Alton Towers,
being the house itself, has had a relatively short life, although
the surrounding landscape would be totally unrecognisable
if someone from the early 1800's arrived in our time.
It is unclear
when the house was originally built, although it is accepted
that it certainly existed in 1731, as an engraving of Alton
Castle at this time, clearly shows what was then known as
Alveton Lodge in the background. Another picture from 1800,
again shows Alveton Lodge, some of which is still standing
today.
The house was
part of the estate of the Earls of Shrewsbury, and Alveton
Lodge was regarded as an occasional residence for the family,
until the late 18th century, when Charles, the 15th Earl,
who decided to turn Alveton Lodge into what we see there today.
In the following years, thousands of trees, shrubs and flowers
were planted in the dry valley to the east of the house, and
water diverted from a spring to create the lakes and ponds
in the gardens. Today, we see the result of all the work that
went into the park in it's infancy. The Earl, obviously had
a long term vision for the estate.
Over the years,
the house passed down the family, with John Talbot continuing
with his Uncles plans. A.W. Pugin was hired, along with other
architects and craftsmen to create what would become the most
outstanding example of gothic architecture in the United Kingdom.
In the early
1900's however, the house began it's demise, when a lack of
funds prevented the family from taking care of all the maintenance
on the house, until it was sold to a group of business men
in 1924. The house then fell into disrepair. The rooms that
were kept well maintained were now used as cafe areas for
the people who flocked to the park to enjoy the gardens and
other entertainments.
This continued
until the outbreak of World War 2, when the house was requisitioned
by the army, and used as a cadet training facility. Again,
the house received little or no work, and continued to decay
until 1951 when it was handed back to the Alton Towers Company.
At this time of the century, following a war, metals and building
materials were scarce, and so the house finally met its doom.
Everything
that could be stripped and sold, was. All the ornate woodwork
was removed from the walls and sold, along with anything else
of value. It is said that people still living in the village
remember lorries passing by every day loaded with timber.
It wasn't until
the early 1970's that the house received an owner a little
more sympathetic. The house was granted Grade II Listed Building
status, and work began on restoring parts of the house, that
could be restored. This included creating reinforced concrete
floors, roofing, and the great wooden roof of the dining hall
was restored to it's former glory.
Currently owned
by the Tussauds group, the house is still undergoing restoration
work, although it will be several years yet before visitors
can wander even further into the depths of history at Alton
Towers.
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