| Brockhampton Estate tells us much about the way in which our wealthy medieval ancestors lived. It comprises of a landscape of 2,000 acres, magnificent woodland dotted with some of the finest oaks in the country, and mile after mile of rich pasture-land grazed by lazy cattle and sheep. The strong history of farming attached to the estate can be traced back to the time of the Doomsday Book, Brockhampton still has four tenanted farms and several small holdings with the emphasis being on arable and mixed farming.
At the core of estate lies what is known as Lower Brockhampton, here visitors will find the enchanting medieval Brockhampton Manor, surrounded by a moat and crossed via entrance through a 15th-century medieval gateway. The house is of timber-frame construction, with lattice windows, tilting timbers and a roof of russet red tiles. The interior has many fine features including a gallery in the dining-hall. The whole of the estate presents a picture of tranquillity and timeless charm, one can imagine the Squire, with his family driving in a carriage along the narrow winding two mile road leading to the house. Just as we do today, they too would have admired the passing woods and fine countryside. Visitors can enjoy lovely walks through the park and woodland, the whole of the landscape provides a wealth of habitats for creatures of the wild, there are many tiny animals to be seen, and amidst the branches of the trees visitors can see and hear the birds that have made the woods their home. In the pools you can enjoy watching frogs and toads, water-birds include kingfisher, mallard, coots and moorhens. A grey heron can sometimes be seen stalking the wild carp that breed in the pools of the estate. In the grounds there is an interesting chapel. Here are buried members of the families who owned the estate, the Barneby and Lutley families and the graves of their servants. Although the chapel is kept locked, visitors can clearly see Georgian stained glass from when the chapel was built in 1799 to replace the ruined 12th-century chapel. Return to the National Trust indexSPACEReturn to Main Index national trust, medieval manor, historic buildings, national trust, capability, brown, neo-classical, history, UK, grand mansions, national trust, parkland, parks, art, paintings, china, literary, national trust |