History

Country house, late C17 to early C18, much extended in 1860.
There was a house on the site from the C15. A 20' (6.1 m) beam from this date, richly carved with vine and bead decoration now at St. Fagan's Museum, is thought to have come from a mediaeval great hall. It is possible that part of the old hall survives in the late C17 house, and there are said to have been some re-used timbers in this part, found during works in 1949.
Owned by the Pryse family from at least the C15: the family being descended from Gwaethfod, lord of Cardigan in the C11. Gogerddan was the principal estate of the county, wealthy from lead-mining from the C17.
John Pryse was MP and High Sheriff in 1580, his son Sir Richard (died 1622-3) was MP and High Sheriff 1586 and 1604, his son Sir John was succeeded by his son Sir Richard, MP, High Sheriff 1639 and 1655 and baronet from 1641. Sir Richard, the 2nd baronet, was a supporter of the Parliament in the Civil War, married the window of the painter Sir A. Van Dyke. The house was assessed at 16 hearths in 1670, the largest in the county. An inventory of 1675 naming various rooms: cockloft, green chamber, red chamber, painted chamber, John Lewis's chamber, my Lady's chamber, Crasse chamber, Mr Middleton's chamber, Smithfield, and over Smithfield, does not suggest a newly built house. Sir Thomas Pryse, 3rd baronet, brother of Sir Richard, died 1682 and was followed by his nephew Sir Carbery, 4th baronet, MP, died 1694, for whom the house may have been rebuilt. The estate passed to a relation Lewis Pryse, MP 1701-16, died 1720. His son Thomas Pryse, MP 1741-5 died 1745. John Pugh Pryse MP owner in 1765, died 1774. An inventory taken in 1768 mentions the main rooms as being the big parlour, the old parlour, the hall and the drawing-room. There was also a servants' hall, a garret, a cellar, a meal-room, a dairy kitchen, back kitchen, room over the dairy, malt-house, smithy-house and two stables.
Lewis Pryse died 1778 and was succeded by his grandson Pryse Loveden (1774-1849) MP 1818-49. His son Pryse Pryse Loveden MP 1849-55, died 1855. His son Col Sir Pryse Pryse (1838-1906) was made baronet in 1866. He remodelled and extended the house in 1860 probably to designs by George Jones of Aberystwyth. The estate was sold by Sir Pryse Loveden Saunders-Pryse, 5th baronet, in 1949 to the University College of Wales.
The W part of the mansion is a late C17 L-plan house of the type of Plas y Wern at Llanarth or Lodge Park, Llangynfelyn, but the staircase is mid-C18, similar to the one at Nanteos. Stuccoed and altered in 1860, when the long range running E was added. In an 1822 view the house had 3 dormers on the S and windows that look like broad paired casments. There were two massive paired chimneys on the back of the E wing which had a lower parallel range behind.

Exterior

Country house, now offices, late C17, altered and with added wing both of 1860. Painted stucco with slate roofs and C19 red and yellow brick chimneys with cornices. Main facade to N, C19 stucco window surrounds, quoins and plinth. Older eastern part of two storeys and attic, L-plan, hipped roof with two chimneys on E ridge and one on rear S roof slope of W wing. Added 1860 long W part with two parallel roofs, hipped at W end, two storeys with almost central gabled projection on N front. Three brick stacks on N ridge, one on S ridge and glazed C19 square lantern with oval glazed conical cap to right, and E end brick stack.
Original block has 3-window N front with broad short plate glass sashes with marginal panes in moulded surrounds with vermiculated keystones. Bracketed panelled sills to first floor windows. Large C20 dormer breaking eaves with flat top (replacing three C19 brick dormers). Two-window W return with plate glass narrower sashes in similar surrounds, ground floor left one blind. Gabled C19 brick dormer set to right. Short wing at right angles has N front C20 eaves-breaking large dormer (replacing a C19 brick dormer), and triplet of windows over similar windows flanking main door. Plate glass sashes in similar surrounds, narrow to each side, centre first floor one broader with cornice on consoles. Broad door in similar door case with similar cornice over. Quoins at NW corner.
E elevation has angle quoins, two broad canted full height bays with canted hipped roofs flanking broad centre bay. Centre has C20 broad 4-light attic window breaking eaves under flat head and C20 4-light each floor below (replacing two sashes each floor in old photograph). Canted bays have narrow plate glass sashes in similar surrounds to those on N. Sill band and plinth. S end has similar quoins and sill band, two broad plate glass sashes with marginal panes each floor and a narrow plate-glass sash on first floor centre. C19 brick gabled dormer. Rear of entrance wing, set back to left has 3 long first floor 15-pane stair lights, with similar surrounds and sill band. Brick gabled dormer.
1860 wing has long N facade broken by gabled projection, with sill band and 12-pane horned sash windows in similar moulded surrounds with keystones. To left, three widely spaced bays with sash windows each floor and three narrow arched niches, one to left of each ground floor window. Gabled projection has quoins and two sashes each floor, the upper ones with cornices on consoles. Range to right is less regular, long 18-pane stair-light breaking sill-band to left, then pair of sashes each floor, then blank window over arched niche and finally sash each floor. Quoins at NW angle. W end has similar 3-window range with centre door. Doorcase with cornice on consoles. Long S rear of some 11 bays, sashes with sill band.

Interior

Interior much modernised. The old block had drawing-room NE, dining-room SE and small room between. To W is entrance hall with door to rear stair hall. This has open-well stair in painted wood with ramped rail, scrolled at foot and three balusters per tread, the balusters turned in column-on-vase pattern. Scrolled tread ends.
The 1860 wing has spine corridor, kitchen on S, servants' hall on N in gabled projection. Servants' stair with stick balusters. On the first floor S side, the billiard room with panelled coved ceiling and big glazed lantern. Lantern has row of 4-pane fixed lights each side, boarded ceiling around oval conical light.

Reasons for Listing

Included as a country house of historic importance as the seat of one of the principal gentry families of the county from the middle ages to C20, of architectural interest as a late C17 to early C18 house remodelled in 1860, but retaining some detail of the earlier period, including a mid-C18 staircase.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Gogerddan Mansion at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q26212157

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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