In 1925, William Randolph Hearst saw St Donat's Castle advertised for sale in Country Life magazine and cabled his English agent to buy it.
He also bought and removed the guest house, Prior's lodging, and great tithe barn of Bradenstoke Priory; of these, some of the materials became a banqueting hall, complete with a sixteenth-century French chimneypiece and windows; also used were a fireplace dated to c. 1514 and a fourteenth-century roof, which became part of the Bradenstoke Hall, despite this use being questioned in Parliament.
The demolition of the Priory had been strongly opposed by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, including a poster campaign on the London Underground.
The tithe barn was crated and sent to Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California, and sold again when Hearst lost interest.
The crates with the barn's roof timbers are stored in a warehouse of Alex Madonna Construction of San Luis Obispo, California.
In 1925, William Randolph Hearst saw St Donat's Castle advertised for sale in Country Life magazine and cabled his English agent to buy it. He also bought and removed the guest house, Prior's lodging, and great tithe barn of Bradenstoke Priory; of these, some of the materials became a banqueting hall, complete with a sixteenth-century French chimneypiece and windows; also used were a fireplace dated to c. 1514 and a fourteenth-century roof, which became part of the Bradenstoke Hall, despite this use being questioned in Parliament. The demolition of the Priory had been strongly opposed by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, including a poster campaign on the London Underground. The tithe barn was crated and sent to Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California, and sold again when Hearst lost interest. The crates with the barn's roof timbers are stored in a warehouse of Alex Madonna Construction of San Luis Obispo, California.
Bradenstoke Priory