Withcote Hall

Withcote Hall is a country house dating back to the early 18th century, incorporating elements of an earlier building which was restored in the early 19th century. It is constructed of finely coursed ironstone with limestone ashlar dressings and Swithland slate roofs. The west front, intended as the main entrance, has seven bays arranged as 2-3-2, with the central three bays projecting slightly and topped by a pediment. A porch, likely added in the 19th century, sits centrally and features a scrolled open pediment. Twelve-light sash windows are positioned on either side of the doorway, while the central window above has a lugged architrave with volutes. The pediment's apex displays a finely wrought shield of arms. The outer bays have two-light sash windows on each floor, with the ground floor right bay being blind. All windows are framed by architraves with keystones, and a plinth and string course run across the facade, rising to form hoodmoulds over the lower windows. Quoins are visible on the corners and to the pedimented centre, and a coved eaves cornice completes the facade.

The south front, overlooking the gardens, has nine bays arranged as 2-5-2, with the outer bays forming projecting wings with hipped roofs and twelve-light sash windows on each floor. Blank openings are present on the inner faces of these wings. A central doorway features a broken pediment supporting an urn and is supported by re-used Jacobean pilasters, featuring fluted shafts with lozenge decoration on their capitals. Windows throughout this front are twelve-light sashes with architraves and keystones, and the string course creates hoodmoulds over the ground floor openings. The roof is slightly recessed beyond the parapet, punctuated by three segmentally arched gabled dormers. Axial stacks are also present.

A derelict single-story range, located against the rear wall, has three windows and a blocked doorway with a shell canopy, suggesting late 17th-century origins. A single, two-light mullioned window with cavetto moulding and hoodmoulds on the north wall of the main house hints at its earlier construction.

The interior includes two rooms with richly decorated plaster panelled ceilings, possibly crafted by Italian artisans. The dining room’s panels feature elaborate designs of flowers and urns, while the sitting room displays intricately varied patterns, along with a frieze of blank shields. Another room features parquet wall panelling laid in geometric patterns. A top-lit central hall contains fine plasterwork and a late 18th-century cantilevered stone staircase with a wrought iron balustrade. The house is said to have been built by Matthew Johnson, who acquired the estate from Lord Rochester. Reverend Henry Palmer, who died in 1856, undertook an extensive restoration of the house, and the interior work likely reflects this period.