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Ystumllyn

Coordinates: 52°55′33.53″N 4°12′18.53″W / 52.9259806°N 4.2051472°W / 52.9259806; -4.2051472
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ystumllyn
Ystumllyn in 1794 by John Ingleby
LocationCriccieth, Gwynedd, Wales
Coordinates52°55′33.53″N 4°12′18.53″W / 52.9259806°N 4.2051472°W / 52.9259806; -4.2051472
Builtlate-16th-century
Architectural style(s)Vernacular
Listed Building – Grade II*
Designated12 December 1994
Reference no.4291
Ystumllyn is located in Gwynedd
Ystumllyn
Location of Ystumllyn in Gwynedd
Ystumllyn is located in the United Kingdom
Ystumllyn
Ystumllyn (the United Kingdom)

Ystumllyn is a Grade II* listed house in Criccieth, Wales. Founded in the late-16th-century, and significantly expanded in the early-18th-century, it is remarkable as an "important example" of the vernacular architecture of both periods.

History

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The house was apparently built at the end of the 16th century by Ellis ap Cadwaladr (d. 1597),[1] a member of the Welsh Ellis family, which claimed to trace its lineage back to Gollwyn ap Tangno, founder of one of the Fifteen Tribes of Wales.[2] Ellis obtained the property from the Crown,[1] and is the first member of the family to be described as "of Ystumllyn".[3] When it was first built, the house was likely one of the earliest storied buildings in the region.[1] Before 20th-century renovations, the house bore two dated inscriptions of 1720 and 1729 giving a likely date for the extensive 18th-century remodeling and extensions.[1] The owner in this period was Rev. Humphrey Wynn (d. 1724),[2] whose initials are featured on the earlier of these inscriptions.[4] By 1725, it was in possession of Ellis Wynn (d. 1759) who held in until his death.[5] In 1824, the estate passed to philologist Rowland Jones.[2] The roof was raised and the fenestration was remodeled in the 19th century.[4] In c. 1946, J. Egbert Griffiths of Porthmadog carried out several minor alterations, adding some extra windows and rearranging the internal room structure.[1] On 12 December 1994, the building was designated a Grade II* listed building,[1] a listing reserved for "particularly important buildings of more surthan special interest".[6]

The house was home to several local notables throughout its history. The Welsh poet Gruffydd Phylip (d. 1666) composed several poems addressed to the Ellis family, including a poem directly referencing the house, "Hiraeth y bardd am Ystumllyn" ("The Bard's Longing for Ystumllyn").[2] John Ystumllyn (d. 1786), who took his name from the household, was employed by the Wynn family at this estate as a gardener and survived as the first well-recorded black person of North Wales. He was of uncertain origins, and was possibly kidnapped from Africa by the Wynn family, but lived out a happy life in Ystumllyn, eventually running away with and marrying a local woman.[5]

Architecture

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Chronological plan of Ystumllyn.

Ystumllyn is a rubble-built house of two stories, composed of two blocks arranged into a T-shaped plan. The east-facing block is the earliest part of the building, dating to the late 16th century, while the north-facing block (which bisects the east block) was constructed in the early 18th century.[4] The building has been described as historically remarkable in the British Listed Buildings' rationale for registering it as a Grade II* listed building; its original component "incorporates an important example" of 16th-century architecture, while its 18th-century additions "represent high quality vernacular work of the period".[1]

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g British Listed Buildings.
  2. ^ a b c d Davies 1959.
  3. ^ a b c d RCAHMW 1964a, p. 240.
  4. ^ a b c d e f RCAHMW 1964a, p. 239.
  5. ^ a b Green 2019.
  6. ^ "Listed Buildings". Historic England. Retrieved 28 October 2019.

Sources

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