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Penhallam Manor
Jacobstow |
North Cornwall
NGR: SX 22450 97400 |
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The ruins of the mediæval moated manor house at Penhallam stand on
the level valley floor south of the confluence of two tributaries of
the river Neet in the parish of Jacobstow, North Cornwall. It is
thought to date from the late 12th Century and to have been
abandoned at some point in the mid 14th Century. Whilst moated sites
in England reach a peak during this time, Penhallam represents one
of a minority in the south-west of England and one of only four in
Cornwall. Excavation of its substantial remains along with its
well-documented history have provided a valuable insight into the
social and domestic structure of sites of this type.
The majority of moated manor houses were homes to aristocratic
landowners and records show that Penhallam was part of the honour of
Cardinham, held by Richard Fitz-Turold in 1087 and passed on to his
descendants the de Cardinan family. It was probably this family that
built the moated house here, perhaps as temporary residence or lodge
for use when hunting in the deer park, which they also laid out to
the west. By 1270 it had been inherited by the Champernowne family
who owned it until its eventual dissolution, and was tenanted during
much of the early 14th Century by the Beupre family. In 1319,
Isabella de Beupre obtained a licence from the Bishop of Exeter to
say mass in her oratory at 'Penhallum'.
The manor complex, a quadrangle of buildings around a central open
court, appears to have been constructed during four distinct
building phases. The earliest, dated to around 1180-1200, was the
east range, housing a large rectangular building with an undercroft.
The first floor held the main domestic apartments and had a large
fireplace on the eastern wall. Shortly afterwards a solar and
garderobe (toilet) were added to the northern end. The most
extensive phase of building followed around 1224-1236 and included
the remaining north, south and west ranges. The main hall forms most
of the single storey north range; today remains of a raised dais for
the high table survive at the east end, and stone benches along the
north and south walls. A hearth formed from a re-used millstone was
discovered in front of the dais; excavation uncovered the remains of
a wattle and daub chimney hood. A passage and screen linked the hall
to the solar in the east range.
The service rooms of the manor (the buttery and servery, pantry,
bakehouse and kitchen) were in the west and south-west ranges. In
the brew and bakehouse, a malting kiln and two bread ovens were
discovered. The base of an external stair in the south-west corner
of the courtyard indicates that this range had two storeys. In the
south were possibly the lodgings for the chief retainers and
important visitors; their accommodation included a garderobe. The
eastern ground floor end of the south range contained the chapel
with a raised sanctuary and altar. Some traces of benches are still
visible around the walls and excavation uncovered fragments of
window tracery and painted wall plaster.
Originally the manor was reached by a drawbridge over the moat which
was operated from a separate gatehouse at the edge of the island.
The drawbridge was lowered onto a timber bridge with stone abutments
on the opposite side of the moat. Subsequently, around the later
13th Century a fixed stone bridge was substituted that ran to the
gatehouse entrance from where a walled passage led to an inner
gateway in the south range.
Penhallam is managed by English Heritage: it is open at all times of
the year and entry is free. The site can be reached by a path
through woodlands from a small car park at SX 22463 97965 or by a
public footpath through nearby Bury Court. In nearby Week St Mary,
just west of the church, is a small ringwork or Norman Castle,
possibly the predecessor of the moated manor at Penhallam. Another
moat at Binhamy near Bude is in private ownership.
Sources
Beresford, G, 1971. Berry Court, Jacobstow in Cornish
Archaeology 10, pp95-96.
Wilson, DM and Hurst, G, 1970. Manors and Moats in Journal of
mediæval Archaeology 14, pp189-190. |
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Ground & Aerial photographs |
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