Wickhamford Manor, Wickhamford, Worcestershire is a manor house dating from the 16th century. It was the childhood home of James Lees-Milne, the writer. The manor is a Grade II listed building.

Wickhamford Manor
"highly picturesque"
TypeHouse
LocationWickhamford Worcestershire
Coordinates52°04′42″N 1°54′07″W / 52.0783°N 1.902°W / 52.0783; -1.902
Built16th century
Architectural style(s)Vernacular
Governing bodyPrivately owned
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameManor House, Wickhamford
Designated30 July 1959
Reference no.1215988
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameDovecote approximately 100 m south east of Manor House
Designated30 July 1959
Reference no.1216194
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameBarn approximately 75 m south of Manor House
Designated30 July 1959
Reference no.1215990
Wickhamford Manor is located in Worcestershire
Wickhamford Manor
Location of Wickhamford Manor in Worcestershire

History

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The manor was originally a monastic grange in the possession of Evesham Abbey.[1] Following the Dissolution of the monasteries, it was granted by Elizabeth I to Thomas Throckmorton in 1562. Throckmorton sold the manor to Samuel Sandys in 1594 and the Sandys family retained ownership until 1860.[2] Penelope Washington, daughter of a later Sandys and a distant relative of George Washington, lived at the manor in the 17th century. Her tomb in the estate church of St John the Baptist,[1] is carved with the Washington coat of arms, three stars above two bars (or stripes), which is traditionally assumed to be the origin of the Stars and Stripes,[3][4] although this is disputed.[5]

In 1906 the manor was bought by George Lees-Milne.[6] The Lees, and their relatives the Cromptons, were originally from Lancashire, where they had made considerable fortunes from coal mining and cotton spinning.[7] In 1908, George's son James was born at the house.[8] An exaggerated portrait of his parents as "a pair of ludicrous eccentrics",[9] and his difficult relationships with them is recorded in the early chapters of his volume of autobiography, Another Self.[10]

George Lees-Milne sold Wickhamford in 1947, two years before his death.[7] In 2010, it was again for sale, at a guide price of £2.95 million.[11]

Architecture and description

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Pevsner describes the grouping of manor house, ancillary buildings and church around a lake, originally a medieval fish pond, as "highly picturesque".[1] The present manor buildings date from the 16th century, with later additions.[12] It has a timber frame, infilled with limestone rubble, is of two storeys and built to an E-plan.[12] Much is early 20th century reconstruction and expansion undertaken by George Lees-Milne. The dovecote by the lake is genuinely medieval, dating from the 13th century,[1] and has its own Grade II listing.[13]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d Brooks & Pevsner 2007, pp. 662–663.
  2. ^ "Wickhamford Manor House". www.badseysociety.uk. The Badsey Society. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  3. ^ "Church of St John the Baptist". www.badseysociety.uk. The Badsey Society. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  4. ^ "Wickhamford". www.worcesteranddudleyhistoricchurches.org.uk. Worcestershire & Dudley Historic Churches Trust. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  5. ^ Vile 2018, p. ?.
  6. ^ "The Official James Lees-Milne Website". www.jamesleesmilne.com. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  7. ^ a b "George Crompton Lees-Milner (1880–1949)". www.badseysociety.uk. The Badsey Society. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  8. ^ Bloch 2009, p. 5.
  9. ^ Bloch 2009, p. 8.
  10. ^ Lees-Milne 1970, pp. 2–52.
  11. ^ "Impeccable provenance of the perfect manor house". The Birmingham Press. 21 October 2010.
  12. ^ a b Historic England. "Manor House, Wickhamford (Grade II) (1215988)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  13. ^ Historic England. "Dovecote approximately 100 m south east of Manor House (Grade II) (1216194)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 March 2020.

References

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