The Library at Penrhyn Castle

We sat down recently with one of our favorite House Tour subjects, Randal of Randal's Regal Rooms. It turns out that there is an ancestral family castle that still belongs to distant members of his family, and its spectacular library has been gifted to the UK and cataloged for you to see.

Interestingly enough, despite legally owning the property through inheritance, the annual taxes on the castle are so expensive that the government has devised a method called "Acceptance in Lieu" to let lineages retain ownership of these homes while still receiving a benefit for the state. Instead of paying taxes each year, an estate can donate a substantial gift that will remain in its original location but will officially become public property.

The book collection at Penrhyn Castle in Gwynedd, Wales was treated in just such a way. The space itself is a spectacular example of neo-Norman 19th century decor by architect Thomas Hopper, with detailed carvings, plasterwork, furniture, and paintings. Randal promises to tell us all the castle's secrets after his trip there in the near future.

You can learn more about how to visit Penrhyn Castle yourself from the National Trust.

Images: Michael Caldwell/National Trust Treasure Hunt

Comments (8)

I love the National Trust properties, but their website does not always have great pictures. Check out National Trust Prints or their blog Treasure Hunt for more images.

I would like to live in the library, please :-)

I hate to be the one to break it to Randall but Penrhyn Castle was donated to the UK public in the 1940s in lieu of death duties so I'm afraid the castle itself isn't his but the National Trust's (although his family may still live in part of the building and own other parts of the estate).

Acceptance in Lieu is a fantastic scheme but you don't get to keep the heritage asset in your own living room I'm afraid - it has to be allocated to a public museum, archive, historic house etc. You may be thinking of conditionally exempt items which are exempted from capital gains tax in exchange for being available on open days and for loans to museums on request.

"books can be awfuly decorative..don't you think"
Hint; movie quote

I found the library at Castle Alnwick (pronounced (Ann-Ick) so much more impressive - perhaps due to the mezzanine, enourmous book collection, and the cozy lived-in appearance since the Duke of Northumberland & his family are still in residence.

http://www.alnwickcastle.com/visiting-us/state-rooms

In addition to what Philippat has said above, I would like to add the the Acceptance in Lieu scheme can currently only be used to write off UK inheritance tax. It would be extremely helpful if it could be extended to cover other forms of tax, but that is not the case at present.