An ancient estate, a will dispute and a family at war ...
THREE siblings from one of Britain’s oldest families are at war over their mother’s will.
The Pennants can trace their ancestry back to the 1400s and the reign of Henry VI.
For centuries they would seem to have lived in harmony, prospering through mining interests and vast estates in North Wales. But here in the 21st century, matters have turned ugly over the splitting up of the family’s multi-million pound historic home.
The Nantlys Estate, built in the 19th century, housed the family in luxury and includes grade II listed Henblas Hall, Nant Gwilym farm, two other farmhouses, around 450 acres of land, a 30-acre wood and assorted cottages.
Battle lines have been drawn between Lilla Pennant, 61, her sister Banba Dawson, 62 and brother Arnold Pennant, 65.
Miss Pennant is unhappy with the way the properties were split and claims she is being levered out of her rightful inheritance. She claims her older brother and sister have been given the lion’s share of the estate near Tremeirchion, Denbighshire.
Now she has taken her fight to the High Court by issuing a writ saying she wants to protect what is rightfully hers.
She said: ‘I want to take my share of the
‘I want to take my share’
estate and live in peace. That is my goal for myself and my two grown-up children.’
Miss Pennant says she is entitled to a fair split under the terms of her mother’s will. Ann Pennant, 88, died in a car crash in 2004.
She said: ‘It is clear what the entitlement in the will is. Some people don’t seem to be interested in what is written in it.’ The Pennants can trace their lineage back to the Huguenots – a branch of French protestants who sought sanctuary in England from catholic persecution under the reign of Louis XV in the 16th century.
One of the best known members of the Pennant family is the zoologist Thomas Pennant from the 1700s.
He also forged a reputation as a travel writer and his ‘ Tour in Wales’, illustrated by artist Moses Griffiths, popularised North Wales as a holiday detination.
He owned land in Tremeirchion and the family made a fortune thanks to the Pennant mine which dug the local hills rich in lead and zinc. Miss Pennant was granted the hall at Nantlys, as well as some of the land but believes she is entitled to further assets.
This includes a claim for half the contents of a safety deposit box which contains letters by 18th century writer Hester Piozzi, worth £1,000 each, and a self portrait by Moses Griffith, worth around £4,000.
The siblings have been arguing for years over the inheritance and now Miss Pennant has been to communicate with her brother through a third party even though the pair live almost next door.
According to the writ she believes he has kept back more than £200,000 for himself from another farm which was sold in 2006 for £1.6million.
The court papers state that her sister, Mrs Dawson, who lives in Henley-on-thames, cancelled a meeting between the siblings in 2008 and has not been involved in the matter since.
Miss Pennant, a descendant of the 19th century Lord Chancellor, Lord Eldon, said: ‘I am a single woman being mistreated because I am a single woman.’
She is seeking an order for some co-owned land to be split up and a parcel of one acre to be added to Henblas Hall.
She also wants all the money to be shared equally and has requested the contents of the safety deposit box to be divided between herself and her sister.
The case is due to come before the High Court at a later date.