Abbey House

Abbey House is a former priest's house dating to the 15th century and later, situated in South Cadbury. It is constructed of local lias stone rubble, with some rendered sections, and features dressings of Doulting stone. The roof is double Roman clay tile with plain gables, and brick chimney stacks are present.

The south elevation, which serves as the entrance front, is two storeys with five bays. Bay 3 projects as a two-storey porch. The westernmost two bays represent the oldest part of the building and contain hollow-chamfered mullioned windows with 4-centred arched lights and labels. Other windows have flat-headed lights, most being two-light, with the exception of a three-light window in bay 5. A horizontal bar casement window is found in the upper bay 4. The porch to bay 3 has a plain doorway with a part-glazed inner door on a heavy frame. The west gable features a four-light hollow-chamfered mullioned window with flat-headed lights and early external ironwork, set in a plain recess without a label. Above this is a centrally located two-light 15th-century traceried pointed arched window without a label. The gable crown is clad with boarding.

The north elevation, facing the road, has seven bays. Most windows are two-light; bay 1 features a hollow-chamfered mullioned window with a flat head and no label below, and an ovolo-mould mullioned window with a label above. Bay 2 incorporates a 4-centred arched window with a square label below a blank space above. Bay 3 has an inserted timber lintol beneath a flat-headed window, and an early casement window above, with both rectangular and diamond-leaded panes. Bays 4 and 6 have near-triangular arched light windows at the upper level, with a three-centre arched window between them, all without labels; bay 5 contains a three-light casement window under a timber lintol. Lean-to porches are found in bays 4 and 6. A substantial projecting chimney stack is situated in bay 7, alongside an angled corner buttress with offsets to the northwest.

The east gable exhibits an oven projection, a leaded casement window, a 20th-century window, and some unexplained corbel brackets. Inside, the east gable contains a wide, open fireplace with an elm beam, a side oven, and a possible curing chamber above. The east room boasts a roughly chamfered cross beam, while the west room contains a fine moulded fireplace with a nearly triangular arch, likely dating to the early 15th century. A staircase from around 1800 is also present. A northwest corner bedroom has a chamfered fireplace with a triangular arched lintol. Several two-panel doors are found on the first floor. The roof frame consists of A-frame collar trusses at the east end, followed by four arch-braced curved collar-trusses with two purlins on each slope, with lower and middle sections arch-windbraced.

The building was likely erected by the Montacute family, who held lands in the area from the Norman Conquest until the end of the 15th century.