Bradley House, or Maiden Bradley House, is a

country house An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

in the village of

Maiden Bradley Maiden Bradley is a village in south-west Wiltshire, England, about south-west of Warminster and bordering the county of Somerset. The B3092 road between Frome and Mere forms the village street. Bradley House, the seat of the Duke of Somerset, ...

, Wiltshire, England, between the great country estates of

Stourhead Stourhead () is a 1,072-hectare (2,650-acre) estate at the source of the River Stour in the southwest of the English county of Wiltshire, extending into Somerset. The estate is about northwest of the town of Mere and includes a Grade I listed ...

and

Longleat Longleat is an English stately home and the seat of the Marquesses of Bath. A leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, it is adjacent to the village of Horningsham and near the towns of Warminster and Westbury in Wiltshire, ...

. It is the family home of the

Duke of Somerset Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

, having been in the Seymour family for over 300 years. The house is an 1820s remodelling of the west wing of a much larger house which had been completed in the early 18th century. Bradley House is listed Grade II on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, an ...

History of the manor

According to

William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and the ''Annal ...

, the manor was named after the daughter of

Manasser Biset Manasser Biset (sometimes Bisset or Manasseh Biset;Friend "Master Odo" ''Speculum'' p. 642 died 1177) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and royal official during the reign of King Henry II of England. Biset was one of the most frequent witnesses o ...

, who during the reign of King Henry II (1154–1189) had found herself infected with

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

and had founded on the site a hospital for women lepers. This account was dismissed as a fable by

Gough Gough ( ) is a surname. The surname probably derives from the Welsh (English: "red"), given as a nickname to someone with red hair or a red complexion or as a reduced form of the Irish McGough which itself is an Anglicized form of Gaelic , a patro ...

and Tanner, who asserted it had been founded by Manasser Bisset himself. In about 1190 it was converted into an Augustinian priory by Hubert, Bishop of Salisbury. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries,

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

granted the priory to Edward Seymour, 1st Viscount Beauchamp (c.1500–1552) (later 1st

and Lord Protector), the eldest brother of his third

wife A wife (plural, : wives) is a female in a marital relationship. A woman who has separated from her partner continues to be a wife until the marriage is legally Dissolution (law), dissolved with a divorce judgement. On the death of her partner, ...

Queen

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (c. 150824 October 1537) was List of English consorts, Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII of England from their Wives of Henry VIII, marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen followi ...

(d.1537), and mother of the future King

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

(1547–1553). It then descended briefly to

Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Baron Beauchamp, KG (22 May 1539 – 6 April 1621), of Wulfhall and Totnam Lodge in Great Bedwyn, Wiltshire, of Hatch Beauchamp in Somerset, of Netley Abbey, Hampshire, and of Hertford House, Cannon R ...

(1539–1621), the 1st Duke's eldest surviving son by his second marriage, whom he had made his heir, having suspected the legitimacy of his two sons from his first marriage, John Seymour (1527–1552) and Lord Edward Seymour (1529–1593) of

Berry Pomeroy Berry Pomeroy is a village and civil parish in the South Hams district of Devon, England, east of the town of Totnes. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Ipplepen, Marldon, Torbay (unitary authority), Stoke Gabri ...

, Devon, whom in 1540 he excluded from their paternal and maternal inheritances with all their claims to their father's dignities being postponed to his children by his second wife. John petitioned parliament for the restoration of his maternal inheritance, but as the lands had been sold, he was awarded compensation in the form of the estate of Maiden Bradley. He did not live to enjoy the grant and died in the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

, having bequeathed the estate with all his other lands and goods to his younger brother Lord Edward Seymour, ancestor of the present Duke of Somerset, whose seat it remains today.

House

Construction of the house was started by Sir Edward Seymour, 3rd Baronet Seymour of Berry Pomeroy (1610–1688). In about 1688 his son

Sir Edward Seymour, 4th Baronet Sir Edward Seymour, of Berry Pomeroy, 4th Baronet, MP (1632/1633 – 17 February 1708) was a British nobleman, and a Royalist and Tory politician. Life Born at Berry Pomeroy Castle in Devon, of a family greatly influential in the Western coun ...

abandoned the previous family seat of

Berry Pomeroy Castle Berry Pomeroy Castle, a Tudor mansion within the walls of an earlier castle, is near the village of Berry Pomeroy, in South Devon, England. It was built in the late 15th century by the Pomeroy family which had held the land since the 11th centur ...

in Devon, and used the proceeds derived from stripping the castle to fund improvements to the new house at Maiden Bradley. This new Bradley House was completed in about 1710. It was a large building: a plate in ''

Vitruvius Britannicus Colen Campbell (15 June 1676 – 13 September 1729) was a pioneering Scottish architect and architectural writer, credited as a founder of the Georgian style. For most of his career, he resided in Italy and England. As well as his architectural ...

'' (1717) shows the seven-bay front elevation with its

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

doorcase, together with plans of the first and second floors. Wings came forward on the east and west sides of the central part, and behind was a service court, with a stable court beyond. Sir Edward Seymour, 6th Baronet had inherited the dukedom from a distant cousin in 1750, and thus the house became the seat of the

Dukes of Somerset Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

(although for part of the 19th century they made

Stover House Stover House, also known as Fort Stover, is a historic home located near Luray, Page County, Virginia. It is dated to the late-18th century, and is a two-story, three-bay, rubble stone structure with a traditional Flurkuchenhaus plan. It has a ...

, Devon, their principal seat). Edward further enlarged the house after 1750. Much of the house was demolished in 1821–2, leaving only the west wing which was altered and forms the present house, which stands just north-east of the 12th-century parish church. Built in rendered limestone, the 18th-century part (originally just one room deep) has two floors and an attic; it was lengthened from five bays to eight sometime after 1822, and in the same century a rear range and service wing were added. The ground floor windows have

pediments Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pediment ...

, and above the stone

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

a balustraded parapet was added at some point. A bay behind the left end was probably added in 1887, and the central porch – arched and pedimented – is also Victorian. Reception rooms have marble chimney-pieces from the late 18th century, moved from elsewhere and described as "fine" by Orbach.

Present day

Bradley House remains the home of the Duke of Somerset. Tours are available by prior appointment, and the ground floor and Coach House are marketed as a venue for weddings and other functions.

Seymour family tombs

The Grade I listed

All Saints' Church All Saints Church, or All Saints' Church or variations on the name may refer to: Albania *All Saints' Church, Himarë Australia *All Saints Church, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory * All Saints Anglican Church, Henley Brook, Western Austr ...

, just south-west of the house, is the principal burial place of the Dukes of Somerset. The church and the family cemetery are connected to the grounds of Bradley House by private access. Members of the Seymour family buried at the church include: *

Edward Seymour, 8th Duke of Somerset Edward Seymour, 8th Duke of Somerset (December 1694 or early 1695 – December 1757) was an English peer and landowner. Family The son of Sir Edward Seymour, 5th Baronet, of Berry Pomeroy, a descendant of Lord Protector Somerset by his fi ...

Edward Seymour, 9th Duke of Somerset Edward Seymour, 9th Duke of Somerset, etc. (2 January 1717 – 2 January 1792) was the eldest son of Edward Seymour, 8th Duke of Somerset and his wife, the former Mary Webb. He was also a baronet. He was baptized on 27 January 1717 at East ...

Webb Seymour, 10th Duke of Somerset Webb Seymour, 10th Duke of Somerset (3 December 1718 – 15 December 1793) was a British peer. He was Duke of Somerset from 2 January 1792 until his death. Family Webb Seymour was the son of Edward Seymour, 8th Duke of Somerset and his wife, ...

Archibald Seymour, 13th Duke of Somerset Archibald Algernon Henry St. Maur, formerly Seymour, 13th Duke of Somerset, etc. (30 December 1810 – 28 Berkeley Square, London, Oct 1891) was the son of Edward St. Maur, 11th Duke of Somerset and Lady Charlotte Douglas-Hamilton. He was al ...

Edward Seymour, 16th Duke of Somerset Brigadier-General Edward Hamilton Seymour, 16th Duke of Somerset, KBE, CB, CMG (12 May 1860 – 5 May 1931) was the son of Reverend Francis Payne Seymour and Jane Margaret Dallas. His father was the great-grandson of Lord Francis Seymour. H ...

* Evelyn Seymour, 17th Duke of Somerset *

Percy Seymour, 18th Duke of Somerset Percy Hamilton Seymour, 18th Duke of Somerset (27 September 1910 – 15 November 1984), styled Lord Seymour between 1931 and 1954, of Bradley House (Wiltshire), Bradley House in the parish of Maiden Bradley, Wiltshire, was a British peer. Life H ...

Algernon Seymour, 15th Duke of Somerset Algernon St. Maur, 15th Duke of Somerset, etc. (22 July 1846 – 22 October 1923, in Maiden Bradley) was the son of Algernon St. Maur, 14th Duke of Somerset and Horatia Morler. He was also a baronet. On September 5, 1877, he married Susan Ma ...

, and his wife Susan Seymour, are buried on Brimble Hill Clump near Bradley House. Their graves are in a little wood on a hilltop surrounded by agricultural land, with a metal fence around them, and marked by standing rough stones with small text plaques.The grave of Algernon Seymour, 15th Duke of Somerset
19 July 2013

References

External links

Official website (defunct)
– archived in September 2017 {{Authority control Country houses in Wiltshire Grade II listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade II listed houses Houses completed in 1820