The Manor is a mansion in the Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

 suburb of Mosman

Mosman, New South Wales

Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the Municipality of Mosman.-Localities:In February...

. Built circa 1911 loosely in the Federation style, it stands in the harbour front street of Iluka Road, in the Mosman locality of Clifton Gardens.

The manor's original owner, a Mr Bakewell, initially planned a cottage of eight rooms, but the project kept growing until it was a mansion with over thirty rooms, most of which were lined with beaten copper. It became known locally as Bakewell's Folly. In 1922, the Theosophical Society

Theosophical Society

The Theosophical Society is an organization formed in 1875 to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy. The original organization, after splits and realignments has several successors...

 rented The Manor for a community of some fifty people, headed by Charles Leadbeater, a claimed clairvoyant, and a heavyweight in the Society. The Manor became an important centre for the Society and was regarded as a great "occult forcing-house".

The English writer Mary Lutyens

Mary Lutyens

Edith Mary Lutyens was a British author who is principally known for her authoritative biographical works on the philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti.-Early life:...

 stayed at The Manor in the 1920s and described it as "a huge and hideous villa". The young Indian Jiddu Krishnamurti

Jiddu Krishnamurti

Jiddu Krishnamurti or J. Krishnamurti or , was a renowned writer and speaker on philosophical and spiritual subjects. His subject matter included: psychological revolution, the nature of the mind, meditation, human relationships, and bringing about positive change in society...

, who was presented as the new "World Teacher", was staying in nearby David Street with his brother Nitya while Lutyens—his eventual biographer—stayed at The Manor.

The Theosophical Society bought the house in 1925, holding it under a trust deed. In 1951, they set up The Manor Foundation Ltd to own and run the house. The Society still uses The Manor today.

See also

• Heritage homes of Sydney
  Heritage homes of Sydney
  The following houses in Sydney, Australia are listed on the Register of the National Estate and/or the State Heritage Register of New South Wales:-1790s:* Elizabeth Farm* Experiment Farm Cottage* Old Government House-1830s:* Camden Park* Elizabeth Bay House...