Camoys Court

This is a farmhouse, likely originating as a fortified house, dating from the early 14th century with significant alterations in the 17th century. It sits in Stadhampton, south of the B4015. The building is constructed of coursed squared limestone rubble, with some chequer brick, and has old plain-tile roofs and brick stacks.

The house is a double range, incorporating a garderobe annexe and a smaller subsidiary wing. The facade has two gables with irregular window placement. Most windows are sashes, but there’s a 3-light casement window on the ground floor to the left and a leaded cross window with a keyblock flat arch on the first floor to the right. Small leaded casements are visible in the gables. A doorway is centrally placed with a canopy supported by Doric columns, and a second doorway is to the left. A late 19th-century brick bay window is on the right return wall. The rear of the original 14th-century range features a large arched window on the first floor, with two ogee-headed lights and a tracery light above. A two-storey block attached to the rear angle was probably a garderobe wing, with two narrow windows featuring internal splays. The rear of the building includes 18th-century windows. The roof is double-span, with a large central ridge stack.

Inside, the 17th-century range to the right of the through passage has a large open fireplace and a timber bressumer. The 14th-century range includes, on the ground floor, a longitudinal beam supported by a Samson post with solid brackets. The first floor has roll-moulded wall plates and tie beams relating to the original three-bay wagon roof, now situated above a later attic. Two crown-post trusses are present, featuring octagonal posts with remnants of moulded capitals and roll-moulded 4-way arched braces. This original range was likely the solar (a private living area) of a vanished hall, and its construction probably dates from 1318, when a “licence to crenellate” (to add defensive features) was granted to Sir Richard de Louches. The property was subsequently owned by Sir Thomas Camoys. The site is surrounded by a moat.