READER COMPETITION
IN ASSOCIATION WITH CONTESSA HOTELS
THE HISTORY OF HILLBARK HOTEL
Hillbark was built in 1891 by the Hudson
family of Hudson’s Soap manufacturers
which eventually became Lever Brothers.
It is said that Hillbark is based on Little
Moreton Hall in Cheshire and is made
entirely of wood, and has been claimed
that it is one of the finest examples of half
timbered Victorian design anywhere in the
country. It is also stated that Crown Prince
Wilhelm o f Germany came to stay in these
parts at the turn of the century. He liked the
house so much, he was inspired to build a
replica in the German town Potsdam.
Sir Ernest Royden of the Cunard Line
purchased the property in the 1920s; Hillbark
was moved between 1929-31 to its present
position in Frankby onto land that had been
left to Mrs Royden, as the house was taken to
pieces by someone who had to painstakingly
write on the back of each section in the
neatest of handwriting, the exact location of
each part of the house. Moving the building
today would cost in the region of £40million.
Contained within the house are stained glass
windows by William Morris, a rare Adam
fireplace and a fireplace which once belonged
to Sir Walter Raleigh dating back to 1627.
Sir Ernest Royden was a ship builder and gave
most of the house over to orphans of seamen
26 wirrallife.com
who were evacuated from Liverpool during
the Second World War and set up camp,
literally on the fields outside Hillbark until
1949. The Royden family lived at Hillbark
right up until Sir Ernest’s death in 1960 when
he left the house to the Council in his will,
as most of his family had moved away from
the area. The house was always fully staffed as
would befit the status of the Royden family.
Sir Ernest would open up Hillbark one day
each year so that people could come and look
at the house and see it in all its glory; he also
owned all the surrounding land at Hillbark
including Royden Park right up to Thor
Stone at Thurstaston. After his death the local
authority turned Hillbark into an old people’s
home, this remained the case up until 1984
when the home closed and the building fell in
to disrepair.
Today, HIllbark is the UK’s smallest five star
hotel offering the perfect place to stay with
eighteen individually designed, lavishly
furnished suites and bedrooms - it is also the
perfect choice for fine dining with exquisite
cuisine in the 3 AA Rosette Riviera Restaurant,
complemented by a splendid 300-bin cellar.
To find out more about Hillbark Hotel, please
visit: hillbarkhotel.co.uk
WIN DINNER
FOR TWO ON
VALENTINE’S
Wirral Life have teamed up with our
friends at the luxury 5 star Hillbark Hotel
to give readers the chance to win dinner
for two on Valentine’s.
To enter the competition, email your
answer to [email protected] along
with your name, address, email and
contact telephone number.
Question: What year did the Royden
family leave Hillbark to the Council?
Entries close on Sunday 11th February
2018 at noon.
Good luck!