Old Shute House

Old Shute House is a significant medieval manor house, built partly around 1380 by Sir William Bonville, who served as Sheriff of Dorset, Somerset, and Devon. The house underwent extensions in the late 15th century by the Greys, the Marquesses of Dorset, and further alterations in the late 16th century, but much of this was demolished in 1785 when Sir John Pole constructed Shute House.

The building is made of large stone rubble with slate roofs and features embattled parapets. It has a U-shaped plan that surrounds a courtyard, with three and two storey ranges. The original southeast wing from circa 1380 includes a kitchen on the ground floor and a hall above. The northeast wing, dating from the late 15th century, has a polygonal stair turret at its north end and is buttressed on the northeast side, a result of the earlier extensions being removed in 1785. The southwest wing, which serves as a two-storey gatehouse, was built or significantly altered in the 15th century and completes the courtyard. A square tower on the southeast side of the southeast wing likely belongs to the late 15th century additions, although its windows date from the 16th and 17th centuries. Most of the other windows are from the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries.

Inside the southeast wing, the first-floor hall features a roof with arched braces to collar beams and curved wind braces. The hall floor has been raised with an additional storey inserted. There is a newel stair to the hall located in the angle turret within the courtyard. The kitchen contains a large hearth at the south end and a 15th-century screen. The northeast wing includes a fine panelled room on the first floor, dating from around 1660, which has a contemporary chimneypiece and a large cupboard.