Coughton Court

History

John de Throckmorton, Under Treasurer of England to Henry VI, acquired Coughton in the early 15th century through his marriage to Eleanor de Spiney. There is evidence of a house on the site from the 14th century, with origins reaching back before the Norman Conquest. For much of their tenure the Throckmortons were impoverished, persecuted or imprisoned for holding to the Catholic faith.

Architecture

The Tudor gatehouse, built after 1536, is the oldest surviving part of the house, with hexagonal turrets and oriel windows in the English Renaissance style. It is flanked by wings added later in the Strawberry Hill Gothic style, a fashion popularised by Horace Walpole.

Worth knowing

Coughton Court is said to have sheltered the wives of several Gunpowder Plot conspirators in 1605 while they waited for news from London. The house still holds a collection of Catholic recusant treasures reflecting the family's long adherence to the faith.

Gardens & grounds

The gardens surrounding the house are maintained by the Throckmorton family, who have continued to develop them over the generations.