Monument record 4341/3/1 - Kelmarsh Old Hall

Former hall probably built in the early 17th century shortly after Sir John Hanbury purchased the manor. It was probably demolished when the current hall was built. Its location is unknown.

{1} "….of those [Renaissance houses] that have been rebuilt Kelmarsh Hall was perhaps finest judging by view given in Bridges".

{2} Present house replaced substantial but little-known C17th house which resembled Pytchley; probably located nearer church to south of present house; faced eastwards; H or half-H in plan; Hanbury may have incorporated hall of older building. Kelmarsh was bought in 1618 by London merchant Sir John Hanbury; he appears to have built new house or completely remodelled the old one soon after moving to Kelmarsh in 1620. His great-great-grandson William Hanbury inherited the estate in 1721 and after coming of age demolished the old Jacobean house and built the present house on a new site. William was man of literary and antiquarian tastes and became a Fellow of The Society of Antiquaries.

{3} Illustration: east view of old hall at Kelmarsh….seat of late Thomas Hanbury Esq.

{5} It is uncertain when the hall was constructed, but may have been shortly after Sir John Hanbury, a freeman of the Merchant Taylors Company of london, bought the manor in 1618, but he did not leave London for Kelmarsh until 1620. Says that manor house was situated on Clipston side of what is now known as Shipley Spinney, the foundations of building are still visible, and until recently ancient yew trees stood near the spot.

{6} No trace of the old house exists today, and it seems possible that William Hanbury demolished it when building the new house. This is surprising because William was interested in antiquarian matters, in 1740 being elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.
A date close to 1618 would be quite possible from the architectural style shown in the Mynde engraving.The Hanbury arms appear on the porch, not those of the pre 1618 owners of the manor, the Osbornes. It was however a traditional sort of building such as might have been put up at any time between 1590 and 1625, in marked contrast to Gibbs' hall of 1732.
Earthworks at Kelmarsh have been identified as a Civil War defensive siege-work. This connection could point to the possibility that the Old Hall was slighted during the Civil War, prompting later statements that it was unfurnished. It is recorded that in 1642 a Colonel Hutchinson escaped from Leicestershire to the house of a yeoman in Kelmarsh. He is reported to have converted the Hanburys from the Royalist to the Parliamentary cause.
In 1665 Hanbury had permission, when Sheriff of Northamptonshire, to live outside its boundaries as his house was unfurnished. He got seriously into debt and fled to the Low Countries in 1679 to escape his creditors. He died in The Hague in 1687, where he was buried. For this reason it is likely that the Old Hall became delapidated, although Bridges stated that it was "a very good mansion house".
The site of the Hanbury manor house is still not known, but is supposed to have stood on the eastern side of the sconce, as the latter’s western side was most heavily fortified. During levelling of the area a bog was dug out, the former site of a blacksmith’s forge and later stables. This produced many large pieces of dressed stone, probably from the Old Hall, which had clearly been re-used as hardcore to fill the wet place in the grounds. Further examination revealed an area of nails, tiles, and pot sherds which may indicate the original location of the building. The foundations appear to lie at a depth below that likely for the ploughsoil. (The given location is vague.)

{7} The character of the work ponts to 1618 as being quite probably its date, and it is on record that Sir John Hanbury came to live at Kelmarsh in 1620. In 1665 Hanbury had permission, when Sheriff of Northamptonshire, to live outside its boundaries as his house was "wholly unfurnished".

{9} Clearing of a marshy area some 300yds to the north of the earthworks [Mon 4230/1], revealed carved and dressed stone used as hard core from the nearby razed Kelmarsh Manor, the home of the Hanbury family who changed sides from Royalist to Parliament in about 1642, when the manor was destroyed during local hostilities.

{10} This house was built, or more likely an existing house remodeled in 1618. It is shown on an engraving by J Mynde as a 17th-century building of H or half-H plan with a two-storey main range of seven bays, a central porch and two long crosswings. The fact that the crosswings are taller than the main block, a very unusual feature for a newly built house of this period, suggests that Hanbury may have incorporated the hail of an older building into his new house. Thus the medieval and the 17th-century manor house at Kelmarsh were probably on the same site. Where was this? The best suggestion is that the road in the engraving is one on the line of the existing drive. This would place the early 17th-century house immediately south of the Hail and south-east of the walled garden. The form of the surviving earthworks in that area, very flat, rounded and largely uninterpretible are typical of those where a building or buildings have been deliberately demolished and cleared away as this manor house was in c1728.

<1> Gotch J.A., 1890, The Renaissance in Northamptonshire, 87-114 (checked) (Paper/s). SNN42225.

<2> Heward J.; Taylor R., 1996, The Country Houses of Northamptonshire, p.240-41 (checked) (Book). SNN41757.

<3> Bridges J., 1791, The History and Antiquities of Northamptonshire, p.39-40 (checked) (Book). SNN77326.

<4> MYNDE J., 1700, The East View of The Old Hall at Kelmarsh in Northamptonshire, Seat of The Late Thomas Hanbury Esq., BB88/5562 (unchecked) (Engraving). SNN56252.

<5> WALL J.C., 1927, Kelmarsh, A Parochial History, (unchecked) (Book). SNN41737.

<6> Brown G., 1969, The Old Manor House at Kelmarsh and A Civil War Fortification, p.7 (checked) (Report). SNN57929.

<7> Gotch J.A., 1939, Squires' Homes and Other Old Buildings of Northamptonshire, (unchecked) (Book). SNN39616.

<8> 1905, Memoirs of The Life of Colonel Hutchinson, p.123 (unchecked) (Report). SNN106188.

<9> SOCIETY FOR POST MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY, 1969, Post-Medieval Archaeology (3), p.197 (checked) (Journal). SNN55353.

<10> Taylor C.C., 2000, Kelmarsh Estate Report, (unchecked) (Report). SNN101314.

<11> ENGLISH HERITAGE, 2009, A Landscape Detective's Look at Kelmarsh Hall (Leaflet). SNN106892.

Record last edited

Oct 24 2024 11:40AM