Compton Scorpion Manor House

The Compton Scorpion Manor House is a manor house dating to the late 17th century, with alterations from the 18th century. It is constructed of squared, coursed limestone with a plinth, quoins and coped gables on kneelers, topped by ball finials. The building has a stone slate roof and ashlar end stacks, with one stack projecting.

The manor house is two storeys plus an attic, and has a three-window front. It follows a three-unit, lobby-entry plan. The central entrance features an 18th-century plank door with a leaded overlight, set within a pilaster surround with bases and a keystone. To either side of the door are concave-moulded mullioned windows, with a small chamfered casement with a Caernarvon arch immediately to the right of the door. A sixteen-pane fixed casement is positioned on the far right and a two-light concave-moulded mullioned window is centrally placed above. A moulded string course runs above the ground and first-floor windows, the ground-floor section ramping over the doorway. A late 18th-century lean-to addition to the right has a two-panelled door in a chamfered surround and a modern mullioned window to the right.

The rear of the house was modernized in the 18th century. A six-panelled door, within a pilaster surround with bases and a keystone, is centrally positioned, flanked by twelve-pane sashes. Further to the left and right are double windows, each containing two twelve-pane sashes and separated by a plain central mullion. On the first floor, a tripartite sash is located to the left and right, with the central light containing twelve panes. Between these are three twelve-pane sashes. All rear windows have plain stone surrounds. A moulded string course runs above the windows on each floor. Dormers, three two- and three-light in character and dating to the 20th century, are present on both the front and rear facades. The left facade has a six-pane sash in a moulded surround to the first floor, with a two-light concave-moulded mullioned window below. A 19th-century one-storey brick range adjoins the left facade.

The interior features Adam-style fireplaces, including a large stone fireplace with a semi-circular arch. A further semi-circular arch is to the left, and an arch previously existed to the right. The building also has chamfered and ovolo-moulded spine beams. A large stone fireplace with a semi-circular arch and keystone is elsewhere. Early 18th-century panelling is found in the lobby, and an 18th-century turned-baluster staircase ascends to the attics. Stone flagged floors are present throughout.

The poet Sir Thomas Overbury, who died as a result of court intrigue, was born at Compton Scorpion Manor in 1581, at the house of his maternal grandfather, Biles Palmer.