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Designations

• Scheduled Monument 1002294: Manor house (remains of)
• Listed Building (II) 1233335: RUINS OF THE OLD MANOR HOUSE

Summary

Ruined 13th century building at The Manor House Ruins, Crowhurst

Monument Types

• MANOR HOUSE (AD 13th Century - 1200 AD to 1299 AD)

Description

(TQ 7571 1231) Manor House (NR) (Remains of). (1)
The old manor house, described by Walford in 1854 when the walls appear to have been in much the same condition as at present. He attributed the building to Walter de Scotney who held the manor temp Henry III and was executed in 1259. It was apparently rebuilt or enlarged by John, Earl of Richmond between 1357 and 1360. The remains apparently comprised the N cross-wing and E porch of a building with a great hall extending to the S, and probably another wing. Walford considered the existing plan to be that of the complete building but it seems improbable that the well constructed and solid porch could have been the adjunct of a timber framed building or led merely to an open space. The eastern wall, containing a great pointed window, of Decorated type, remains standing to the height of the original roof-ridge, about 11 or 12 metres. There are the remains of a small square vaulted chamber, now roofless, at the S of this wall, and it indicates that some additional part of the building was adjoining the room on its E side. The north wall of the large hall or chapel is fragmentary. It is mainly represented by an isolated portion about 4 metres high and covered by ivy. Fragments of the W and S walls still stand covered by ivy and are higher. The walls average 1.2m in thickness and are ragstone built with sandstone and include some ashlar work in places. (See Ground photos). (4)
The Manor House (name verified) is as described by F1, though the remains have been cleared of ivy. Re-surveyed at 1:2500. See ground photographs. (5)
Buiding interpretative survey recorded Although now only a ruin, sufficient survives to gain a good impression of the northern half of the dwelling (see Drawing No. 613/5). The remains constitute the northern service crosswing and storeyed entrance porch, the hall itself having extended southwards where, between 17.25 metres and 20.75 metres away have been discovered foundations. Although nothing now survives of the hall itself, the line of the east and west walls are clearly visible as scars on the walls of the ruin, that of the east wall having been patched in brickwork, evidently when the remains of the hall were removed. From the scars it is clear that the masonry side walls measured 850 mm thick, and the overall width of the hall 13.32 metres (43'8") with an internal width of 11.62 metres (38'2"). As the scars of the side wall extend to a height of only c4.50 metres (14'9") above the original floor level 4, (compared with 8.00 metres in the crosswing) and having regard for the hall's width, clearly it was either of aisled or quasi-aisled construction. The lack of any signs of a respond for the arcade against the crosswings surviving section of wall indicates that if aisled rather than quasi-aisled, then the arcade was of timber. As to the hall's length there are no indications, though it must have been in excess of its 13.32 metres width at the very least. The foundations discovered between 17.25 metres and 20.75 metres south of the crosswing could have been those of either the hall or another crosswing though if the former, then no high end crosswing could have existed, for beyond this point the artificial platform ends and the ground falls sharply away. In a plan drawn by Mr Faulkner in 1958 he depicts the hall as being c19.80 metres (c65'0") long internally, though whether this was based on foundations visible at the time or mere conjecture is not known 5.
Of the two external doorways at the low (northern) end of the hall, there are still traces. That in the rear wall now only retains its chamfered jamb set into the side wall of the crosswing, whereas the main entrance survives in a tolerable state of preservation; prior to the wall above falling it was complete. It possesses a two-centred arch with a moulded label having a defaced head stop. The arch itself is fully moulded (see Drawing No. 613/4 - detail 2) and springs from moulded caps (see Drawing No. 613/3 - detail) which formerly stood upon shafts.
The porch which projects in front of the hall and protects the doorway, is built of ashlar and has clasping buttresses on its exposed corners. The outer entrance has collapsed, as too has the vaulted ceiling, though this still survived in the early 20th century. It had moulded diagonal and wall vaulting ribs (see Drawing No. 613/4 - detail 3) springing from moulded angle corbels with twirl pendants at their bases (Drawing No. 613/3 - detail).
Of the northern crosswing the eastern wall survives virtually intact, though apart from foundations, elsewhere the remains are limited to the south western corner and a central section of the northern wall. Of rubble masonry with dressed quoins, the walls are 920 mm thick on the ground floor reducing to 750 mm above. There is a clasping buttress with two off-sets on the north eastern corner.
The ground floor area is now grassed over, but when the plan was drawn for the Victoria Country History of Sussex, foundations were still visible. In the wall between the hall and crosswing were two service doorways leading into vaulted storage compartments. The eastern of these rooms once possessed two double bays of qaudripartite vaulting, the impressions of which can still clearly be seen in the eastern and southern walls, whilst the corners retain the moulded corbels which carried the diagonal plainly chamfered vaulting ribs. The room was lit by a pair of lancet windows in the east wall, and probably others in the now destroyed northern wall. The lancets have hollow chamfered two-centred heads, with splayed internal jambs and chamfered segmental rear arches. Between the lancets remain a part of the chamfered respond which carried the central ribs of the vaulting; the capital is missing. Within the western of the two service compartments the Victoria County History plan shows foundations of c550 mm thick wall enclosing a room about 1.70 metres x 4.25 metres, which they state 'possibly housed a 16th or 17th century staircase'. The ruins were at that time ivy clad and thus they could not have seen incorporated into the western wall the impression of either a quadripartite or barrel vault which roofed with small chamber, thus clearly illustrating it to be a contemporary feature.
Set with its southern wall 900 mm away f rom that of the crosswing itself, it was accessible by a doorway located at the western end of the southern wall, the door's chamfered jamb surviving in the face of the crosswing's western wall. The 900 mm area between the two southern walls almost certainly would have housed the stone staircase giving access to the upper floor of the crosswing, the staircase being accessible from the hall either by a doorway or arch way located adjacent to the hall's rear door 6.
In the centre of the north wall is a wide buttress which carries a first floor fireplace of which only the broke tiled rear wall now survives. The position of the fireplace half way along the wall suggests that the first floor of the crosswing was taken up by a single halllike chamber measuring 12.55 metres x 7.32 metres (41'2" x 24'0") internally. On the east, the room was dominated by an elegant two or three light window, the external arch of which is richly moulded in three orders and capped by a moulded label with carved headstops of which that on the south survives (see photograph R38/23A, and for mouldings see Drawing No. 613/4 - detail 1). Fragments of the fully moulded tracery forming a central circular light, together with the outer voussoirs of the outer lights survive, though they fit no obvious pattern perfectly. Either the window was of three slender lights with twocentred heads and capped by a circular light (which appears to fit least well) or of two trefoil headed lights capped by the circle as shown in Drawing No. 613/5. A modified version of this rather unlikely sounding arrangement exits at Beauvais dating from the 13th century 7. The outer and inner orders of the arch are continuous with the jambs, whereas that in the centre springs from moulded and stiff leaf foliage carved capitals (see photograph R38/23A) formerly supported by detached shafts. The shafts rose from moulded 'water holding' bases which survive, the bases themselves being supported from the steeply sloping external cill by short sections of columns (see Detail - Drawing No. 613/4). The internal jambs and arch are splayed and have a roll moulding running along their angle. The head of the window is set above that of the wallplates, and above this the wall steps back as if to carry a raised tiebeam.
At the eastern end of the chamber's southern wall are the remains of a two-centred arch to a wall arcade, the rear wall of the arcade being reduced to only 520 mm in thickness. From the chamber's south eastern corner an angle set wall passage formerly gave access to the porch chamber. The passage is corbelled across the external angle between the two chambers, the corbelling itself being carried at the base by a two-centred arch (see Drawing No. 613/1 - East Elevation). At its head the passage has a pyramidal stone roof.
The porch chamber itself measures c3.70 metres x c3.90 metres (c12'0" x c12'9"), the fragmentary remains of which contain no features of interest. Earlier this century, when the Victoria County History description was written, the gabled western wall of the chamber rose to its full height, states as 'nearly the same height as the east wall of the main structure'. Now only its northern end adjacent to the crosswing survives, though it is shown in a 19th century engraving 8. The kitchens of the house must have been located to the west, there being no passage running through the services. Indeed, foundations have been discovered by the owner a little distance west of the hall's rear doorway. The mouldings and tracery strongly suggest a date of construction in the mid 13th century. The building's size, although massive, would probably have been within reach of the de Scotneys, one of the most wealthy and prominent families of the Rape of hastings hierarchy at the time. Indeed, from the historical background it is more likely to have been built by Walter de Scotney around 1250 a few years before his execution, than by one of the Earls of Richmond during the manors unsettled late 13th century ownership. [6]
An archaeological watching brief was maintained during the installation of a freestanding swimming pool at Court Lodge, Crowhurst, East Sussex between the 30th of November and the 3rdof December 2004. A substantial wall footing was revealed to the west of the upstanding ruin of Crowhurst Manor, orientated north to south, with a possible east to west return extending to the west. Several investigative slots located elsewhere around the pool revealed a possible buttress or wall footing orientated east to west from the remains of the Manor ruin. A covered drain. associated with the north-south wall footing and demolition layers was also revealed in Slot 1. (6)
The monument includes a 13th century manor house surviving as upstanding and below-ground remains. It is situated in the village of Crowhurst on a south-facing slope near the foot of a stream valley with Powdermill Stream a short distance to the south. The buttressed walls average 1.2m thick and are built of ragstone and sandstone with some ashlar in places. The upstanding remains include the north cross-wing and the entrance porch, from which the hall originally extended southwards. The east wall of the cross-wing stands to about 11m, the height of the original roof-ridge. It contains a great pointed window, of Decorated style, with roots of geometrical tracery. The south-west corner turret had a moulded doorway and quadripartite vault, which has now collapsed. The north wall survives to a height of about 4m and includes the remains of a tiled hearth. A resistivity survey in 1989 and an archaeological watching brief in 2004 recorded further buried remains of walls, wall footings and possible buttressing near to the upstanding remains.The manor house was built by Walter de Scotney in around 1250. He was executed in 1259 and the manor reverted briefly to the crown. It was then granted to Peter of Savoy and later to John de Bretagne, Earl of Richmond. In 1342 John of Gaunt was granted the Earldom and its lands and he apparently rebuilt or enlarged the manor between 1357 and 1360. The manor house later fell out of use and is described as a ruin by 1854. The upstanding remains are Grade II listed[7]
The earth resistance survey at Crowhurst Manor, Crowhurst has successfully revealed anomalies of possible archaeological origin. Moderately high and high resistance anomalies within the survey may relate to structural footings, or robbed out features. As carrying out a twin probe earth resistance survey with a probe separation of 0.5m will generally only provide a practical survey depth of 0.5m it is possible that features at greater depth would not be identified within the resistance survey. The survey indicated a significant level of disturbance that has probably occurred due to the construction of several Victorian buildings and associated services. Therefore a considered excavation approach would be required in order to assess the survival of any remains and to make a more meaningful interpretation. Any such excavations with the boundaries of the Scheduled Monument would require the appropriate consent to be granted by English Heritage and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. [8]
Ruined remains of the northern service crosswing and storeyed entrance porch of the 13th century manor house. Though the hall has been demolished sufficient evidence survives to show it to have been aisled or quasi-aisled construction, measuring c. 13.32m wide and at least as long. The porch, which once stood in front of the hall, was built of ashlar, with clasping buttresses and a now-collapsed vaulted ceiling. The service crosswing comprised two rooms with vaulted ceilings at ground floor level, seemingly with a single large hall-like chamber above, accessed via stairs in the south-west corner and lit by a large two or three light window in the east wall. In the south-east corner of the chamber was an angled passage allowing access to the porch chamber. The kitchens of the building are presumed to have lain to the west. [9]
A survey carried out in 1996 showed that rural sites in East Sussex continued to be damaged or destroyed at the same rate as 1976. The most vulnerable individual sites and site groups were identified and remedial action was suggested. [10]

Sources

Associated Events

• Manor House Ruins, Court Lodge Farm, Crowhurst: Building Survey
• Field observation on TQ 71 SE 3
• Field observation on TQ 71 SE 3
• Crowhurst Manor, Crowhurst : Geophysical Survey
• The Manor House Ruins, Crowhurst: Historic Building Recording (Ref: 613)
• The East Sussex Plough Damage Survey 1995-1996 : Survey

Associated Monuments - none recorded

Associated Finds - none recorded

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