Granary/Court Hall 90 Metres South East Of Heron Hall

BRENTWOOD

TQ6391 BILLERICAY ROAD, Herongate 723-1/13/172 (North side (off)) Granary/court hall 90 metres south-east of Heron Hall

GV II

Granary/court hall, now a granary. C17, altered in C20. Red and blue brick in Flemish bond, roofed with handmade red clay tiles. Rectangular plan aligned approx N-S, abutting on moat at N end, abutting on C20 farm buildings to W and E. EXTERIOR: brickwork of high quality, with blue headers forming a regular pattern externally, and lime mortar. Blocked window at 2 levels, and door apertures in W and E walls, all with segmental brick arches; some in the E wall are concealed externally by plaster rendering to a height of 4m, some in the W wall were concealed by piles of grain at time of inspection, August 1989. In the S wall is a central C20 doorway, above it an original window aperture with segmental arch, blocked and in the gable 3 original oval apertures and 3 wrought-iron tie bars forming the letters J T, and S at the peak. Parapet gables with plain kneelers. In the N wall are 5 plain loops, one later aperture, and 2 wrought-iron ties forming the letters J T. At the NW corner is an original limestone pilaster with panelled front, moulded base and capital. A similar pilaster is on the W wall a few metres to the S, now within the abutting C20 building. Buttresses of various dates to W and S. In the middle of each long wall is a large aperture, not original, effectively converting this part into the threshing bay of a barn; that in the E wall is bridged by a reused timber lintel. These walls have on the outside a projecting band of 4 courses, and on the inside a step to support a floor, now missing. When recorded by the RCHM there was a porch to the E. INTERIOR: the roof is original and complete, of high-quality oak, fully jointed and pegged; 12 bays 2 butt-purlins in each pitch of each bay, aligned in adjacent bays; intermediate bird-mouthed collars at half-bay internals; rafters of horizontal section. In some bays there are opposed pairs of straight wind-braces inside the rafters, not trenched. HISTORICAL NOTE: the great size of this building, and the presence of window apertures in 2 storeys, suggest that originally it was designed as a manorial court hall, possibly with an ancillary function as a granary, later converted into a barn, and now a granary again. There are parallels at Cressing Temple, Essex, and Crows Hall, Debenham, Suffolk. The letters J T evidently stand for John Tyrell, but there were several possible owners of this name. The most likely one was born in 1593, married in 1624 and 1630, and was knighted by Charles I in 1627/8. As a Royalist he could not have engaged in major building schemes under the Commonwealth, but in 1661 he recovered his position and was elected MP for Maldon, dying in 1675. All features of the building are compatible with construction in the period 1661-1675.

Listing NGR: TQ6399991711