- Hewell Grange
Hewell Grange is a
country house inTardebigge ,Worcestershire ,England .It is a Grade II
listed building ; the listing includes some of thegarden s.Origins
The land was originally part of the estates of
Bordesley Abbey . At theDissolution of the Monasteries the property passed to Thomas Windsor Hickman.Thomas had drawn attention to himself by showing uncommon valour fighting the French. At the age of 15 he commanded a troop of horsemen, impressing Henry. Hewell Grange was no gift however: Henry had visited Thomas' own manor at
Stanwell , Windsor and took a liking to the manor. He proposed to swap Stanwell for Hewell Grange and the surrounding lands. Thomas was reported to be unhappy with the deal, but had to accept.Development
The estate remained a seat of the Windsor-Clive family (who were made Earls of Plymouth) until it was sold to the state in the 20th century. There are several
ruin s dotted about the estate, which suggest the Windsors have built a succession of grand houses over the past 400 years.Lord Windsor, later the first Earl of Plymouth (1857–1923) commssioned Bodley and Garner to build the current country house in a lavish Jacobean style (1884–91).
Prison
The house was used as
Borstal from 1946 to 1991, when it became HM Prison Hewell Grange, a Category D ('open' style)prison catering for around 200 non-violent adult male prisoners. It accepts inmates of any term, including life, but not those physically disabled, or withpsychiatric issues.The estate also contains Brockhill Young Offenders and Remand Institution with about 150 places, and Blakenhurst Prison with about 1000 places for Category B inmates (e.g. violent crimes, sexual offences).
Hewell Grange, Brockhill and Blakenhurst prisons are to be merged to form HMP Redditch [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7202332.stm Prisons merge to create new jail] , BBC News 22 Jan 2008] , although the existing buildings are to remain. The merger is part of an efficiency drive involving the creation of new
Titan Prison s.References
External links
* [http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/prisoninformation/locateaprison/prison.asp?id=422,15,2,15,422,0 HM Prison Hewell Grange]
*mmuk phoetc|400735|269400|10
* [http://www.owlpen.com/paintedclothsessay.shtml Painted Cloths by Garner and Bodley at Hewell Grange]See also
*6839 Hewell Grange, a Grange Class locomotive named after the building.
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