Site of medieval manor and manor house, Woodham Walter Hall, East of Oak Farm Road (EHER 7781)

Partially destroyed. The partial remains of the moated manor house of the Fitzwalters family, demolished by William Fytch in the late 17th century, which survive as building foundations and a series of earthworks. Extensive landscaped gardens including moat and water features also survive as earthworks, see EHER 47422, and the buried remains of a church, EHER 81852.

The following is a brief description of the work which has been undertaken at the manor site. January 1953. Grade II listed. The ruins of a 16th century or earlier manor house. The house was built from red brick with some diapering in black headers, and the wall bases are not continuous above ground. Sections follow the inner wall of the moat and vary in height from ground level to approximately 5m. The remains include buttresses and walls of a former cellar. Thomas, Earl of Sussex succeeded the Manor on the death of his father Henry Fitzwalter 1557. Queen Mary Tudor sheltered here before her accession. It is believed the original Church (EHER 81852) lies within the grounds of the Hall. Thomas obtained a licence from Queen Elizabeth 26 June 1562 to build a new church (EHER 39095) where he should think proper. <1> See photos <2>. July 1962. Field survey. The remains of Woodham Walter Hall are as described by the RCHM (<3>). On the north side of the enclosed area, traces of building foundations were observed as fair raised ridges topped by parched turf. Published survey (25" 1922) revised. <4> <5> October 1976. Field survey The remains of Woodham Walter Hall and the moat (see EHER 47422) surrounding it are as described by <4> above. Published 1:2500 survey revised. <6> In 1973, an attempt was made to bring part of the site under cultivation; however the irregularity of the ground surface made it impossible to use modern harvesting machinery and further attempts at cultivation were abandoned. Nettles, thistles and willow herb rapidly invaded the recently cultivated area and in the next eight years selfsown seedlings of ash, oak and sycamore, some of which reached heights of over three metres, were rapidly turning it into secondary woodland. Many of the elms which had grown up in the moat were affected by Dutch elm disease and were blown down in gales. In 1982 a new owner cleared the area of undergrowth in an attempt to control the rabbit population. The hedge to the west of the site was grubbed up, dead trees were removed from the moat and saplings were pulled up from the house platform. In 1986 the site was sold to the owner of Falconer's Lodge (EHER 7783). <7> 1979. Field survey and desktop assessment. Fieldwork has revealed moulded bricks and stonework (some reused medieval fragments). Some of the stonework mouldings suggest a date in the first half of the 14th century and had been reused as rubble fill for the brick bastions of the Tudor house. An illustration of the moulded brick is in the EHER. Sketch location maps in the EHER show the locations of bricks and stones (drawings of these are also in the EHER). Tile, pottery, bone, oyster shell, coloured glass also mentioned. Bone and oyster shell, pottery were found with brick, tile and dark earth. One map (<8>) suggests this is a house site. There is a documentary reference to a tenement near the pond head in a lease at the Essex Record Office. This map also has other suggestions: a concentration of bones and pottery in the NE corner of the moat is interpretated as a possible kitchen. Vitrified brick material near the SW part of the moat earthworks (the probable garden area) could represent brick clamps. These maps refer the squarish earthwork in the SW part of the moat as a possible formal garden (see EHER 47422), superseding the moat. <8> - <12> Before 1984. Fieldwalking and field survey. A decorated floor tile from around 1300 and 13th century pottery have been found in the field 'to the south and west' of the hall site. Most of the brickwork which encased the bastion at the north west corner of the moat has fallen away exposing a rubble core. Some of the stone has 13th century mouldings and possibly came from the old church (EHER 81852). A possible further pond bay in addition to those noted above is represented by the field bank which divides the meadows in front of The Lodge. <13> 1987-1988. Level 3 field survey. The remains of the sixteenth century brick-built house and associated garden earthworks. The focus of the site was the brick built hall whose remains survive on the distinctive rectangular platform at the centre of the site. The platform has been overploughed along its long axis, slight cultivation ridges on this orientation are visible. Brickwork foundations and walling survive up to 2m along the western and northern sides of the platform, and given an indication of the elaborate architecture. Projecting from the western wall are a number of buttresses and bags. The north western tower arts the western wall. Little of the brickwork facing of the tower remains. On the southern side of the platform the internal brickwork of three sides of a rectangular cellar survives. <14> The remains of the 16th century Woodham Walter Hall are situated at the west end of a distinctive, almost rectangular platform, on the crest of the west side of a natural valley at 40m OD. The Hall is a focus to an extremely well preserved contemporary complex of associated formal garden remains (EHER 47422) which occupy the valley. These include at least two very large ponds retained by massive earthen dams (as mentioned by <4>, see EHER 47422 for more), and a number of smaller ponds or sunken compartments. A walled privy garden lies adjacent to the south side of the hall; only the foundations of the wall are visible, but faint traces of a possible parterre with a cruciform pattern around a central depression were identified in the interior. The platform on which the Hall is situated forms an integral part of the ornamental layout and has previously been mis-interpreted as a water-filled moat. A full descriptive report and large scale survey (1:1000 scale) are held in the National Monuments Record archive, from which this summary is derived. A number of artifacts including pottery and glass were found on the surface and have been sent to Mr D Buckley, County Archaeologist, Essex County Council, for identification and recording. The site of the manorial church was also identified, see EHER 81852. <15> March 1999. Level 1 field survey. In late March 1999, RCHME carried out a Level 1 survey of the site as part of a training course for Essex Gardens Trust. Since the previous RCHME survey, detailed documentary research has been carried out by Mrs Pat Ryan; a copy of this work is held in the NMR archive (<16>). The building was analysed in greater detail by RCHME and the earlier interpretation of the earthworks was re-assessed; the Monarch record was also revised on the basis of the documentary research. The medieval church, moved in around 1562 to make way for the gardens is recorded by NRHE record 380837 (see EHER 81852); [Note: The NRHE record directs the user to 'see also TL 80 NW 20' which is NRHE record 380831, recorded in EHER record 7874, but this is likely to be an error]. A new record was created for the manor's hunting park, NRHE record 314596 (see EHER 81853). The manor of Woodham Walter was granted to Robert, a younger son of the Lord of Clare in Suffolk, early in the 12th century. His descendants, who were known by the name of Fitzwalter, held the manor until 1431, when the male line failed. It then passed by marriage to John Radcliffe, a Household Steward of Henry VII. His son Robert, created Viscount in 1525 and Earl of Sussex in 1542 (contrary to <17>), was probably responsible for building the manor house and extensive gardens which now survive. His son Henry supported Mary Tudor, lending her the manor house when she was planning to escape to France in 1550 (PRO Calendar of State Papers (Spanish) 95 et seq). Henry's son Thomas, 3rd Earl of Sussex, supported Elizabeth I, and in consequence was granted the manor of New Hall, Boreham (EHER 6040) in 1537. This became his main seat, and it seems unlikely that extensive work on the house and gardens would have been carried out after this date. The 4th Earl resided mainly in London and disparked Woodham Walter in 1622 (ERO D/DU 262/2; D/DM T92). In 1637, the manor was sold to Sir William Fytche (ERO D/DM T92), and remained in the possession of the family until its demolition in around 1695. The ruins of the ground floor of the brick-built house are largely consistent with a mid 16th century origin, and the rubble core re-uses earlier material (including a moulded stone from a window) as noted by <3> and <13>. There are a few later additions to the building, including an angle tower on the NW corner. The bay window projecting from the north side of the north wing is also addition and has at least one constructional phase. For comments on the formal gardens and water features see EHER 47422. A short report on the training course was written. <18> <19> June 2010. Scheduled Ancient Monument. The remains of Woodham Walter Hall: an early 16th century house, house platform and associated garden earthworks. The scheduling also includes the buried remains of Woodham Walter old church (EHER 81852), and a section of road to the north of that, both of which appear on aerial photographs. Woodham Walter Hall stood on the west side of a rectangular platform which was built out from the west side of the valley, with deep ditches to north, south and west, and rising 3.5m above the valley bottom to the east. A brickwork revetment survives to a maximum height of 2m along the west and north sides of the platform. At the north-west corner is a tower, its exposed rubble core containing early 14th century brickwork and fragments of worked stone. Other features of the wall footings include buttresses to both west and north, as well as a possible garderobe chute to the north. On the south side of the platform is a cellar with some upstanding brickwork to 1.4m. To the north-west of the cellar plain glazed tiles were uncovered in the course of scrub clearance. Slight earthworks on the house platform to the east of the house indicate a formal garden of terraces and walkways, before the bank slopes down to the lower gardens and the valley bottom, where low earthworks indicate further terraces and walks. At the south-west corner of the house platform is a walled garden. The wall of the house would have formed its north side, and brick foundations survive on the other three sides. Further earthworks to the north, east and south-east of the house platform suggest more informal landscaping, in which the management of water and water features played an important role. For more on the landscaped gardens see EHER 47422. The main access route to the house appears to have been from the west, along a road visible on aerial photographs as a pale cropmark running in a straight line from the road that joins Woodham Walter village to the Maldon road. Woodham Walter Hall is an early 16th century house and garden that seems to have been created as an integrated designed landscape. Its scale and complexity exemplify the ostentation of the new social and political elite, with the continuing rise in the fortunes of the Radcliffe family resulting in their eventually relinquishing the house in favour of the grander New Hall, Boreham (EHER 6040). This relatively brief period of occupation means that the garden retains its early 16th century form; a rare and intact survival from this period, it illustrates the development of the garden aesthetic between the medieval and the post-medieval period. Fragments of more detailed information may also survive, for example garden furniture such as statuary, as well as remains relating to the construction of garden features and to the management of water courses. There may also be surviving evidence of earlier occupation and landscaping. Lower lying areas will hold waterlogged deposits containing palaeobotanical evidence, providing information on the natural and cultivated environment. The remains of the church will provide evidence of its date of construction, and its form and fabric. <20> The remaining is a general description of the site gathered from several sources. History of the manor. The manor of Woodham Walter was granted to Robert, a younger son of the Lord of Clare, by Henry I early in the 12th century. His descendants, who were known by the name of Fitzwalter, from which the second part of the name Woodham Walter is derived, held the manor until 1431 when the male line failed and the estate was brought by the marriage of the heiress to the Radcliffe family. John Radcliffe, steward to the Household of Henry VII, was amongst those involved in the plot to overthrow Henry VII and install Perkin Warbeck in his place in 1496. He was convicted, beheaded and his lands, including the manor of Woodham Walter, confiscated. In 1505 John Radcliffe's estates and honours were restored to his son, Robert, an influential member of the court of Henry VIII. He was given the title of Viscount Fitzwalter in 1525 and created Earl of Sussex in 1542. His children supported the Roman Catholic Mary Tudor in the troubled times after Henry VIII's death. Anne, married Sir Thomas Wharton, one of Mary's household and Henry, the second earl of Sussex, lent the princess the manor house of Woodham Walter, when she planned to escape from England in 1550. Henry's son, Thomas, the third earl of Sussex, was a soldier, statesman and staunch supporter of Elizabeth I. In 1573 she granted the former royal residence of New Hall, Boreham, to him and it became his main country seat. The fourth earl of Sussex was an official in the courts of James I and Charles I and is said to have resided mainly in London. He sold New Hall, Boreham, to the Duke of Buckingham in 1622 and disparked the park at Woodham Walter. His father's cousin, Sir Edward Radcliffe, inherited the estate on his death in 1629. Sir Henry Mildmay of Moulsham had accepted the Radcliffe's Woodham Walter property as security for a loan three months previously and eight years later sold it to Sir William Fytche. The Fytches and their descendants owned the manor for almost 200 years. For the first 37 years, Woodham Walter Hall became the main seat of this branch of the family. William Fytche inherited the property at the age of two, in 1672. <7> The moated manor house of the Fitzwalter family was demolished by William Fytch in the late 17th century. <21> The manor house. Woodham Walter Hall [GT] (Remains of). <22> The remains consist of the bases of walls adjoining the moat of a large house, probably 16th century. The walls are of brick and battered, and some exposed foundations are of rubble and re-used freestone. There are indications of two projecting wings on the west front, with traces of an entrance placed centrally between them. The northern wing had turrets at the NW angle and a projecting turret on the north side. There are remains of buttresses and projections to the southern wing. Within the area of the house is a roofless cellar, probably of the 17th century, with three recesses in the walls. The moat is incomplete and dry. <3> Foundations of a large brick house, probably 16th century, are visible adjoining the moat. These are battered and built of brick, some rubble and freestone. There are indications of two projecting wings on the west front with traces of an entrance placed centrally between them. The north wing had turrets at the NW angle and a projecting turret at the north side. There are the remains of buttresses and projections on the south side. Within the area of the house is a roofless cellar, probably 17th century, with three recesses in the walls. <23> Fragments of late medieval floor tiles have been collected from the ploughed interior of the site, including also a fragment of brown glazed red ware (possibly medieval). A fragment of decorated floor tile was also found, a Danbury product with a Fleur de Lys (type D4), from around 1310-40, from ploughed pasture adjacent to the hall site. The first group of finds (perhaps also the decorated floor tile) are in Colchester Museum. Finds from the ploughed interior of the site included a sherd of brown glazed red ware which is in Colchester Museum. <24> <25> Published plan and short description of the 1988 RCHME survey. The Hall belonged to the Radcliffe family, from 1529 Earls of Sussex. It was superseded as the third earl's principal residence by Elizabeth's gift in 1573 of New Hall, Boreham. Attention is drawn to the apparent elaborate circuitous approach to the house, parallelled at a number of other broadly contemporary gardens. <17> Nothing of the house is visible above ground, apart from the lower courses of a multi-faceted external wall on the north side of the house platform. There is more brickwork on the west side, some of which shows diaper patterning. At the northwest corner is the base of a bastion, possibly either the base of a tower or a viewing platform looking out over the deer park. This is not keyed into the adjoining brickwork, so may be a later addition. Its core contains fragments of worked stone, septaria, clunch, yellow bricks of early CIA date, and red Tudor bricks. There is a brick-built cellar to the southeast. The site is scattered with fragments of brick but no other intact brickwork is visible. <26> There is a copy of the OS map of the earthworks in the EHER. <27> The Scheduled remains of the hall and cropmarks of the church location, trackway and field boundaries were recorded on aerial photographs in 2019. <28> <29> <30> See aerial photographs <31> <32> <33>. See also <34> <35> <36> <37> <38> <39>. Site Assessment: Tree felling in the area to the north, June 1984. <40> Site recommended for scheduling, 1977. <41> Area = 4.10 Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import. NRHE summary description: The manor of Woodham Walter was granted to Robert, a younger son of the Lord of Clare in Suffolk, early in the 12th century. His descendants, who were known by the name of Fitzwalter, held the manor until 1431, when the male line failed. It then passed by marriage to John Radcliffe, a Household Steward of Henry VII. His son Robert, created Earl of Sussex in 1542, was probably responsible for building the manor house and extensive gardens which now survive. In 1637, the manor was sold to Sir William Fytche, and remained in the possession of the family until its demolition in around 1695. The ruins of the ground floor of the brick-built house are largely consistent with a mid-16th century origin, although there are later additions, including an angle tower on the NW corner. The associated formal gardens comprise several very large rectangular ponds retained by massive 'pond bays' and a number of smaller ponds and sunken compartments. For the most part, these survive extremely well as earthworks although ploughing around the outskirts of the main earthwork complex has clearly all but erased a number of slighter garden earthworks. Again, most of the elements are consistent with a mid-16th century origin. However, a square walled garden (the walls surviving only as foundations), with traces of a parterre of cruciform shape, appears to overlie the SW corner of the moat, and may be a somewhat later addition. An early 19th century house, Falconers Lodge, stood on the north dam but has since been demolished. The area is Scheduled. Note: This record is not be confused with the 'new' Woodham Walter Hall, a 17th century house recorded in EHER 39115.