Werribee Park Mansion is one of Victoria’s largest and most opulent properties. The 60-room mansion, flowing across several wings, was built between 1874 and 1877 in the Renaissance Revival style by the pioneering pastoralists Thomas Chirnside (1815-1887) and his brother Andrew Chirnside (1818-1890), who emigrated to Australia from Scotland and founded the “Chirnside Pastoral Empire“.

The lush interior contains original furniture, an entry hall with a Minton encaustic tiled floor, niches, Corinthian pilasters, and free-standing columns leading to a grand staircase. Off the main entrance are the main reception rooms, a library and dining room.

Thomas Chirnside

Thomas Chirnside was born in Berwickshire, Scotland, the elder son of Robert Chirnside and Mary Fairs. In January 1839, at age twenty-three, Thomas Chirnside arrived in Adelaide from Liverpool on the ship Bardaster. He then made his way to Sydney in March. Returning to Melbourne, after drought in NSW affected his fortunes, the Chirnside brothers bought the land at Werribee.

As a member of the Victorian Acclimatisation Society, Thomas began importing animals from the old country, such as red deer, foxes, hares, pheasants, and partridges. It wasn’t long before “fine old English gentlemen” were hunting the new arrivals around the vast expanse of Werribee Park.

Western District Families

Thomas returned to Scotland for a holiday in 1845, where he fell in love with his first cousin Mary Begbie. He asked her parents for her hand in marriage, but she refused to move to Australia. His brother Andrew then travelled back to Scotland for a visit with a request from his brother. Bring back Mary any way he could. So in 1852, Andrew returned with Mary. However, he brought her back as his wife. Not quite the outcome Thomas wanted. Regardless, the brothers remained close, though Thomas remained a bachelor for the rest of his life.

The grand staircase

Thomas, and his brother Andrew, built the mansion at their Werribee park property over three years. In today’s money, the mansion cost nine million dollars. Notably, the impressive grand staircase is almost identical to the Barwon Park staircase. In fact, it’s a case of the Chirnsides emulating the Austins, as Barwon Park was completed six years before the Werribee mansion.

In 1877, when complete, Andrew, Mary and their three children moved in. Thomas continued to live nearby at the Point Cook homestead; however, he later moved in with Andrew and Mary. The mansion’s extensive workforce worked across ten acres of farmland and the house staff. The Chirnsides also entertained the shire ratepayers and their families. It was not unusual for the Chirnsides to hold picnics with games, bands and dancing for a thousand people, with Thomas appearing on his horse to resounding cheers. Thomas was a strict Sabbatarian and did not allow any work to take place on Sundays.

In 1887, in ill health, suffering depression, and believing himself bankrupt, Thomas shot himself in the laundry with his shotgun. Andrew then inherited the property and Thomas’s estate.

Sadly, Andrew passed away from heart disease just three years later, leaving his personal estate to Mary and his real estate holdings to his two youngest sons. However, as per his will, Mary was permitted to continue at Werribee park, along with a generous allowance until her death. She died, aged eighty-one, in 1908 at a private hospital in Colac due to burns after her hair had caught alight from a bedside candle.

Werribee, after the Chirnside’s

Unfortunately, George couldn’t mirror the success of his father and uncle, and with dwindling fortunes, he sold the mansion to Phillip Lock, a wealthy grazier from Warnambool, in 1922. Lock, in turn, sold it to the Catholic church in 1923. Under the church’s ownership, it became a seminary, Corpus Christi College. Several wings were added by the monks residing there. These wings have been converted to the 5-star Lancemore Hotel.

Finally, in 1973 the Victorian government bought the property from the Catholic church and restored the mansion and grounds to their former glory, renaming it Werribee Park Mansion. Three years later, the mansion was featured in the film The Devil’s Playground. In 1982, it was one of the sets used in the musical comedy, The Pirate Movie. The mansion was then depicted as an English manor in the children’s comedy series, The Genie From Down Under in 1996 and episodes of Miss Fishers Murder Mysteries. Werribee Park Mansion was added to the Victorian Heritage Register in April 1987.

Visiting Werribee Mansion

Open Daily entry is $11.10 for Adults, and children 4-15 years are $8.00. Adult concession is $8.00, and a family of 2 adults and two children is $34.80. Audio tours are available for an extra $3.80. Entry to the mansion also gives you free access to the gardens and State Rose Garden.