Morval House

Morval House is a country house dating from around the 15th century, possibly with earlier origins. It has been altered and extended repeatedly in the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, with notable mid-19th century alterations by Somners-Cox.

The building is constructed of stone rubble with a moulded granite plinth to the central range of the south front and moulded granite strings to the south front and projecting wings. Stonework was rebuilt with coursed ashlar above the ground floor of the south front, probably when the windows were replaced in the 17th century. The south range has a scantle slate roof with sprocketted eaves, probably from the late 17th century. There are projecting stone rubble chimney stacks to the south range. The gabled side lateral chimney stack to the left-hand wing was incorporated in a 19th century extension and replaced with a brick shaft. Two projecting chimney stacks serve parlours in the south-east right-hand wing, originally with 17th century moulded caps — the south stack now has a 20th century brick shaft and the north stack is truncated. There are truncated rear lateral stacks to the hall on the right of the south range and the parlour on the left, truncated projecting rear lateral stacks to the earlier probable hall on the north-east, and to the projecting circa 16th century range on the west.

The plan has been considerably altered and its evolution is uncertain. Existing evidence suggests the following hypothesis: the original house may have consisted of either a three-room and through-passage plan in the present central range on the south, or alternatively and possibly more likely, the range along the east which is out of alignment with the main range. This comprises the surviving truncated four-bay hall with lightly smoke-blackened roof trusses. A possible service room was rebuilt to the south and an inner room partly remodelled on the north. The house was probably extended in the late 15th century to the rear (west) of the lower end to provide a more modern hall with a possible stair projection in the angle, with the old hall becoming a secondary hall or kitchen. In the late 15th or early 16th century, the inner room of the new part was extended to the south with a first floor hall or parlour with a four-bay arch-braced room and moulded ceiling beams on the ground floor, later reused in the attic (compare with Roscarrock, Cotehele and Lanhydrock). Possibly in the 16th century a service wing was erected to the rear (north) of the first floor hall range with surviving roof trusses reduced in width. However, this wing may be earlier than the 16th century with earlier masonry on the west wall near the junction with the south range and remains of a stair turret within the west wall with possible remodelling of the 16th century wall on the east which faces onto the courtyard.

Around the 16th century the south front was made symmetrical, probably by the erection of a further wing on the south-east, producing an overall U-shaped plan to the front range and allowing the entrance to become central by extending the main range slightly to the east. Around the late 16th or 17th century the courtyard was probably enclosed on the north and a second through passage created from north to south, aligned with that in the south range. Around the mid-17th century a barrel-vaulted ceiling was introduced in this range and by 1667 (the date on a fireplace later reset in the south-east wing) a further range was added on the north of the north-west wing with another range on the north of the north-east wing. Also in the 17th century a stair was added in a projection to the rear of the hall and the south front was probably refaced or rebuilt. Around 1700 the main reception rooms, through passage and bedrooms in the south range were panelled.

In the mid-19th century a nursery wing was added to the left (west) of the south range. The north elevation, already partly remodelled with the ground floor entrance altered, was then further remodelled and refenestrated. The angle between the porch and the north-west wing was filled, and a kitchen with clock tower above was inserted between the north-east wing and porch. The north-east wing was partly remodelled, the roof raised and the east wall partly rebuilt, and a further two-storey wing was added to the north-east. Twentieth-century alterations included the demolition of the stair projection with its fine, probably 17th century, plaster ceiling, the resiting of the 17th century stair in the original open hall on the east, and the erection of a loggia along the south wall of the courtyard using the granite columns from the earlier demolished circa 18th century south Doric porch.

The two-storey south front has an attic and cellar on the east with a symmetrical arrangement of 1:3:1 fenestration. Two projecting hipped wings have circa early 19th century stepped stone rubble buttresses probably contemporary with remodelling of the fenestration. An earlier undated painting illustrates the hipped ends of these wings without windows in the ground floor. The central range has a 19th century remodelled entrance with a two-centred moulded stone arch with roll-mould, large spade stops, the initials IFB (John Francis Buller 1818-1890) in the spandrels and a 20th century part-glazed door. This is flanked by two six-light granite mullion windows with central king mullion and late 18th century diagonal glazing bars with lambs tongues and crown glass. The first floor has three four-light granite mullion windows with king mullions and three full dormers with hipped roofs in the attic. The projecting hipped wings have probably early 19th century four-light granite mullion windows in the ground floor with diagonal glazing bars and two six-light granite mullion windows in the side walls with deeply splayed chamfered reveals on the interior and 18th century diagonal glazing bars with lambs tongues and crown glass. The first floor has two smaller four-light granite mullion windows with 18th century glazing bars and smaller four-light mullion windows in the side walls. A 19th century two-storey wing on the left-hand side has a symmetrical two-window front with 19th century fenestration. The lower side wall of the right-hand wing has two projecting 17th century stone rubble chimney stacks and a probably 18th century buttress near the centre. Ovolo-moulded timber lintels mark blocked openings to the cellar with a four-centred heavy roll-moulded entrance with carved spandrels and double plank doors with cover moulds. The ground floor has a small three-light mullion window on the left and three enlarged two-light mullion windows to the right with four three-light mullion windows on the second floor. The north wall has a 19th century casement replacing an earlier probably reset mullion and transom window with cusped headed lights, illustrated in an earlier undated painting of the house.

A 20th century entrance porch stands in the angle of the south-east wing and the east range containing the 15th century open hall. The latter was largely remodelled in the 20th century when probably 18th century sashes were replaced with 20th century fenestration. The range to the right on the north-west, partly rebuilt with the projecting stack removed and eaves raised around the 1830s, has hornless sashes with crown glass inserted in the raised first floor. The north elevation has asymmetrical two and three-storey elevations with much 19th century alteration. The central range of three storeys has a chamfered arch originally to a probable projecting porch, made narrower when the spandrels were re-arranged and the right-hand jamb reset, with 19th century remodelling including two and three-light casements with segmental relieving arches. A three-storey circa 17th century range to the right is partly remodelled with some 18th century rusticated quoins and a 19th century range to the left comprises a kitchen with clock tower above with pyramid slate roof and turret with timber louvers, hipped slate roof and weathervane. A slate-hung two-storey range stands to the far left.

The courtyard is enclosed on four sides, possibly originally with a pentice which connected the north and south ranges with their aligned through passages. The south face of the courtyard was extended with a slate-hung loggia supported on granite columns reused from the south entrance porch around the 1970s. The 16th century west elevation of three storeys has a late 15th or 16th century basket arch to the ground floor on the left, aligning with the through passage in the east range, with a moulded arch with bar stops and, as originally not intended to take a door, may have been reset. A 16th century three-light mullion with casement and moulded surround in the attic has mutilated remains of a similar window below. The north elevation has a three-storey range on the left and a remodelled two-storey range on the right, previously obscured by the stair projection which extended into the courtyard. An entrance in the ground floor was originally wider with re-arranged spandrels and reset jamb.

The interior of the south range was remodelled in the 16th and 17th centuries with a wide passage and parlour and hall of equal size. The through passage has late 17th century bolection moulded panelling with paint stripped off around the 1970s. Fine circa 18th century leathers with silver leaf and later paint are rehung in the parlour on the left, possibly given to the Buller family as part of a dowry. The hall on the right has a large chamfered fireplace with pyramid stops with the lintel truncated on the right and the right-hand jamb reset. Two parlours in the projecting wing on the right (south-east), now one room, have a granite fireplace to the south, probably resited from the north-west range with a chamfered lintel inscribed 'J 1667 B' (John Buller), and chamfered jambs with heart-shaped stops. A probably open hall to the rear of the parlour has a stair reset in the 20th century when moved from the stair projection to the rear of the hall. Fine plasterwork in the projection was also destroyed but an early 20th century photograph illustrates a probably 17th century ceiling, coved and hipped with large swags and figures in deep relief. The stair, circa 1670 and reset as dog-leg, has square panelled newels, ornate carved finials, turned balusters, a reworked 20th century rail and ornate carved closed strings. It is traditionally believed to have come from Keveral Barton, also belonging to the Buller family, in St Martin parish. A fireplace in the hall, possibly mid-17th century, has a segmental arched opening, triangular motif and ball-in-ball relief in the centre.

The first floor has a room on the south previously hung with leathers with circa late 17th century bolection moulded panelling below the chair rail and possibly restored or renewed panelling above. A barrel-vaulted plaster ceiling in the north range probably replaces an earlier similar ceiling with feet of trusses projecting beyond. A 19th century clock in the clock tower on the north-east has a bell from an earlier building, inscribed 'John Buller Bellfound C. P. 1714'.

The roof structure includes the earliest roof above the hall on the east comprising four trusses of circa 15th century date. These are lightly smoke-blackened with cavetto and roll-moulding on the underside of morticed collars and arch braces, with a diagonally-set ridge, the feet of principals boxed in and evidence of possible wind bracing obscured. There is a closing truss on the south and a wall at the north end where probably truncated. The roof above the main range on the south has late 15th or 16th century trusses in the projecting wing on the left, a late 17th century remodelled range in the centre, a late 15th century probably reset truss at the junction of the wing on the right and circa late 16th or 17th century roof trusses to the front right-hand projecting wing. The earlier wing, originally above an open first floor hall or parlour, comprises four trusses with principals with morticed collars and arch braces, now removed, two tiers of holes for threaded purlins and slots for wind braces surviving in some blades. Several moulded ceiling beams in the attic, possibly 16th century, are reused from a room on the ground floor. The central range, probably contemporary with the late 17th century bolection moulded panelling, is partly replaced with remaining trusses with chamfered collars with lapped and oak pegged joints. The right-hand wing has a reset arch-braced truss, probably late 15th century, with grown curved feet, morticed collars, cavetto and chamfered moulded arch braces and trenched purlins. The remainder of the trusses, circa late 16th or 17th century, have a morticed apex, collars with unusual dovetailed notched lapped joints with almost square cut notch below (compare with Bray House, Morval). The west wing to the rear of the main range has a circa late 16th or 17th century roof with reset reduced collars with dovetail notched lapped joints. To the north, above the barrel-vaulted ceiling, the circa early 17th century roof trusses appear to be earlier than the ceiling with morticed apex, cranked collars with dovetailed double notched lapped joints and scarfed trenched purlins. The barrel-vaulted ceiling is probably a replacement of a similar ceiling which originally continued further to the west.

Morval House was the seat of the Glyns (1436-1512), Codes (1512-1659) and Bullers (1659-1890) with considerable documentary evidence surviving. Information from the owner who is researching the history of the house and from paintings in the possession of Major R R B Kitson, owner until 1973. Analysis of the development of the plan was undertaken in collaboration with E. Berry and J. Schofield.