Description:This view of the State Bed in the State Bedroom at Beaudesert Hall is from a glass negative believed to have been taken prior to the fire in 1909 which was in an adjacent part of the building. The State Bedroom was not directly affected by the fire, but it suffered damage from water used to extinguish the fire in a nearby part of the house.
It is thought that the State Bedroom’s decoration and bed were original to the room from around the early 1700s and not altered as much as so many of Beaudesert’s rooms were after the 1909 fire. In the background is hand painted Chinese wallpaper which was originally stretched on battens and this was easily removed so that the wallpaper could be dried out and returned to the room with little harm.
In a Country Life article published in 1919 it was mentioned that the State Bed was covered with Chinese silk and painted with flowers and the upholstery and hangings of the bed were badly damaged by water; fortunately, they were successfully repaired as may be seen in a Country Life photograph taken in 1919. The bed was later removed to the Paget's property of Plas Newydd, Anglesey.
Beaudesert Hall was the mansion of the Pagets, Marquesses of Anglesey. Its core was medieval, with later alterations. James Wyatt and Joseph Potter remodelled the interiors of the original Elizabethan House, built by Lord Paget, in a Regency Gothic style early in the 19th century. A century later, this was out of fashion and following a small fire, Beaudesert was completely remodelled by the 6th Marquess of Anglesey during 1909-1912. Lord Anglesey called in Captain Harry Lindsay to replace the Regency work with a series of rooms intended to represent different periods.
In 1920 two years after the First World War, Lord Anglesey decided that he could not afford to maintain both Beaudesert and Plas Newydd (on Anglesey). Plas Newydd became the family home and principal seat and many of the paintings and much of the furniture were moved to Plas Newydd, with surplus furniture and furnishings sold by auction around 1921. Beaudesert was put up for sale in 1924 and when no purchaser was found it was finally demolished around 1935. Many of the bricks with which Beaudesert was faced were used to replace the bricks polluted by coal smoke at St James’s Palace in London; they were of the similar date as those they replaced. The main staircase, known as the Waterloo staircase, doors, windows and much interior panelling were shipped to Australia and can be seen at a house called Carrick Hill, near Adelaide.
Beaudesert Park is an area of historic parkland, within which are the ruins of Beaudesert Hall, a walled kitchen garden, remains of a stable block, an ice house, ponds and cascades. The parkland is located on the eastern edge of Cannock Chase, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and comprises part of the country estate owned by generations of the Paget family between 1546 and 1935. The Beaudesert Trust own and manage Beaudesert Park and welcomes Youth organisations, such as Scouts and Guides, Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Youth Clubs and Schools, Colleges and University groups. Beaudesert Park is used for various outdoor activities and educational experiences.