Fitznells Manor is the last surviving

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, England. It is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Development

The property is named after Sir Robert Fitz-Neil whose family held the estate until 1386, but the oldest part of the current building dates back to the house probably built by Sir John Iwardeby in the early 16th century. He built a traditional

timber-framed Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

hall house The hall house is a type of vernacular house traditional in many parts of England, Wales, Ireland and lowland Scotland, as well as northern Europe, during the Middle Ages, centring on a hall. Usually timber-framed, some high status examples wer ...

and it is the

solar Solar may refer to: Astronomy * Of or relating to the Sun ** Solar telescope, a special purpose telescope used to observe the Sun ** A device that utilizes solar energy (e.g. "solar panels") ** Solar calendar, a calendar whose dates indicate t ...

wing of this house that survives.EPS (1988) Survey report prepared for Conifercourt Ltd Iwardeby's original house was probably similar to the “Bayleaf” farmhouse at the

Weald and Downland Open Air Museum The Weald and Downland Living Museum (formerly known as the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum until January 2017) is an open-air museum in Singleton, West Sussex. The museum is a registered charity. The museum covers , with over 50 historic ...

. In the early 17th century with the rest of the original house either demolished or otherwise destroyed the remaining solar wing was extended to the west by the addition of a structure with the three distinctive

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s. In the late 18th century a large single-storey kitchen area was added to the north elevation including the large chimney. During the 19th century further single-storey extensions were added to the north and a large two-storey extension to the south with a

verandah A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure. Although the form ''veran ...

20th century

Fitznells continued to function as a farmhouse well into the 20th century; when bought by S. E. Parkes (Modern Homes & Estates) in 1927 from the Gadesden family the estate still included of land, farm buildings and five cottages. In 1930 William Batho purchased the house and its immediate grounds. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the house was requisitioned for use as a clothing exchange. The

Surrey College of Music The Surrey College of Music was founded in 1946 by music teacher and educational composer John Longmire (1902-1986) with composer and organist Reginald Jevons (1901-1981). It was based at Fitznells Manor in Ewell, and received support from many of ...

(also known as the Southern Music Training Centre) occupied the house after the war but this closed in 1956 when the lease was terminated. In 1959 the house was bought by Anthony Carter and

Vivienne Price Vivienne Lola Price (9 January 1931 – 6 November 2014) was a British music teacher and the founder of the National Children's Orchestra in 1978. In 1959, she and her husband Tony Carter bought Fitznells Manor in Ewell, Surrey, and formed the ...

, who ran the Fitznells School of Music on the ground floor while living in the floor above. In 1988 the house was bought by Conifercourt Holdings Ltd for use as their head office. The renovation works they undertook transformed the building to its current appearance. The house is currently used as a doctor's surgery.

Restoration

Renovation works were carried out in 1988 including: *Removal of the render concealing the timber frame of the 17th-century front to the house *Replacement of the Victorian entrance porch *Re-opening of the solar that had been sub-divided since the early 17th century *Erection of a reproduction Victorian-style verandah to the rear elevation *Replacement of a later sash window in the solar with an original-sized window Additional buildings to the south of the main house were added on the site at this time.

References

External links

Surrey History: Exploring Surrey's Past

Epsom and Ewell history explorer: Old properties of Ewell and their owners
{{Epsom and Ewell Grade II listed buildings in Surrey Grade II listed houses Country houses in Surrey Epsom and Ewell