman Conquest, being mentioned in the 1086
Domesday Book. This original manor fell into disrepair in mediaeval times. It was replaced with another house known as 'Grant's Mansion' was recorded on the site in 1790. The village was occupied until the 1780s when the newly created
Baron Berwick built Attingham and removed the village from his land. The title of Baron Berwick comes from the name of this village.
The arrival of the Hill family The associations of the Hill family with the area of the Park can be traced to a civic benefaction of the Tudor statesman Sir
Rowland Hill of
Soulton, convenor of the
Geneva Bible translation, who built the first stone bridge over the river here: this was part of his wider civic projects across London and Shropshire and a portrait of him is still displayed in the mansion. family owned Tern Hall that predated the current mansion and was encased within it .|189x189px Prior to the construction of the current mansion, a building called Tern Hall existed on the site which had been built to his own designs by a relative of
Richard Hill of Hawkstone, a relative of 'Old Sir Rowland'.
The Hills, Barons of Berwick Attingham, including
Cronkhill, was the seat of the
Barons Berwick from the 1780s until that title became extinct in 1953. On the death of Thomas Henry Noel-Hill, 8th Baron Berwick (1877–1947), who died childless, the Attingham Estate, comprising the mansion and some , was gifted to the National Trust. Attingham Park was designed by
George Steuart, a follower of
James Wyatt and encapsulated Tern Hall. It is the only remaining example of a country house by Steuart; he later designed
St Chad's Church, Shrewsbury. The proportions have been criticised: for
Simon Jenkins "The façade is uncomfortably tall, almost barracks-like, the portico columns painfully thin". There is a large entrance court, with an imposing gatehouse, and two single storey wings stretch out to either side of the main block. The main reception rooms were divided into a male and female set on either side of the house. In 1789, the 1st Lord Berwick died, and his son,
Thomas Noel Hill, 2nd Baron Berwick, succeeded him. Thomas was a collector and patron of the arts, who commissioned improvements to the house and extensions of the estate. This included commissioning
John Nash in 1805 to add the picture gallery, a project that was flawed from the beginning as it suffered from leaks. Constructed using cast iron and curved glass to give the effect of
coving, it throws light into the gallery below. In 2013 work began on building a new protective roof above the delicate Nash roof, replacing one installed in the 1970s with a new one which will stop leakage and reduce natural weather wear. The new roof has temperature control, blinds, and UV resistant glass. The 2nd Lord Berwick reached financial ruin, and all the contents of the house were auctioned in 1827 and in 1829; some were purchased by his two brothers. William died in 1842, and his younger brother,
Richard Noel-Hill, 4th Baron Berwick inherited; as the youngest son and a clergyman, he had not expected to inherit. His son,
Richard Noel Noel-Hill, 5th Baron Berwick, inherited in 1848, and was a careful steward, introducing agricultural modernisations and clearing many of the estate's debts that had been accrued by his father and uncles. He lived at
Cronkhill on the estate and whilst there invented to eponymous
Cronkhill rifle. Richard was succeeded by his brother,
William Noel-Hill, 6th Baron Berwick, in 1861, who was a colonel in the army, and chose to not live at Attingham. William died in 1882 and his nephew
Richard Henry Noel-Hill, 7th Baron Berwick, inherited the estate. The 7th Baron had financial problems and sold family heirlooms to pay off debts. During the
First World War, Attingham was owned by the 8th Lord Berwick who let the property to the Dutch-American
Van Bergen family who encouraged the establishment of a hospital for wounded soldiers at Attingham. The hospital opened in October 1914 and by 1918 had 60 beds and an operating theatre. During the War, the 8th Lord Berwick served with the
Shropshire Yeomanry and as a diplomat in Paris. Throughout the war years he corresponded with Teresa Hulton, daughter of the artist
William Stokes Hulton, whom he married in June 1919. During the war, Teresa Hulton had worked with Belgian refugees in London and as a Red Cross nurse in Italy. The couple dedicated themselves to the renovation of the house, with Hulton taking on responsibility for the conservation of historic textiles. During the
Second World War, Edgbaston Church of England Girls' School was evacuated and lived in part of the house; it later hosted the
Women's Auxiliary Air Force.
Transfer to the National Trust In 1937, negotiations started with the National Trust, and it was donated to them in 1947 as a bequest in the will of the 8th Lord Berwick. His wishes stated that the house and estate should be curated as "a good example of Eighteenth Century Architecture with such contents in the principal rooms as a nobleman of that period would have had". ==Management under the National Trust==