Beaumont House
Encyclopedia
Beaumont House, occasionally known as Claremont, is an eclectic
Romanesque
-Classical
brick
residence located at 631 Glynburn Road in Beaumont
, South Australia
. Beaumont House was constructed for Augustus Short
, the first Anglican
bishop
of Adelaide
and founder of St Peter's Cathedral
.
Beaumont House was constructed on land initially owned by Sir Samuel Davenport
, a wealthy Adelaide landlord
. Following Short's move back to England
, Davenport purchased the house—the second of five eventual owners. Following three sales between 1907 and 1911, the house was then transferred to the National Trust of South Australia in 1968.
The suburb of Beaumont
, in the City of Burnside
, was founded as a purpose-built village
by Sir Samuel Davenport
in 1848. The location of Beaumont to Adelaide, a rapidly-developing settlement at the time, made land in the area extremely expensive. Although Adelaide as a new settlement was prospering during the mid-19th century, still very few people could afford the exclusivity of Beaumont.
Bishop
Augustus Short
moved from England
to Adelaide after the Archbishop of Canterbury
offered him the choice of moving to Newcastle
—on the coast of New South Wales
—or Adelaide, both recently-established dioceses. He chose the latter, and was consecrated
at Westminster Abbey
on St Peter's Day, 29 June 1847. He arrived in Adelaide by ship on 28 December 1847.
Short expressed his interest in residing in Beaumont, and was wealthy enough to buy a large allotment of land off the current landowner, Davenport. Between 1849 and 1851, he had Beaumont House designed and built on a large allotment at the end of Glynburn Road, a major road which serviced the suburb of Beaumont, and linked to more major roads running west into the city of Adelaide along the Adelaide Plains
. The Beaumont House estate was given the name 'Claremont' by Short. The location, in the foothills of the Mount Lofty Ranges
, was chosen to catch the cool breeze
s coming from the sea across the Adelaide Plains.
Bishop Short and his family moved into the house later in 1851, and resided there until Bishop's Court, North Adelaide
, was ready to be occupied in 1856. During the same year, Sir Samuel Davenport purchased the house and land from Bishop Short and lived in 'The Lodge', a small cottage at the entrance to what became the driveway to Beaumont House, until Short vacated Claremont.
Bishop Short later founded St Peter's Cathedral
, an Anglican
church, in 1869. However, a combination of declining health and disagreements of opinions over the next thirteen years saw him resign his precedence as bishop in 1872 and then as head of the diocese in 1881. He returned to England on 7 January 1882. At the time, the Claremont estate was valued at £
8200.
A cultivator of olive
s, Davenport had planted a limited number of olives around Beaumont House in 1852 after he purchased the land the year before. Davenport later expanded his groves by replanting trees and cuttings from Beaumont both in other areas of the allotment and at some of his other properties in the Adelaide Hills
. He also planted mulberry
trees for producing silk
on the estate grounds.
Davenport resided in Beaumont House until his death on 3 September 1906; his wife having predeceased him on 6 February 1902, and they had no children. He left his estate mainly to his nephew Howard Davenport after his death, and both Houses of Parliament
in South Australia adjourned for his funeral as an obituaritry to his legacy.
In 1907 the estate was sold to a new owner, Major Vincent, who made extensive alterations to the house. It was then bought by a third owner in five years, Mr Bennet, in 1911. Upon his death the house was passed on to his widow. Beaumont House was then transferred to the National Trust of South Australia
by Bennet's widow, who had remarried, and her new partner on 24 August 1968.
The estate is strongly reminiscent of Romanesque architecture
, mainly due to alterations made to the house and grounds by Sir Davenport. A member of the National Trust, the current owner of Beaumont House, explains how Davenport's travels influenced his styles:
The olive groves are no longer cultivated on the grounds of Beaumont House, but other notable additions by Davenport to the Romanesque style still remain. The house is occasionally described as 'Mediterranean
', mostly due to the red Tuscan
-styled roof
, the olive groves and pillar
ed exterior.
Eclecticism
Eclecticism is a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories in particular cases.It can sometimes seem inelegant or...
Romanesque
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
-Classical
Classical architecture
Classical architecture is a mode of architecture employing vocabulary derived in part from the Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, enriched by classicizing architectural practice in Europe since the Renaissance...
brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
residence located at 631 Glynburn Road in Beaumont
Beaumont, South Australia
Beaumont is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Burnside. Founded as a purpose-built village by Sir Samuel Davenport in 1848, it initially struggled due to high land prices in the area. However, with Adelaide's inevitable expansion residents eventually settled...
, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. Beaumont House was constructed for Augustus Short
Augustus Short
Augustus Short , was the first Anglican bishop of Adelaide, South Australia.- Early life and career :Born at Bickham House, near Exeter, Devon, England, the third son of Charles Short, a London barrister, offspring of an old English county family, and his wife Grace, daughter of Humphrey Millett...
, the first Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
bishop
Anglican Diocese of Adelaide
The Anglican Diocese of Adelaide is based in Adelaide, South Australia. The diocese is a part of the Province of South Australia of the Anglican Church of Australia and a part of the Anglican Communion. The current Archbishop of Adelaide is the Most Reverend Jeffrey Driver.-List of Bishops and...
of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
and founder of St Peter's Cathedral
St Peter's Cathedral, Adelaide
St Peter's Cathedral is an Anglican Cathedral in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. It is the seat of the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide...
.
Beaumont House was constructed on land initially owned by Sir Samuel Davenport
Samuel Davenport
Sir Samuel Davenport KCMG was one of the early settlers of Australia and became a landowner and parliamentarian in South Australia....
, a wealthy Adelaide landlord
Landlord
A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant . When a juristic person is in this position, the term landlord is used. Other terms include lessor and owner...
. Following Short's move back to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Davenport purchased the house—the second of five eventual owners. Following three sales between 1907 and 1911, the house was then transferred to the National Trust of South Australia in 1968.
History
The suburb of Beaumont
Beaumont, South Australia
Beaumont is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Burnside. Founded as a purpose-built village by Sir Samuel Davenport in 1848, it initially struggled due to high land prices in the area. However, with Adelaide's inevitable expansion residents eventually settled...
, in the City of Burnside
City of Burnside
The City of Burnside is a local government area with an estimated population of 44,300 people in the South Australian city of Adelaide. Burnside was founded in August 1856 as the District Council of Burnside, and was classed as a city in 1943. It is named after the property of an early settler and...
, was founded as a purpose-built village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
by Sir Samuel Davenport
Samuel Davenport
Sir Samuel Davenport KCMG was one of the early settlers of Australia and became a landowner and parliamentarian in South Australia....
in 1848. The location of Beaumont to Adelaide, a rapidly-developing settlement at the time, made land in the area extremely expensive. Although Adelaide as a new settlement was prospering during the mid-19th century, still very few people could afford the exclusivity of Beaumont.
Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
Augustus Short
Augustus Short
Augustus Short , was the first Anglican bishop of Adelaide, South Australia.- Early life and career :Born at Bickham House, near Exeter, Devon, England, the third son of Charles Short, a London barrister, offspring of an old English county family, and his wife Grace, daughter of Humphrey Millett...
moved from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to Adelaide after the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
offered him the choice of moving to Newcastle
Newcastle, New South Wales
The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...
—on the coast of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
—or Adelaide, both recently-established dioceses. He chose the latter, and was consecrated
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
at Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
on St Peter's Day, 29 June 1847. He arrived in Adelaide by ship on 28 December 1847.
Construction
Adelaide Plains
The Adelaide Plains is the area in South Australia between the Mount Lofty Ranges on the east and Gulf St Vincent on the west. The plains are generally fertile with annual rainfall of about per year....
. The Beaumont House estate was given the name 'Claremont' by Short. The location, in the foothills of the Mount Lofty Ranges
Mount Lofty Ranges
The Mount Lofty Ranges are the range of mountains just to the east of Adelaide in South Australia.-Location and description:The Mount Lofty Ranges stretch from the southernmost point of the Fleurieu Peninsula at Cape Jervis northwards for over before petering out north of Peterborough...
, was chosen to catch the cool breeze
Breeze
Breeze or The Breeze can refer to:* Sea breeze, an onshore afternoon wind, caused by warm air rising over the land in sunny weather-Media:* The Breeze , a group of radio stations in New Zealand....
s coming from the sea across the Adelaide Plains.
Bishop Short and his family moved into the house later in 1851, and resided there until Bishop's Court, North Adelaide
North Adelaide
North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands.-History:...
, was ready to be occupied in 1856. During the same year, Sir Samuel Davenport purchased the house and land from Bishop Short and lived in 'The Lodge', a small cottage at the entrance to what became the driveway to Beaumont House, until Short vacated Claremont.
Bishop Short later founded St Peter's Cathedral
St Peter's Cathedral, Adelaide
St Peter's Cathedral is an Anglican Cathedral in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. It is the seat of the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide...
, an Anglican
Anglican Church of Australia
The Anglican Church of Australia is a member church of the Anglican Communion. It was previously officially known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania...
church, in 1869. However, a combination of declining health and disagreements of opinions over the next thirteen years saw him resign his precedence as bishop in 1872 and then as head of the diocese in 1881. He returned to England on 7 January 1882. At the time, the Claremont estate was valued at £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
8200.
Olive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
s, Davenport had planted a limited number of olives around Beaumont House in 1852 after he purchased the land the year before. Davenport later expanded his groves by replanting trees and cuttings from Beaumont both in other areas of the allotment and at some of his other properties in the Adelaide Hills
Adelaide Hills
The Adelaide Hills are part of the Mount Lofty Ranges, east of the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia. It is unofficially centred on the largest town in the area, Mount Barker, which has a population of around 29,000 and is also one of Australia's fastest growing towns.- History :The...
. He also planted mulberry
Mulberry
Morus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae. The 10–16 species of deciduous trees it contains are commonly known as Mulberries....
trees for producing silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
on the estate grounds.
Davenport resided in Beaumont House until his death on 3 September 1906; his wife having predeceased him on 6 February 1902, and they had no children. He left his estate mainly to his nephew Howard Davenport after his death, and both Houses of Parliament
Parliament of South Australia
The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the Legislative Council and the House of Assembly. It follows a Westminster system of parliamentary government....
in South Australia adjourned for his funeral as an obituaritry to his legacy.
In 1907 the estate was sold to a new owner, Major Vincent, who made extensive alterations to the house. It was then bought by a third owner in five years, Mr Bennet, in 1911. Upon his death the house was passed on to his widow. Beaumont House was then transferred to the National Trust of South Australia
National Trust of Australia
The Australian Council of National Trusts is the peak body for community-based, non-government organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's indigenous, natural and historic heritage....
by Bennet's widow, who had remarried, and her new partner on 24 August 1968.
Architecture and alterations
Originally a five-bedroom residence, the Beaumont House estate has been expanded greatly. Most of the structural expansion took place between 1907 and 1911, when Maj. Vincent owned it; it has not been expanded or notably altered at all since being donated to the National Trust.The estate is strongly reminiscent of Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
, mainly due to alterations made to the house and grounds by Sir Davenport. A member of the National Trust, the current owner of Beaumont House, explains how Davenport's travels influenced his styles:
Samuel Davenport was a great world traveller. He was very much involved in the world exposition movement. Every two years there were big world expos happening in different cities around the world. And he would travel to every one of these expos...I'm sure that the influences that he picked up in all of his travels are reflected here in Beaumont House.
The olive groves are no longer cultivated on the grounds of Beaumont House, but other notable additions by Davenport to the Romanesque style still remain. The house is occasionally described as 'Mediterranean
Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation...
', mostly due to the red Tuscan
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
-styled roof
Roof
A roof is the covering on the uppermost part of a building. A roof protects the building and its contents from the effects of weather. Structures that require roofs range from a letter box to a cathedral or stadium, dwellings being the most numerous....
, the olive groves and pillar
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
ed exterior.
External links
- Beaumont House, www.planbooktravel.com.au
- National Trust of South Australia, www.planbooktravel.com.au