Truthall

Truthall is a manor house built in at least three phases: circa late 15th century, circa late 16th century, and 1642, with parts rebuilt and extended circa late 19th century (now forming the separate listing of Truthall House). The 17th-century part was built for the Arundell family.

Construction and Materials

The walls are granite rubble with dressed granite quoins, doorways, windows and other architectural features. The 15th-century range is limewashed at the front. The roofs are mostly scantle slate with many 17th century or earlier handmade crested clay ridge tiles. The roofs have gable ends except where the lower end of the 15th-century range, right, returns to link with the parallel 16th-century range, producing a half hip and an outshut hip behind.

The chimneys comprise: a 16th-century granite rubble chimney, right, over the gable end of the 16th-century range; two granite ashlar chimneys serving the 1642 range, one over a gabled lateral stack to the right-hand wall and one over the rear (south) gable end; a lateral external chimney breast at the rear of the 15th-century hall, left; and another lateral external chimney breast projecting from the left-hand wall of the 17th-century range where it joins the 19th-century house.

Plan and Layout

The overall plan is irregular and U-shaped, including the 19th-century range (a separate listing). The U is closed by a courtyard wall with central entrance (also a separate listing) along the east side. At either side at right angles to the front of the 15th-century range are farm buildings (two separate listings). The left-hand one joins at the front left-hand corner of the 15th-century hall, and the other range is detached, though both may occupy the site of a former late medieval courtyard complex comprising service ranges and farm buildings.

The 15th-Century Range

The 15th-century range is remarkable in that it survives with a four-bay hall still open to the roof with its 15th-century smoke-blackened timbers. The rear lateral fireplace is probably late 16th or early 17th century. There is a wide through passage to the right of the hall with a rubble cross wall at either side. The right-hand cross wall is thicker (approximately two feet in the first floor space where it rises at the apex of the roof) and has a blocked doorway with a pointed arched head. To the right is the lower end room (at lower level), which is unheated.

There is an unheated chamber over the entry, partly jettied over the hall (the jetty carried on a cross beam), and a heated chamber over the lower end. The fireplace breast of the heated chamber is external to the first floor only and carried on granite corbels. This room could have been a kind of solar.

At the left-hand side of the hall, the gable end wall is very thick and may be the original outer extent of the building. However, the only visible corner (rear right) is not very well bonded and lacks proper quoins, so possibly there was an inner room left of the hall, later extended with a service range at the front, now the site of a farm building (a separate listing). A wide doorway was cut in the gable end circa late 19th century.

Behind the lower end room, right, is an external stair, partly roofed by an outshut and leading to a one-room plan two-storey 16th-century wing parallel to the 15th-century range, clasping its rear right-hand corner and extending to the right (west). The 'front' of this wing was mostly rebuilt in the 19th century, but the rear has a three-light first floor window facing into the courtyard. This first floor room is heated by a gable end fireplace (mostly blocked).

The 1642 Range

In 1642 the house was greatly extended at the right and left on the site of the 19th-century house, enclosing the surviving cobbled courtyard. The intention was clearly to make the left-hand (east) side of the 17th-century range (with a datestone over the central doorway) the new front, containing the principal rooms, and to retain the earlier parts as a service wing. However, the function of the two ground floor rooms (now three) seems to have been for a kitchen, front, and buttery, rear (south). There is no stair; perhaps the external stair was the only one, or perhaps there was a stair in the range rebuilt in the 19th century.

The hall/kitchen (now two rooms) has a three-light window on either side of the doorway, left. The doorway leads straight into the room. On the right (west) is a large fireplace with integral hall window bay projection with remains of a two-light window. Adjoining the hall is an apparently unheated inner room with a three-light window, now a pantry, and on its left a passage linking the 17th-century house to the 19th-century house. There is a later stone lateral stack (now blocked) on the left of what is now a middle room, partly blocking the original three-light window—strong evidence that the ground floor has been subdivided.

The first floor rooms are clearly intended to be the principal rooms. Above the hall/kitchen is a large chamber which, like the hall/kitchen, has a lateral fireplace (partly blocked) and an integral 'hall' window bay with a four-light window. Overlooking the courtyard (above the hall/kitchen doorway and datestone) is another four-light window, now divided from the room by an 18th-century partition to make a passage. The heated room beyond has a three-light window in the right-hand (west) wall and a two-light window in the gable end on the right of the fireplace. The left-hand wall adjoins the 19th-century part of the house.

Exterior: North Front of the 15th-Century Range

The north front is one storey and two storey. There are two original 15th-century hall windows left of the doorway and one original ground floor/basement window on the right. The first floor windows are later or altered: one over the doorway partly dormered and one slightly dormered midway to the wall right of the doorway.

The doorway has a wide chamfer with a rebate half way in a four-centred arched head with sunken spandrels and a square hoodmould, possibly slightly later than the front. The door is ledged, probably 18th century.

The freestone (possibly Beerstone) hall windows are probably a unique type in a domestic building in Cornwall. Each tall window has two lights and a transom midway. The lights are cinquefoil headed and have grooves for former leaded glazing. Over each window is a slender square-headed label. The window to the lower end room has three lights with heavy mullions between, holes between the mullions for former stanchions, and rebates possibly for removeable shutters. The window over the doorway is a 19th-century 12-pane horizontal sliding sash and the window to the right is a circa early 20th-century 9-pane horned sash.

Exterior: Rear of the 15th-Century Range

At the rear of the through passage is a chamfered doorway with a four-centred arched head, probably circa late 16th century, with evidence of rebuilt rubble masonry around it. Above the doorway and to the right is a 15th-century chamfered granite wall plate or eaves cornice. Under the cornice are some pigeon holes. Right of the doorway is a probably 17th-century chimney breast with evidence of rebuilt masonry at either side. Right of the chimney breast above head level is a projecting landing stone for pigeons and two more pigeon holes above under the eaves, and right of this is a later window opening, probably 19th century with a 4-pane horned sash.

The lower end room, left, is obscured by the 16th-century wing and a flight of granite steps partly roofed in. At the far left, adjoining the 17th-century range, is a doorway with a reused chamfered lintel over. From within this doorway, which forms a porch under the first floor room, can be seen another doorway leading into the rear of the lower end room. This doorway is probably a former window and has a moulded jambstone on its right. Above the outer doorway is a 16th-century three-light mullioned window with hollow chamfers and rebates for glazing and a square hoodmould over.

At the left-hand gable end of the 15th-century hall is a wide doorway, right, and mounting block left. The doorway is probably 19th century or a 19th-century widening of an older, possibly original, doorway. High up to the left is a squint window opening, piercing the wall at an angle, perhaps even a device for looking into the hall from the chamber over an inner room, if such a room ever existed.

At the right-hand end of the hall range is a ground floor window, left, probably later cut with a 19th-century 12-pane 2-light casement. Above, partly in the gable, is a blocked window, possibly original or 16th century, contemporary with the corbelled out chimney breast towards the angle with the 16th-century wing.

Exterior: 16th-Century Wing and 17th-Century Range

The front of the 16th-century wing was mostly rebuilt in the 19th century and has a doorway, middle, and window over. The right-hand gable end has a window at ground floor right and to the first floor above, both with the original outer frames and stooling for one central mullion, and at ground floor left a small single light chamfered window.

The line of the 17th-century range projects slightly from towards the right of this gable end. The windows on this side (west) of the 17th-century range are complete with their mullions except for the kitchen window, originally a two-light window now with a circa early 19th-century 16-pane hornless sash. On the left of the chimney breast is a small blocked window, perhaps serving a former stair.

The east wall (entrance front) of the 17th-century range has a mid-floor continuous hoodmould string. The chamfered doorway is square-headed and rebated internally for a door (now a 4-panel door). Over the doorway carved in relief on a granite plaque is the inscription: 1642 and IA over MA. The windows are complete with chamfered mullions and are fitted with 19th-century or later casements. Originally probably a symmetrical front; a chimney breast, left, obscures the left-hand light of the ground floor left-hand window.

There is a two-light mullioned window in the rear (south) gable end.

Interior: 15th-Century Hall

The 15th-century hall has a remarkable arch-braced roof structure with reduced principals over the arched collars. The lower bracing is really in the form of a jointed cruck slip-tenoned to the underside of the principal rafter and side pegged. The upper bracing is jointed in a similar way both to the principal rafter and to the underside of the collar. The centre of the arch is another piece of timber. All the bracing is chamfered.

The original lower purlins do not survive but the mortices just below collar level indicate former threaded purlins. The square-set purlins above the collars are clasped between three pieces of timber on each truss: a bird's-mouth joint at the top of the principal rafter, the reduced upper principal rafter and a fat inner vertical strut. The ridge purlin does not survive, nor do two of the apices, but one apex appears to be morticed together.

All the original oak is smoke-blackened, proving that there was originally an open hearth. The deposit of soot from the wood fire is heavier at the middle and lower end of the hall (right). The floor has been raised but still follows the slope of the land. The large granite fireplace is square-headed and hollow chamfered.

The screen wall at the lower end of the hall and the associated timberwork of the floors, jetty and partition above are clearly very old, but not original. There is now no access from the through passage to the lower end, but there are two blocked openings including a doorway with a pointed arch (perhaps in situ or reused from the front of the passage). The lower end room has a plain plaster ceiling. The roof structure of the chamber above is mostly hidden and the parts that can be seen are possibly 18th century.

Interior: 17th-Century Range

In the 17th-century part of the house the features are fairly simple or hidden. The large hall fireplace is chamfered. In the chamber above is the most interesting surviving feature: a deeply coved 17th-century plaster ceiling with moulded upper and lower cornices. The room now has a passage at one side but the ceiling continues over. The doors are mostly 18th century with fielded panels and HL hinges.

Between the 16th-century wing and the 17th-century range on the first floor is a chamfered granite doorway. The roof structures over the 16th-century wing and the 17th-century range were not accessible at the time of the survey but are probably original.

Historical Background

Truthall is mentioned in the Domesday book. John de Truthall represented Helston in parliament in 1326. After the Reformation Truthall was occupied by the Nance family, one of whom also represented Helston in parliament in 1553. In 1557 it transferred to Sir John Arundel.

Significance

Truthall is one of the most interesting early houses in Cornwall, remarkable for its survival still with an open hall, and extended in a most interesting way in both the 16th and the 17th centuries. Arguably the very best features are the 15th-century hall windows and the original hall roof, a remarkable structure using only short lengths of timber. This is a house which deserves further study, preferably including carefully drawn plan, elevations and sections. A comparison can be made to Methrose in Luxulyan parish, also still with an open hall, a similar roof structure and extended in the 16th century in a similar way to how Truthall was extended in the 17th century.