Monument record 1168/5 - Wicken Manor

The manor of Wick Dive was one of two medieval manors at Wicken. It was located to the north-west of the churchyard.

{1} In 1281 the capital messuage with garden was valued at 8s a year with a dovecote worth an additional 2s per annum. It was still known as the manor house in 1670, when it was let with a farm of about 440 acres, after rebuilding in 1620 by Robert Spencer. In 1679 the house was called the ‘porter’s lodge’. This change confirms the belief that the rest of the buildings were demolished during Lord Sunderland’s (Robert Spencer) time and only the gatehouse left standing. The remains of a medieval dovecote have been recently discovered within the manorial complex of Wick Dive. The surrounding earthworks suggest a probable 13th century redesign, a theory supported by the regularity of the associated building plots.
The manor stayed within the family until 1712 when Countess Anne Spencer left all her real estate to trustees. Four years later the manor, manor house and Advowson of Wicken was sold to the London merchant Charles Hosier. The estate passed to Thomas Prowse by marriage in 1750 and his family settled there until 1810, when the manor house was let out once again. After a number of different tenants the manor was eventually bought by the Merchant Venturers in 1944.

{2} In 1427 the manor was described as comprising a hall, chamber, kitchen and barn, worth nothing yearly, and a dovecote, woth 2s a year. At this time the manor was occupied by William Lucy and his wife Margaret, tenants of Edmund Earl of March.

<1> WESSEX ARCHAEOLOGY, 2008, Wicken, Northamptonshire: Archaeological Evaluation and Assessment of Results, p.3 (checked) (Report). SNN106395.

<2> Page, M. and Jones, R., 2004, The Whittlewood Project: Excavation of a medieval manor at Wicken, 2004 (Article). SNN111297.

Record last edited

Dec 6 2018 10:07AM