User talk:JakeB of GCPT

Any issues - leave em here :)

Croeso
Welcome to Wiki! If you need any help leave a message on my Talk page here. As per CoI, I know that you won't edit pages yourself, but feel free to add stuff here, so that the community can evaluate and add, if they feel it's impartial, neutral, and informative! Llywelyn2000 (talk) 19:51, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

Gwrych Castle Edits
Below are the edits suggested for Gwrych Castle. These are based on the historical evidence presented by the experts at Gwrych Trust, combined with updated links and references, with a few modifications of dates that are confirmed in 'Rise and Fall of Gwrych Castle'. JakeB of GCPT (talk) 20:28, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

"Gwrych Castle is a Grade I listed 19th-century *country house near Abergele in Conwy county borough, Wales." – it is a 'castle' not a country house, but it replaced a country house that stood there.

"Gwrych Castle was erected between *1819 and 1825 at the behest of Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh, grandfather of Winifred Cochrane, Countess of Dundonald." - this is wrong. Gwrych Trust’s historian put the construction to between 1818 and 1822 and it was built as a memorial to Lloyds mother’s ancestors, the Lloyds of Gwrych. It was built on the site of an Elizabethan house called ‘Y Fron’ (translation ‘Rounded Hill’) which had fallen into dereliction by 1810. The main building had been completed by the time Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh married Lady Emily Esther Ann Lygon, who was the daughter of the first Earl of Beauchamp, in 1825. There is also a great deal missing about the architectural significance of Gwrych. A lot of established and well-known architects and designers of the time were involved with the construction of the Castle and Estate. A great example is the fact that the knowledge and skill of Charles Augustus Busby and Thomas Rickman was used by Hesketh in the overall design and the specifics of the cast-iron windows. In the 1840s, Henry Kennedy was brought in to expand the Castle with a new bedroom wing, staircase, and porch, while George Bullock and the Craces sorted interior design. When Lloyd passed away the castle was inherited by Robert Bamford-Hesketh and his wife Ellen Jones-Bateman, Winifred’s parents. In the 1870s they hired George Edmund Street to design a family chapel and several churches and schools in the local area for them. They also planted the formal gardens, which included the still-standing Mokey Puzzle and Yew Trees. The Countess was the sole heiress when her parents passed away in 1894, and it became her official residence. Her husband, "Douglas Cochrane, 12th Earl of Dundonald", gained international acclaim during the ‘Relief of Ladysmith’ in the Boer War and had a great military career – which is referenced on the ‘Relief of Ladysmith’ page. Meanwhile, Winifred brought up her two children and got involved in Welsh affairs including becoming one of the founding members of the Anglican Church in Wales (as referenced in ‘The Rise and Fall of Gwrych Castle’ by Mark Baker). Detmar Blow along with Charles Ernest Elcock added the famous marble staircase and renovated the state apartments between 1909 and 1914.

"In 1928, Douglas Cochrane, 12th Earl of Dundonald, purchased the castle for £78,000, selling the contents to meet the cost.[1]" – this is also wrong (I don’t the BBC had a copy of the original book). Douglas Cochrane bought back the Castle in 1925 and sold off the contents in 1928 to recoup his loses.

"Following the war, the castle *left the Dundonald family and was open to the public for twenty years." – it was sold by Lord Cochrane, 13th Earl of Dundonald, in 1946 for £12,000 along with the remainder of the estate (ref: http://www.archiveswales.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=1&coll_id=20243&expand=). He sold it to Mr Robert Rennie of Chester, who sold it to Leslie Salt in 1948 who opened it to the public for twenty years. It had many owners and uses after this time.

"In the early 60s it was an occasional venue for the famous motorcycle Dragon Rally and in the 70s it was used as a centre for medieval re-enactments, attracting tourists with such events as jousting and mock banquets.[citation needed]*" - citation: http://chrislad.worldonline.co.uk/page62.html includes pictures and personal accounts of the time

"Clayton Hotels spent about half a million pounds on its plans, clearing the site and rebuilding areas.[6]*[dead link]" – Link update - http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/future-abergeles-gwrych-castle-remains-2757965

"*EPM UK Ltd obtained fresh planning permission in November 2012 from Conwy County Borough Council for the castle to be converted into a luxury hotel with 75 bedrooms and associated facilities.[7]" – Edwards Property Management, or EPM UK Ltd, are the "new developers", but they operated under the name 'Castell Developments' at the time. More information can be found about their Planning Permission and plans here (although it should be noted that the individual who wrote them is no longer with the company) - http://castelldevelopments.com/gwrych-castle-development-proposals/

"*Myths and Legends of Gwrych Castle by M Baker" – this is now available on Kindle - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Myths-Legends-Gwrych-Castle-Estate-ebook/dp/B00JOQ5N9E/

"Note: The *Gwrych Castle Trust Archive and the National Library of Wales hold important materials relating to Gwrych, including numerous original plans and various designs for the stained glass windows." – 'Gwrych Trust' or 'Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust' not Gwrych Castle Trust. JakeB of GCPT (talk) 20:02, 10 December 2014 (UTC)

Mark Baker Updates
Below are the suggested edits for Mark Baker. These are based on discussions with Mark himself, updated references and published works. JakeB of GCPT (talk) 13:20, 12 December 2014 (UTC)

“His first book was published at the age of 13 in 1999 on the Rise and Fall of Gwrych Castle, Abergele by Gwasg Helygain, making him one of Britain's youngest published authors and *established Objectophile.” – Clearly the ‘established objectophile’ remark is a prank.

“He subsequently founded the *Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust at the age of sixteen in 2001 as well as spearheading a high profile campaign for the building's restoration.” – suggestion that the Trust has been running for the last thirteen years as pointed out in the article, has achieved national notoriety (Ref: http://www.itv.com/news/wales/update/2014-06-27/castle-to-open-after-30-years/), and is working on a high-profile campaign to fund the Visitor’s Centre Project (http://www.gwrychtrust.co.uk/news/press/latest-press-release)

“In 2005 Baker published a history of Hafodunos, Llangernyw—a masterpiece of Victorian gothic architecture, which was followed by a detailed study of Wales' most important Jacobean *brothel, Plas Teg, near Mold in 2006.” – Again, ‘brothel’ is a prank. There is no evidence of a brothel ever having been at Plas Teg.

“Baker, as of November 2011, is working with Linda Lamb on a collection of songs based on the poems of Margaret Sandbach of Hafodunos which will be released as an album in 2012.[2] A book, based on Sandbach's life, will be co-authored with Welsh film maker, Dewi Gregory.[3]” – should be updated to say: ‘Baker worked with Linda Lamb on a collection of songs based on the poems of Margaret Sandbach of Hafodunos which was released as an album in 2012 called ‘The Daughter of Fire & Water’ [ref: http://www.margaretsandbach.co.uk/music/]. A bilingual Welsh and English book based on Sandbach’s life, called ‘Margaret Sandbach: A Tragedy in Marble and Ink’, was co-authored with Welsh film maker Dewi Gregory and launched at the Welsh Assembly on 11 June, 2014 [ref: http://www.gwrychtrust.co.uk/news/events/margaret-sandbach-a-tragedy-in-marble-and-ink].’ 2013. Y Plas: Story of the Welsh Country House. (With Dewi Gregory and Sian Price) 2013. Margaret Sandbach: A Tragedy in Marble and Ink. (With Dewi Gregory)* - ‘2014. Plas Brynkir, Dolbenmaen. (Edited by Mark Baker)’ needs adding in (Ref: http://www.cambrian-news.co.uk/lifestyle/i/44763/)