Manor Farm, Ruislip, London Borough of Hillingdon: A Historic Building Report
Author(s): Geraint Franklin, Linda Hall
Manor Farm, Ruislip, in the London Borough of Hillingdon (formerly in Middlesex) was built in 1505-06 as a manorial home farm of King’s College, Cambridge. It is one element of a multi-period site, comprising a motte and bailey of early Norman date, within which a small, non-conventual Benedictine priory was established in the later 12th century. The manor was sequestrated by the crown and granted to King’s College in 1451. Manor Farm functioned principally as a manorial court hall and secondarily as a working farmhouse. It was leased to an absentee manorial tenant, who in turn subleased the demesne to a resident farmer. The disparity between these functions and sets of occupants may explain some of the building’s idiosyncrasies of planning. Of two storeys, the building has a ground floor of brick and close-studded timber framing above. Its L-plan comprises a three-bay hall range with a coeval two-bay cross wing. Manor Farm is of significance as an early and little-altered example of a fully-floored hall house with an integral stack. It is also a rare example of a documented, early 16th century court hall. Alterations and additions undertaken from the 16th century onwards relate largely to reconfigurations of service functions and circulation within the house.
- Report Number:
- 63/2008
- Series:
- Research Department Reports
- Pages:
- 140
- Keywords:
- Standing Building
