Sutton Court
Encyclopedia
Sutton Court, Stowey
, also known as Stowey Court, is a large English house built on the site of a fourteenth century castle, with sections built in the fifteenth and sixteenth century.
It is in the area of North Somerset
, in an area now part of Bath and North East Somerset
, near to the villages of Bishop Sutton
and Stowey.
rubble throughout with freestone and ashlar
dressings, copings, slate
roofs. The north front comprises a central three storey fourteenth century pele tower
with a taller circular stair turret and two storey ranges linking it to the 1558 'Bess of Hardwick Building' to the left and a four bay 1858-1860 servants' wing of three storeys to the right. Windows to pele tower and right hand linking range are 15th century of two cusped lights with hoodmoulds, some of which have been renewed, and some relocated from other areas. The doorway to the tower daqtes from 1858-60. The windows to the left hand linking range and 'Hardwick Building' are four and six light chamfer
ed mullion
s. The two storey 'Hardwick' range has diagonal offset buttresses. There are eighteenth century battlements to the pele tower
, with tall octagonal ashlar stacks. The manor was built by William de Sutton for Elizabeth Hardwick. Lady St. Loe owned it in 1558 and the Wyatt
restoration and rebuilding was carried out for Sir Edward Strachey.
found asylum here during the Marian Persecutions
, around 1550. John Hooper
Anglican Bishop of Gloucester
and Worcester
was concealed in the house in the 1550s.
About 1558 (former date on a fireplace) Bess of Hardwick
and her third husband Sir William St Loe added a north east wing with a parlour and chapel, which includes Tudor
buttresses. The house was then left to her son Charles Cavendish
, but later the property passed to the Strachey family.
From about 1650-1700 it was the seat of Richard Jones and his son Sir William Jones
, the Attorney General of England. Around 1800 it was the seat of the Strachey family including Richard Strachey
and his brother John Strachey
who entertained John Locke
. Henry Strachey, the 2nd Baronet, became High Sheriff of Somerset
in 1832. Much of the house was remodelled in 1858 by Thomas Henry Wyatt
.
Life at Sutton Court has been described by John St. Loe Strachey in his autobiographical book The Adventure of Living in 1922.
to north of Sutton Court with a gazebo
is also listed. as is the lodge.
Stowey
Stowey is a small village within the Chew Valley in Somerset, England. It lies south of Chew Valley Lake and north of the Mendip Hills, approximately south of Bristol on the A368 road Weston-super-Mare to Bath...
, also known as Stowey Court, is a large English house built on the site of a fourteenth century castle, with sections built in the fifteenth and sixteenth century.
It is in the area of North Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, in an area now part of Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset
Bath and North East Somerset is a unitary authority that was created on 1 April 1996 following the abolition of the County of Avon. It is part of the Ceremonial county of Somerset...
, near to the villages of Bishop Sutton
Bishop Sutton
Bishop Sutton is a small village within the Chew Valley in Somerset. It lies south of Chew Valley Lake and north of the Mendip Hills, approximately ten miles south of Bristol on the A368, Weston-super-Mare to Bath road...
and Stowey.
Construction
Sutton Court is built of squared and coursed sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
rubble throughout with freestone and ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
dressings, copings, slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roofs. The north front comprises a central three storey fourteenth century pele tower
Peel tower
Peel towers are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English and Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, intended as watch towers where signal fires could be lit by the garrison to warn of approaching danger...
with a taller circular stair turret and two storey ranges linking it to the 1558 'Bess of Hardwick Building' to the left and a four bay 1858-1860 servants' wing of three storeys to the right. Windows to pele tower and right hand linking range are 15th century of two cusped lights with hoodmoulds, some of which have been renewed, and some relocated from other areas. The doorway to the tower daqtes from 1858-60. The windows to the left hand linking range and 'Hardwick Building' are four and six light chamfer
Chamfer
A chamfer is a beveled edge connecting two surfaces. If the surfaces are at right angles, the chamfer will typically be symmetrical at 45 degrees. A fillet is the rounding off of an interior corner. A rounding of an exterior corner is called a "round" or a "radius"."Chamfer" is a term commonly...
ed mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
s. The two storey 'Hardwick' range has diagonal offset buttresses. There are eighteenth century battlements to the pele tower
Peel tower
Peel towers are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English and Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, intended as watch towers where signal fires could be lit by the garrison to warn of approaching danger...
, with tall octagonal ashlar stacks. The manor was built by William de Sutton for Elizabeth Hardwick. Lady St. Loe owned it in 1558 and the Wyatt
Thomas Henry Wyatt
Thomas Henry Wyatt was an Irish British architect. He had a prolific and distinguished career, being elected President of the Royal Institute of British Architects 1870-73 and awarded their Royal Gold Medal for Architecture in 1873...
restoration and rebuilding was carried out for Sir Edward Strachey.
History
Wade and Wade in their 1929 book "Somerset" suggest that Bishop HooperJohn Hooper
John Hooper, Johan Hoper, was an English churchman, Anglican Bishop of Gloucester and Worcester. A Protestant Reformer, he was killed during the Marian Persecutions.-Biography:...
found asylum here during the Marian Persecutions
Marian Persecutions
The Marian Persecutions were carried out against religious reformers, Protestants, and other dissenters for their heretical beliefs during the reign of Mary I of England. The excesses of this period were mythologized in the historical record of Foxe's Book of Martyrs...
, around 1550. John Hooper
John Hooper
John Hooper, Johan Hoper, was an English churchman, Anglican Bishop of Gloucester and Worcester. A Protestant Reformer, he was killed during the Marian Persecutions.-Biography:...
Anglican Bishop of Gloucester
Bishop of Gloucester
The Bishop of Gloucester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Gloucester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the County of Gloucestershire and part of the County of Worcestershire and has its see in the City of Gloucester where the seat is located at the Cathedral Church...
and Worcester
Bishop of Worcester
The Bishop of Worcester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury, England. He is the head of the Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury...
was concealed in the house in the 1550s.
About 1558 (former date on a fireplace) Bess of Hardwick
Bess of Hardwick
Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury (c. 1521 – 13 February 1608, known as Bess of Hardwick, was the daughter of John Hardwick, of Derbyshire and Elizabeth Leeke, daughter of Thomas Leeke and Margaret Fox...
and her third husband Sir William St Loe added a north east wing with a parlour and chapel, which includes Tudor
Tudor period
The Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
buttresses. The house was then left to her son Charles Cavendish
Charles Cavendish (Nottingham)
Sir Charles Cavendish was an English aristocrat, Member of Parliament, and patron of philosophers and mathematicians.-Life:He was the younger brother of William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and was knighted by James I in 1619. He was MP for Nottingham in 1624 and 1628, and sat in...
, but later the property passed to the Strachey family.
From about 1650-1700 it was the seat of Richard Jones and his son Sir William Jones
William Jones (law-officer)
-Life:He was son of Richard Jones, of Stowey, Somerset, M.P. for Somerset in 1654, and entered Gray's Inn on 6 May 1647. He was called to the bar, and acquired a practice in the court of king's bench...
, the Attorney General of England. Around 1800 it was the seat of the Strachey family including Richard Strachey
Richard Strachey
Lieutenant-General Sir Richard Strachey, GCSI, FRS , British soldier and Indian administrator, third son of Edward Strachey and grandson of Sir Henry Strachey, 1st Baronet was born on 24 July 1817, at Sutton Court, Stowey, Somerset...
and his brother John Strachey
John Strachey (geologist)
John Strachey was a British geologist.He was born in Chew Magna, England, a member of the Strachey Baronets. He inherited estates including Sutton Court from his father at three years of age. He matriculated at Trinity College, Oxford and was admitted at Middle Temple, London, in 1688...
who entertained John Locke
John Locke
John Locke FRS , widely known as the Father of Liberalism, was an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Francis Bacon, he is equally important to social...
. Henry Strachey, the 2nd Baronet, became High Sheriff of Somerset
High Sheriff of Somerset
The Office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient High Sheriff title which has been in existence for over one thousand years. The position was once a powerful position responsible for collecting taxes and enforcing law and order in Somerset a county in South West England. In modern times the...
in 1832. Much of the house was remodelled in 1858 by Thomas Henry Wyatt
Thomas Henry Wyatt
Thomas Henry Wyatt was an Irish British architect. He had a prolific and distinguished career, being elected President of the Royal Institute of British Architects 1870-73 and awarded their Royal Gold Medal for Architecture in 1873...
.
Life at Sutton Court has been described by John St. Loe Strachey in his autobiographical book The Adventure of Living in 1922.
Listed building
It is a Grade II* listed building. A curtain wallCurtain wall (fortification)
A curtain wall is a defensive wall between two bastions of a castle or fortress.In earlier designs of castle the curtain walls were often built to a considerable height and were fronted by a ditch or moat to make assault difficult....
to north of Sutton Court with a gazebo
Gazebo
A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal, that may be built, in parks, gardens, and spacious public areas. Gazebos are freestanding or attached to a garden wall, roofed, and open on all sides; they provide shade, shelter, ornamental features in a landscape, and a place to rest...
is also listed. as is the lodge.