Gatehouse And Restored Early C20 Wall To Front Garden Wall (Attached)

This is a moated house dating back to the 14th century, with alterations and extensions in the 15th century and restoration in the early 20th century. The structure is timber-framed with exposed close-studding and plaster infill, with red brick and tile hanging to the return and rear elevations. It has plain tiled roofs. The house is a hall house with cross-wings.

The two-storey wings to the left and right have jettied gabled fronts, featuring moulded bresummers and returned dragon posts with attached moulded shafts carrying hollow chamfered brackets. The central hall bays are recessed behind overhanging eaves supported by brackets. The main roof is hipped with stacks positioned at the end left, centre right, and end right. The windows are predominantly mullioned, with six and eight lights to the gables on the first floor, a blocked mullioned window and a three-light leaded mullioned window on the left, and three multi-light leaded mullioned windows on the ground floor. A six-light, two-storey hall window is centrally located on the right side with mullions and transoms, and depressed arched heads to the ground floor. A plank and stud door is centrally positioned on the left, covered by a raking hood. A 20th-century wing extends to the rear left, recessed and over the rear elevation.

Internally, the great hall was reopened to the ceiling in the early 20th century by the then owner, Mr Edward Grinling. It features a large, centrally moulded arched truss braced to a secondary parallel truss from the main posts to the tie beam. The main central posts supporting this arch have massive brackets extending externally to support the eaves and mortice holes on the rear posts, suggesting a possible origin as a hall with an outshed. A 15th-century tie beam and crown post are located over the lower end of the hall. Moulded heads survive for the rear cross-passage doorway. A 20th-century turned baluster gallery spans the rear wall of the hall. A large inserted brick fireplace is present, alongside a parlour door with spandrels carved with images of a Green Man and a Fool. The cross-wings feature moulded ceiling beams and short, unmoulded crown posts on hollow chamfered and cambered tie-beams, with Bellersden marble fireplaces decorated with strapwork and a damask-style motif; one fireplace includes two portrait medallions.

Historically, the house was originally the home of the Sabbe family, later sold in the 17th century to a cadet branch of the Bothurst family of nearby Finchcodes. It was also the home of Dame Edith Evans for the last 21 years of her life.

A red brick garden wall, likely dating from the 18th century, projects from the left side of the house. This wall is approximately 7 feet high, with a dogtooth cornice and incorporates an arched boarded gate, ramped down to about 5 feet. It extends roughly 50 yards to the roadside and returns about the same distance along the roadside.