Monument record 4760/1/3 - Formal Gardens, Paulerspury Manor

The gardens of the post-medieval manor were laid out at the beginning of the 17th century and included terraces, waterworks and a bowling green

{1} Manorial earthwork boundary may have enclosed a formal garden belonging to the manor house;

Aerial photos NCCAP: SP7145/001+004-006

{3} The surviving portion of Throckmorton's diary ends in 1595 and when it resumes in 1609 he was laying out new gardens around his house, engaging a carpenter named Truslowe to make doors and masons named Russell to build the walls. A gardener called Bilson came from Mixbury (Oxon.) in September that year to design gardens, although he and his son broke their contract almost at once, and advice was also obtained from Lord Stanhope's gardener at Harrington, a man named Daniel, and from the gardener at Holdenby. Terraces were laid out across the slope which runs down from the house towards the stream which bounds the site to the north, a causeway was built from the mansion to the churchyard, and seats were made for the garden, including one near the bowling place. Fruit trees, including apricots, were trained and spread in espaliers against one of the walls (presumably southfacing) of the mansion. In January 1611 Throckmorton bought thousands of privet sets and willow twigs for hedging and also timber from Grafton Park for hedging and ditching his fields. Painters from Stony Stratford came to oil and colour his rails. In the spring of 1611 waterworks were being installed and by July the long walk in the great garden had been levelled.

{4} A trial trench was cut at right angles across the two terraces in 1972. Two deeply cut V-shaped ditches were exposed, the upper containing medieval sherds and a fragment of vine stem, while the lower contained Roman coarsewares including a fragment of mortarium.

<1> Royal Commission on The Historical Monuments of England, 1982, An Inventory of The Historical Monuments in The County of Northampton, p.113/Site 13 (checked) (Series). SNN77382.

<2> Mowl T.; Hickman C., 2008, The Historic Gardens of England: Northamptonshire, (unchecked) (Series). SNN106082.

<3> Riden P.; Insley C., 2002, The Victoria History of the Counties of England: Northamptonshire, p. 255 (Series). SNN102540.

<4> 1973, Northamptonshire Archaeology, 8/21 (Series). SNN101648.

Record last edited

Mar 29 2019 11:52AM