Trewane

Details

SX 07 NW ST KEW 5/182 Trewane (previously Trewarne) 25.10.51 GV II* Manor house. Possibly early C17. Built for Nicholls family. Ashlar and stone rubble with large granite quoins and dressings. Scantle slate roof with hipped ends to main range; regular slate roof with gable end to rear wing on right (east) and stair tower in angle of main range and rear wing with scantle slate roof and hipped ends. Rear lateral, originally axial stack to rear of parlour on left (west); circa early C17 granite ashlar with moulded strings and moulded granite cap. Axial hall stack at junction of main range and rear stair tower; granite ashlar with moulded cap removed. Circa early C17 axial granite stack with moulded cap on rear (east) wing. Circa C20 brick stack rising from valley at junction between east wing and stair tower, heating the dining room and main chamber above. Main range faces south; wide through passage in great parlour at lower side on left (west) and hall on higher side on right (east). Dining room in rear wing behind hall and stair in tower to rear in angle between hall and dining room. A service range was demolished and continued in a wing to the rear of the parlour. The great parlour is heated by a rear lateral stack, originally an axial stack prior to the demolition of the rear service wing. The weathering on this stack indicates that the service range was lower and continued at right angles to the main range. The hall fireplace on the north wall is heated by an axial stack which backs onto the stair projection. The dining room fireplace on the west wall is served by a stack positioned in the valley running between the rear wing and stair projection. Entrances to the stairtower lead from the dining room and hall. In circa late C18 or early C19 a 2-storey lean-to range was added to the rear of the through passage. This provided access to the stair from a corridor running at right angles to the rear of the passage. On the first floor it also provided access to the stair from the two chambers above the great parlour. This addition was probably contemporary with the demolition of the service range which would have probably housed the second stair. The two storey main range and east wing has been suggested by Maclean, Gilbert and Dalton-Clifford to have originally had a third storey. This is possibly indicated by the truncated three-storey stair tower and the string-course above the first floor. However, the early C17 roof structure remains intact and the house is more likely to have had a parapet arrangement above the moulded string course. Evidence for the reduction in height of the stair tower is indicated by several truncated blocked windows and the possible remains of a stone newel stair which would have provided access to a third floor A tower such as this would be fairly common in an early C17 house of this quality. Symmetrical five window south front with moulded granite plinth and strings. Central entrance with 4-centred granite arch with roll mould, vase-ball stops and incised spandrels. Hoodmould with possibly Maltese crosses in dripstones. Two lofty 4-light mullion and transom windows light the great parlour on the left and hall on the right. First floor with five 3-light mullioned windows. East elevation to rear wing on right with two lofty 4-light mullion and transom windows on ground floor, the left hand window lighting the hall and the right hand window the dining room. Three 3- light muillion windows above. Rear elevation with stair tower rising above main range. Several mullion windows blocked. Wall to rear of great parlour rebuilt when service wing demolished. Kitchen added in single storey range to rear of east wing in mid C20; stone rubble with hipped slate roof. Interior: High ceilings throughout ground floor with unmoulded ceiling beams. Wide through passage with entrances slightly offset. Rear entrance of original range with 4-centred granite arch with ovolo moulding on north side. Great parlour remodelled in C19 and C20 with C20 grate. Hall lit by three mullion and transom windows; large granite fireplace on north wall with chamfered jambs and lintel and outer roll moulded frame. To left of the fireplace the door leading into the stair tower has a four-centred granite arch with hollow chamfer and incised spandrels. The circa early C17 double lapped oak door has been restored with the framing removed and front skin replaced. To right of the fireplace the door leading into the dining room has a similar 4- centred granite arch. In the dining room the circa early C17 granite fireplace has been reused from elsewhere in the house and has chamfered jambs and lintel with roll mould. The lintel is decorated with an incised triangular motif and central carved rosette. Above a plasterwork achievement in high relief with arms of Nicholls impaling mohuns, to commemorate the marriage of the 4th John Nicholls with Brigett, daughter of Sir Reginald Mohun in 1635. This achievement, which is of high quality, was probably originally in the chamber above the great parlour (Described insitu by Maclean in 1879). To the left of this fireplace is a door leading into the stair projection. It has a simple four-centred chamfered granite arch with rounded stepped stops. The early C17 oak door is of double construction with a scratch moulded panelled frame and strap hinges. The iron studding has been removed. The wide oak framed circa early C17 stair rises gradually with 1½ revolutions between the ground and first floor, continuing to give access to the attic. Small bathroom on landing between ground and first floor with C17 ovolo moulded oak doorframe. The principal chamber above the dining room has a circa early C17 granite fireplace with chamfered jambs and lintel, outer roll mould, incised central triangular motif and ball finial. The circa mid C17 surrounding chimneypiece has a moulded mantlepiece decorated with carved rosettes and the overmantle above is flanked by Composite columns on tall bases. The circa mid C17 overmantle is of particularly high quality depicting in plasterwork of high relief, a lively scene with Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac. The text in a scroll above reads Old Abraham Hold Thy hand It doth suffice God loveth obedience More then sacrifice The ceiling of this chamber has probably been lowered. In the chamber above the hall a similar fireplace and chimneypiece is ornamented with a plasterwork achievement in high relief. This circa mid C17 overmantle is also of particularly high quality and the escutcheon carries the arms of the Nicholls. The ceiling has been lowered and fragments of the ornate plaster frieze survive in the attic above. The partitions to the chambers above the parlour have been remodelled and a circa mid C17 fireplace is now positioned in a corridor along the north wall. The circa early C17 roof structure remains almost intact; the principals are chamfered and stopped, mortices at the apices and morticed into tie beams. The purlins are trenched (now replaced) and collars have-been introduced. The roof structure to the north of the east wing was not inspected. First records of the estate appear to date from 1304. It came into the possession of the Nicholls family in the early C16 and Maclean suggests that Charles II sheltered in Trewane in 1646. C19 descriptions of the house record plasterwork of high quality; Hitchens and Drew in History of Cornwall, 1817, describe the rooms as "spacious and lofty with rich ceilings and cornices beautifully wrought, and the walls highly ornamented with emblems of sacred and profane history in figures two to five feet high in Plaster of Paris." Gilbert, in 1820, records that the hall was "ornamented by curious carved work and many composition figures" including Justice, Abraham, Isiah and King Solomon with numerous attendant". This early C17 manor house with it's mid C17 plasterwork is of a high quality especially rare in Cornwall. Dalton-Clifford, H 'A Cornish Manor Rich in Legend' Countrylife, September 13, 1962, 576-577 Gilbert, C.S An Historical Survey of the Count of Cornwall 1817 Maclean, Sir J The Parochial and Family History of the Deanery of Trigg Minor in the County of Cornwall, 1879 Information from owner.

Listing NGR: SX0403178583

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

351522

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Gilbert, C S, An Historical Survey of the County of Cornwall, (1817)
Maclean, J, Parochial and Family History of the Deanery of Trigg Minor in the County of Cornwall, (1879)
Country Life in 13 September, (1962), 576-577

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.