Visiting the house at Erddig

A large kitchen with blue painted walls. A long wooden table is in the middle of the room, with cooking range on the left, herbs hanging from the ceilings and copper pots on the shelves. — The New Kitchen at Erddig | © National Trust Images/Arnhel de Serra

Erddig was on the brink of ruin during the early seventies. A crumbling Welsh stately home, the house was sinking, the roof was leaking and the destructive forces of nature were setting in. Today, thanks to a four-year restoration project, you can see a family home filled with a collection of servants’ portraits and poems, fine interiors and furniture.

Visiting the house

The house route includes the Servants’ Hall downstairs and some upstairs rooms. Due to important conservation and maintenance work, the route and rooms open will vary throughout the year.

A house fit for a High Sheriff at Erddig

The house was built in 1683 to 1687 by the Cheshire mason Thomas Webb for Joshua Edisbury, High Sheriff of Denbighshire, whose building ambitions bankrupted him when Elihu Yale called in his loans.

In 1721 to 1724 two-storey wings were added to the north and the south, creating ‘rooms of parade’ for John Meller, Master in Chancery.

A mother is holding her child and pointing at a display of pictures on the walls of a hallway in the house at Erddig, Clwyd. — Visitors looking at a display in the house at Erddig | © National Trust Images/Arnhel de Serra

Things to see in the house at Erddig

Downstairs, a large collection of servants’ portraits and carefully preserved rooms capture life below stairs in the early 20th century, while upstairs is a treasure trove of fine furniture, textiles and wallpapers.

Life below stairs

Take a closer look at the servants’ portraits, both oil paintings and photographs, and you’ll see a unique collection of poems dedicated to each servant.

A double bed with an opulent fabric-covered canopy is surrounded by decorative furniture inside the State Bedroom at Erddig, Clwyd, which has green wallpaper with a floral pattern. — The State Bedroom at Erddig | © National Trust Images/Andreas von Einsiedel

Neo-classical interiors

The Neo-classical interiors include fine examples of 18th-century Chinese wallpaper and a chapel with late 18th-century fittings. Don’t miss Erddig's magnificent State Bedroom featuring a fragile bed embroidered in Chinese silk, bought by John Meller in 1720 with carved and gilded gesso work by John Belchier.