Photo: Sulgrave Manor by Christina Burford, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sulgrave Manor is a Grade I listed historic house in Northamptonshire, and a member of Historic Houses. Read about its history, architecture and gardens, plus how to visit and what's nearby.
About Sulgrave Manor
Sulgrave Manor is a Tudor hall house in Sulgrave, Northamptonshire, built in 1539 for the wool merchant Lawrence Washington, a direct ancestor of George Washington.
The house served as the family seat for two generations before passing out of their hands in 1659.
By the nineteenth century it had become a tenant farmhouse and stood derelict until 1914, when the Anglo-American Peace Centenary Committee purchased it as a memorial to Anglo-American friendship.
Sir Reginald Blomfield oversaw its restoration through the 1920s, and the Sulgrave Manor Trust was established in 1921 to preserve the house.
Today it is covered by Historic Houses, and visitors can view rooms restored to reflect its Washington connections alongside formal gardens also designed by Blomfield.
Read more on WikipediaHistory of Sulgrave Manor
The manor was sold out of the Washington family in 1659 and declined over the following two centuries into a farmhouse let to tenants. In 1911 former US president Theodore Roosevelt proposed a memorial to a century of Anglo-American peace. The Anglo-American Peace Centenary Committee bought the derelict house in 1914 to fulfil that idea. Restoration ran through the 1920s under Sir Reginald Blomfield, and the Sulgrave Manor Trust was formed in 1921 to preserve the house and promote Anglo-American friendship.
Architecture of Sulgrave Manor
The house is a mid-sixteenth century Tudor hall house, substantially altered in the eighteenth century before its twentieth-century restoration by the arts and crafts architect Sir Reginald Blomfield, who also designed the gardens.
Worth knowing
The manor was built by Lawrence Washington, third great-grandfather of George Washington, and its restoration was driven by a transatlantic peace memorial campaign first suggested by former US president Theodore Roosevelt in 1911.
Gardens & grounds at Sulgrave Manor
The gardens were laid out by Sir Reginald Blomfield as part of the 1920s restoration and remain a quiet, formal counterpart to the house.
Facilities
Plan your visit to Sulgrave Manor
Nearest station: Banbury Rail Station (6.9 miles)
Places to visit near Sulgrave Manor
Canons Ashby House
View Canons Ashby House on heritage mapStowe Park and Garden
View Stowe Park and Garden on heritage mapSt John the Baptist's Church, Avon Dassett
View St John the Baptist's Church, Avon Dassett on heritage mapHistoric places nearby
Within 5 miles of Sulgrave Manor there are 1 historic properties, including 1 historic building.
Within 10 miles of Sulgrave Manor there are 5 historic properties, including 1 historic building, 1 church and 1 castle, across National Trust, Churches Conservation Trust and Historic Houses sites.
Within 20 miles of Sulgrave Manor there are 28 historic properties, including 10 historic houses, 8 churchs and 5 historic buildings, across Historic Houses, Churches Conservation Trust and National Trust sites.
Facts
A Tudor farmhouse saved from ruin to become a shrine to George Washington's English roots.
- Type
- historic house
- Location
- Northamptonshire, England
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