On the Saturday we packed, tidied up and left the caravan about 1.00 pm. D has become interested in architecture in recent months and was keen to visit Lower Brockhampton and see the manor house and gatehouse. It is on the route home so we didn't even need to detour!
Brockhampton Estate, now in the care of the National Trust, covers 687 hectares (1,700 acres) and contains 21 acres of orchards including the National Trust's largest orchard. The estate contains a good variety of wildlife and historic farming breeds, for example, Hereford Cattle and Hebrides Sheep
The timber framed manor house dates back to the late C14th and the gatehouse was built 1530-40.
There is evidence of a settlement at Brockhampton since the Domesday Book of 1086. The estate was named after the original owners.
The Domultons built the manor house in 1425 from timbers sourced from the estate. In the first half of the C16th it was owned by the Habingtons. Mary Habington married Richard Barneby in 1552 and, as there were no male heirs, inherited the estate. The Barneby Family owned the house for the following 400 years. The estate was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1946 as there were no heirs.
The manor house and gatehouse are limewashed every five years. Limewashing preserves the timbers from pollutants and insect attack and is a technique that has been used for centuries on historic buildings.
The Gatehouse was built by the Habingtons in 1543 and it is likely that is was a symbol of wealth rather than being intended for defensive purposes. It is thought it was used for illegal Catholic masses between 1559 and 1791.
The original chapel on the estate would have been made of timber and daub (a mix of mud and dung which when set hardened). It was probably built in 1166 and the octagonal font dates from this time too.
The Domultons, owners of the new manor house, in the early 1400s may have rebuilt the chapel and added the large East Window. The chapel was constructed of local stone and excavations have revealed that it once had a roof of tiles with ceramic green glazed tiles on the ridge tops. The walls would have been plastered with limewash.
The earliest documentary evidence shows the clergy conducted services from 1308 until 1402. The absence of clergy from 1402 until 1757 suggests it may have become a "chapel of ease" (a privately owned chapel) for those people who could not make the journey to the church in nearby Bromyard.
There is a graveyard next to the chapel containing many burials and it is believed these were the residents of a lost medieval village. The chapel was abandoned in 1799 when John Barnaby had a new church constructed next to the new manor house. Thereafter the old manor house was occupied by tenants.
The manor house is now open again but we didn't go in. Brockhampton was much busier than I had anticipated (note weekends are not a good day to visit!) and there were loads of people going into the house.
We sat outside the cafe for a cup of tea and a slice of orange and poppy seed cake which was delicious. I know people often rave about NT cakes but if I am honest I often find them a little dry but this wasn't!
Its Damson Picking time - we purchased a 4kg bag and picked nearly that amount. They were slightly unripe but that will be better for jam making!
Since getting home I have made jam and a Damson cobbler and still have 1kg plus left which I plan to freeze so we can have more Damson Cobblers in the winter. I use the recipe on the BBC Good Food website and it makes a delicious pudding served with cream or custard.
Some photos from D from inside the Gatehouse. I got half way up the steep narrow stairs and thought yes I can get up but will I get down? so I let D visit alone. There are times when I hate getting older!
I hope everyone is staying safe and well.
Photos taken by me with a Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera and those marked *D taken by my son with a Canon SX50HS bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate most of my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).
Reference: National Trust Guide Book to Brockhampton and information from the National Trust pages on Brockhampton.
