Manor Farmhouse And Dovecote

Manor Farmhouse and dovecote is an early 16th-century manor house, with a 20th-century extension to the rear left. It is constructed of coursed, squared, and dressed limestone, with a limestone slate roof, limestone gable coping, and ashlar stacks. The house has an ‘E’ shaped plan, including a two-cell dovecote attached to the right. The central gable projects, and the gable end of the dovecote projects forwards in a similar manner on the far right. An asymmetrical gable end is set back in relation to the others on the far left. The house is two storeys and has a garret.

The fenestration is irregular, with 2, 3, and 4-light double-chamfered stone mullioned casements, each with stopped hoods and stilted heads with carved spandrels. A similar 4-light window with a transom is located on the first floor of the left gable. A 3-light double-chamfered stone mullioned casement with a hood is present in a half dormer between the central gable and the dovecote. All windows have leaded panes, some retaining their original glass. A 6-panelled door is set within a wood surround under a pointed arched hood with stops at the left gable end. A plank door with early hinges is within a flat-chamfered Tudor arched surround with a stopped hood at the gable end of the dovecote. The dovecote features two square wood lanterns with pyramidal roofs. Twin diagonal axial stacks are located far right, each with moulded caps, along with a similar, but square, twin central axial stack. A large square stack rises from the eaves on the left. The gable-end coping is flat, with roll-cross saddles.

On the rear of the house are two Cotswold dormers to the left of the dovecote, stepped buttresses, and a small rectangular fire window. The interior includes a flagged floor to the former dairy on the left, the remains of a cross passage, and pointed arches at the top and bottom of a stone spiral staircase to the right of the front door. There is a probable former central open hall, now with a room inserted in the roof space, featuring a raised cruck-type roof construction. Two panels of stained glass are present, one bearing the initials “I B” with a bishop’s crozier between - a reference to a monument in the Church of St. Mary and commemorating John Beale, who died in 1774 and was a former occupant.

The house is reputed to have been a summer residence of the Bishops of Oxford, and prior to that was likely associated with the Knights Templar, who founded a preceptory in Temple Guiting in the mid-12th century.