Earlier Houses: There was a house of 1865 called Hill Bark on the site before the current house was rebuilt here.
House & Family History: The current mock-Tudor house was originally built in 1891 at a different site, as Bidston Court on Bidston Hill in Birkenhead, for soap manufacturer Robert William Hudson. In 1913 Germany's Crown Prince Wilhelm built a copy of the House for himself in Potsdam, where the Potsdam Agreement was signed at the end of World War II. In 1921 Bidston Court was sold to Sir Ernest Royden, who, from 1928 to 1931, using Rees & Holt and Grayson & Ould, moved and rebuilt the House on its present site and renamed it Hill Bark after the former 1865 house on the site. The surrounding parkland was renamed Royden Park, which is now open to the public. The Great Hall's Jacobean fireplace (circa 1527) is from Sir Walter Raleigh's house. In the 1960s the House was an old people's home; it is today a luxury hotel.
Architect: Rees & Holt
Date: 1928-31Architect: Grayson & Ould
Date: 1928-31House Listed: Grade II*
Park Listed: Not Listed
Past Seat / Home of: Robert Hudson, 19th century. Sir Ernest Royden, 20th century.
Current Ownership Type: Corporation
Primary Current Ownership Use: Hotel
Ownership Details: Today Hillbark Hotel
House Open to Public: By Appointment
Phone: 01516-252-400
Fax: 01516-254-040
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.hillbarkhotel.co.uk
Historic Houses Member: No