Shapwick Manor


Shapwick Manor at Shapwick in the English county of Somerset is a medieval manor house which was rebuilt in the early 17th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.
It is not to be confused with Shapwick House, now a private hotel, to the north of the village.

History

The manor of Shapwick originally belonged to Glastonbury Abbey, forming part of its Pouholt estate in 729. The house was built for the almoner of Glastonbury Abbey in the Middle Ages. A survey in 1327 includes a garden, moat and fishponds.
The manor house dates to around 1475; originally it was moated but the moat was filled in during the rebuilding in the first quarter of the 17th century.
It was rebuilt in the 17th century for Henry Bull an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1660 and 1692. Further extension and restoration of the house took place in the 19th century.
During World War I and II the house was used as a convalescent home for injured servicemen.
Between 1956 and 1981 it was a boarding house for boys at Millfield School.

Architecture

The two-storey stone building has asymmetrical frontage with a glazed veranda supported on iron columns.
The stable block, which was built in the 17th century, is also Grade II listed. The dovecote is medieval but was restored in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a new roof being installed in the 20th century.
The stone screen and flanking walls were built around 1658.