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Summary

Farmhouse incorporating the remains of the Bishop of Exeter's late medieval palace.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1107726: COURT FARMHOUSE

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• FARMHOUSE (Built, XV to XVI - 1401 AD to 1600 AD (Between))

Full description

Laithwaite, M., 1987, The Bishop's Palace at Bishop's Tawton (Report - Survey). SDV357891.

The farmhouse is a two-storeyed rubble stone building of two -room plan with a roughly central through-passage and entrance porch. The right hand, north end, however, appears to be a 19th century addition. It is not shown on Jeremiah Milles' mid 18th century drawing of the house nor on the 1842 Tithe Map. All that is left of the early structure, therefore, is one room and a through-passage on the ground floor and what must have been a single large room on the first floor. There is a chimney in the rear wall to the left and another massive one in the right-hand gable wall. Neither displays an early fireplae. One the left side of the through-passage is a stone wall with a chamfered, pointed stone arch, its lower part blocked. Milles' drawing also shows two medieval windows each with two lights and pointed arches, one in the room over the porch and the other in the ground storey to the left of it. These have now gone. At some time in the early 19th century, however, an attempt was made to medievalise the building by adding crenallated towers and inserting an imitation medieval window in the south gable wall. The towers are shown on the Tithe Map.
The finest feature of the building is a barrel-vaulted wooden ceiling to the first floor room. Above it is an unblackened roof with trusses with short curved feet. The ceiling is mostly plastered but has a large wooden boss with a carving of a bird. The listing description states this to be a dove with an olive brance but Laithwaite suggests that it could be the Chichester crest of a heron with an eel. This would fit well with Robert Chichester's will of 1564 and suggests that possibly only the stone walls and the one inside arch of the building date from before 1550.

Ordnance Survey, 2015, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV357601.

English Heritage, 2015, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV357602.

Court Farmhouse. Farmhouse, incorporating remains of Bishop of Exeter's palace. C15 with possibly some earlier fabric; heavily remodelled in late C18. Random stone rubble with ashlar dressings. Slate roof of 2 pitches, hipped at left end, half-hipped at right end. Large lateral stack to west side with slated off-sets and tall brick shaft. Brick stack at right end, ridge stack and 2 other off-centre stacks. The early features are concentrated at the 2-storeyed south service end and through- passage. Virtual rebuilding and widening of house in late C18 above the through- passage has obscured original plan, now of single principal room to each side of through passage. Also added in late C18 were Gothick towers at all the corners except to the north-east. 2 storeys. East side has tower to south-east corner with brick crenellated parapet. Blind roundel above blocked window with timber lintels. Small 2-paned casement near base with probably reset nowy-arched stone lintel. Two 2-light casements to right, that to left with 3 panes per light, above sash 2 over 2 panes with timber lintel. 2-storey porch to right with plain gabled bargeboards. C20 window and doorway. At right side, slated lean-to roof to brick kitchen extension of 1 1/2 storeys. Gabled dormer with carved bargeboards above 3 C20 windows, the central one with slate dripmould. Rounded bread oven to north side with slate capping. Slated lean-to roof to porch to its right in angle of single storey dairy extension with slate roof projecting to north with plank door. Towers at each corner on west side, that to left sits on the dairy roof with semi-circular brick arch infilled with brick to rear. Each has brick crenellated parapet and blind window to false top stage above 4-centred arched openings with transomed casements with diamond leaded cames and dressed stone voussoirs. Similar casement to right- hand tower. Left tower has 1/2-glazed door with small niche above. Between the 2 towers, the 2 left hand bays of the 4 break forward, with C20 conservatory enclosing C19 sash 8 over 8 panes to left of French windows. Otherwise C20 fenestration but with chamfered stone surrounds to 2 ground floor windows to right. The rear wall of the dairy which extends from left side tower incorporates an early doorway and window opening, the doorway with ashlar chamfered surround to left of partially blocked window with hoodmould and label stops, both probably reset in the late C18 rebuild and now enclosed in greenhouse. 2 C18 blind quatrefoil loops above. Towers on the south side with blind roundels above tall narrow openings, infilled to left, 4-paned light to right flank 3-light cavetto mullion window with cusped heads and diamond leaded cames. Octofoil opening to small stone panel inset above. Interior features include heavy chamfered and stopped beams to service end, with former entry from through passage by possibly C15 pointed arched doorway with stone chamfered surround now blocked. Barrel vaulted ceiling to large chamber above with single boss probably of wood depicting dove and olive branch conceals 2 large trusses above with short curved feet resting on timber wall plates. Cranked collars morticed into soffits, 2 tiers of threaded purlins and added tier of butt- jointed purlins near base. No smoke-blackening. Remaining roof structure is of C18 rebuild with later patching.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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