Hearst Castle

An estate located in coastal California, Hearst Castle consists of a mansion, also commonly known as the castle, as well as guesthouses and expansive grounds. Built for the wealthy newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst and designed by architectJulia Morgan, the castle was one of the premier destinations for celebrities of the 1920s, serving as host to writers, politicians, and Hollywood legends.

In the late 1910s, newspaper publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst inherited 250,000 acres of land along a remote stretch of the California coast between San Francisco and Los Angeles, near San Simeon. The property included a large, rocky hill that Hearst called La Cuesta Encantada, or the Enchanted Hill. In 1919, Hearst began to collaborate closely with architect Julia Morgan, who designed a multibuilding estate to be set atop the hill. The centerpiece of this estate was the main residence, Casa Grande, which was surrounded by guesthouses, pools, and gardens. The construction of the estate was ongoing throughout the 1920s.

The Grounds

The grounds of the estate consist of 123 acres and encompass three guest cottages, outdoor and indoor swimming pools, elaborate gardens, statuary, tennis courts, and Casa Grande. The first of Morgan’s buildings to be constructed, the guest cottages each contain at least ten rooms and are of Spanish Renaissance design. Known as Casa Del Sol, Casa Del Mar, and Casa Del Monte, the cottages were named for the view from their respective windows: the sunset, the ocean, and the mountains. The outdoor swimming pool, named after the Roman god Neptune, was constructed beginning in 1924 and boasts marble flooring and Greco-Roman architecture. Another noted feature of the grounds was the 2,000-acre zoo, first established in 1923. Animals were of interest to Hearst, and he amassed a significant collection of nonnative and exotic animals to occupy his menagerie and large grazing enclosures. While the zoo would be dismantled over the course of the following decades, some of its animals and their offspring made the estate grounds their permanent home.

The Castle

Construction of the main residence, Casa Grande, began in 1922. Casa Grande consists of more than one hundred rooms and is of Mediterranean Revival design, mixing Spanish Renaissance, Gothic, and other styles. While some of the architectural elements were designed by Morgan to resemble such styles, many are European antiques. For example, the main entrance features stone and grillwork from a fifteenth-century Spanish convent. The castle serves as a backdrop for Hearst’s extensive art collection, and many of the rarest pieces are showcased in the largest room of the residence, known as the Assembly Room.

Much of the interior is decorated in the dramatic Gothic style. Hearst conducted most of his business in the vast Gothic study on the third floor, which features an ornate barrel-vaulted ceiling. The library houses four thousand books, many of which are rare editions, as well as Hearst’s collection of classical pottery. Casa Grande is complete with a private cinema in which, during Hearst’s lifetime, first-run films were viewed twice nightly for staff and for guests. The castle’s kitchen and pantry were designed to accommodate the large number of guests invited to the estate.

Guests

Hearst entertained at the castle often and lavishly, with many influential figures of the 1920s gracing the guest list. Guests were drawn from all spheres of influence and included powerful Hollywood producers such as Louis B. Mayer, cultural icons such as Charles Lindbergh, and numerous film stars. Evenings at the castle adhered to a relatively fixed schedule. Dinner was a formal affair, with guests first gathering in the Assembly Room to amuse themselves at the grand piano or with games. Hearst would enter dramatically and circulate among the guests until dinner was announced. Since the journey to the estate was lengthy, most guests stayed overnight. The equipment, facilities, and clothing necessary to enjoy sports or recreation were available to guests. Feeding the zoo animals was a popular pastime, and entertainment frequently consisted of masquerade balls or theatrical productions based upon guest participation.

Impact

Work on the estate continued into the 1940s, with several areas of the castle undergoing remodeling or other alterations. In 1957, Hearst Castle was donated to the state of California, becoming a state park and museum offering tours to the public. With its intact furnishings and art collections, the estate serves as a window into Hearst’s world and the culture, politics, and society of the 1920s.

Bibliography

Kastner, Victoria, and Victoria Garagliano. Hearst Castle: The Biography of a Country House. New York: Henry N. Abrams, 2000. An illustrated examination of the creation and maintenance of the castle, including discussion of Hearst’s powerful position in American society of the 1920s.

Lewis, Oscar. Fabulous San Simeon: A History of the Hearst Castle. San Francisco: California Historical Society, 1958. A historical narrative of Hearst’s estate.

Loe, Nancy E. Hearst Castle: The Official Pictorial Guide. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Companion Press, 1991. Contains images of the castle and its contents, detailed context for the images, and a timeline of the construction.

Longstreth, Richard W. Julia Morgan, Architect. Berkeley, Calif.: Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association, 1986. A biography of the estate’s architect.

Winslow, Carleton M., Jr., Taylor Coffman, and Nickola L. Frye. The Enchanted Hill. Los Angeles: Rosebud Books, 1980. Features biographical information about Hearst and detailed photographs, as well as a chronology, glossary, and guide to the estate collections.