Ockwells Manor

Ockwells Manor
Berkshire
Location
Grid reference:	SU882787
Location:	51°30’8"N, -0°44’27"W
History
	country house
Information

Ockwells Manor is a timber-framed 15th century manor house, with its adjoining estate, by Cox Green, an outer suburb of Maidenhead, in Berkshire. The house and estate are privately owned, though the pressure for development on the land has been restrained because the National Trust owns the benefit of restrictive covenants over the land.

This is one of the most significant buildings in the "Greater Maidenhead" area. Though sorely pressed about by the M4 motorway and the A404(M) spur to the south and east, and by Cox Green's sprawl to the north, the estate retains a rural charm.

The estate was previously in the parish of Bray.

History

Ockwells Manor by Cecil Aldin

Ockwells is an early example of a manor built without fortifications, which Sir Nikolaus Pevsner called "the most refined and the most sophisticated timber-framed mansion in England". It preserves a superb set of contemporary heraldic stained glass in the hall. Many of its bargeboards and other exterior timbers are run with rich mouldings and carved. Herringbone brickwork provides the infill.

The manor was originally given, in 1283, to Richard le Norreys, the chief cook to Queen Eleanor. It passed down through the Norreys family, ending up in the possession of Sir John Norreys, Keeper of the Wardrobe to Henry VI, who starting re-building the manor in 1446.

In the windows of the great hall, Sir John inserted beautiful stained glass, proudly showcasing his Lancastrian connections by displaying the arms of his friends at Court:

King Henry VI Queen Margaret The Duke of Warwick The Duke of Somerset The Duke of Suffolk

The Bishop of Salisbury James Butler, 1st Earl of Wiltshire Sir John Wenlock, Baron Wenlock Baron Mortimer of Chirk Sir William Laken

Sir Richard Nanfan Sir John Langford John Purye Richard Bulstrode Abingdon Abbey

The Norreys family lived there until 1517. At that time, Sir John's great-grandson, also Sir John, had to surrender the estate in return for a pardon after having murdered a certain John Enhold of Nettlebed. Ockwells was then owned by Sir John's uncle, Sir Thomas Fettiplace. It passed through the Fettiplace family, before being owned by the Day family.

References

• Royal Berkshire History: Ockwells Manor