Most of the time when one sees a slate and stone country house with the air of a royal dignitary’s rural retreat, it’s safe to assume that a person would have to pay upwards of a few million for the privilege of calling it home.
Not so with Maes Y Neuadd, a stunning twelve bedroom family-home-turned-country-hotel on the market with Strutt & Parker at a guide price of £750,000, a relatively small price to pay for twelve bedrooms, twelve bathrooms, six reception rooms, over five acres and a small lake.
Maes Y Neuadd was (perhaps ironically) listed as Tyddyn y Doctor, 'the Doctor’s Small Holding' in the earliest deeds to the property, dating from the mid-14th century. Its name was later changed to the current one, translating into English as ‘Field of the Hall'.
The estate expanded greatly in the following years to cover a large area of southern Gwynedd. The house itself was built upon, with a new wing and stable blocks added in the 18th century.
The Wynn family owned Maes Y Neuadd without issue for a large portion of its life, before 1782 when heir Robert Wynn was disinherited. When he became a captain in India with the East India Company, Maes Y Neuadd’s future was uncertain.
Legal action was taken from 1838 to 1859 for the title of the estate, with plaintiffs arguing that a birth registry in India (no doubt tracing back to Captain Wynn) had been changed from ‘legitimate’ to ‘illegitimate’. Over the following years the house was rented out to painter Sir William Nicholson, whose daughter Nancy Nicholson (a painter herself) married the poet Robert Graves. Graves, who visited the property many times over his life, declared the house to be “much haunted”.
A new chapter for Maes Y Neuadd began in the 1950s when it left the Wynn family and was converted into a country hotel. Notable guests included Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Edward Kennedy, Kylie Minogue, Nigel Mansell and the Attenborough brothers.
Renovation is currently underway to restore Maes Y Neuadd to its former glory and retain its many period features. New owners have two options available to them at the purchase of the stunning building: continue the renovations and reopen a beautiful manor hotel (the attached coach house is currently a lovely four bedroom family home) or transform the entire estate back into a residence fit for royalty.
The grounds of the property lend themselves easily to either: the formal gardens provide a beautiful draw for hotel guests, as well as a lovely setting for family fun. The Victorian pool, walled kitchen garden and small lake all have the same advantages.
Credit: Strutt & Parker
A seven-bedroom townhouse that has everything – including the biggest price tag in Kensington
47 Phillimore Gardens has everything – one of the most incredible postcodes in England, 6,520 square feet of space and
-
Country Life 26 March 2025Country Life 26 March 2025 issues an SOS plea to save Britain's rarest dog breeds, looks at the best bathtubs and celebrates the groundbreaking work of Edwin Lutyens.
-
The prestigious Saut Hermès was a tantalising taste of what to expect when Paris's Grand Palais reopens to the public in JuneThe Grand Palais in Paris, France, has been closed to the public for extensive renovation works since 2021.
-
This elegant Greek villa offers would-be buyers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live in the shadow of the AcropolisAthenian Legacy consists of two houses in walking —and almost touching — distance of one of the world’s most famous and precious landmarks.
-
Six charming homes up for sale, including one dubbed 'one of the most picturesque in Dorset', as seen in Country LifeOur look at the finest houses to come up for sale through Country Life in the past week is full of delights, from a new-Georgian mansion to a perfectly-sized Hertfordshire estate.
-
A Buckinghamshire mansion built for the speech therapist who set Churchill on his path to greatnessPenny Churchill takes a look at Rignalls, a classic Arts-and-Crafts home that looks like it's stepped out of the pages of an EM Forster novel.
-
An idyllic Hampstead mansion whose price has risen nine times faster than inflation — and it's not hard to see whyCloth Hill is even more beautiful on the inside than it is on the outside.
-
Some of Scotland's most beautiful churches are being sold off for as little as £40,000 — but a word of warning before you take the plungeLucy Denton examines how best to help former church buildings thrive as times move on and property changes hands.
-
Inside the £28 million mansion designed to 'shake things up' and 're-define the English country house of the 21st century'With everything from helicopter parking and a 1000-bottle wine cellar to bespoke wallpaper designed by Christian Lacroix, Harford Manor is a country house like no other. Annabel Dixon took a closer look and spoke to the man behind its creation.
-
A blissful and beautifully named home in one of the most exclusive spots in CornwallPenny Churchill takes a look at Boswodegh, a wonderful home that makes the most of its superb location in Helford Passage.
-
A sleek, seven-bedroom villa with a wine cave, wellness space and a 20-person JacuzziIncredible attention to detail at Almancil Loulé's, an amazing home for sale in Portugal's exclusive Quinta do Lago resort.
