Cronkhill

Cronkhill is an Italianate villa on a hillside of the Attingham Estate near Atcham, designed by the Regency architect John Nash between 1802 and 1805, which the Trust counts among the first and finest of his Italianate designs. It was built for Francis Walford, friend and agent of the 2nd Lord Berwick of Attingham Park, and later served the Berwick family as a more modest home; the 5th Lord Berwick kept a prize-winning herd of Hereford cattle here and named his Cronkhill Rifle after the house. The villa is tenanted and opens only for pre-booked timed visits on selected days. Reviewers single out the views across the estate to the Wrekin, from the garden and from the downstairs rooms. Tips from visitors: only the ground floor is shown because tenants live in the house, so it suits a stop when already in the area rather than a long journey. Parking is free on a sloping mown grass field beside the house, and the single toilet is reached by one step.