Sutton Hall is a former

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 ...

to the west of the village of

Sutton Lane Ends Sutton Lane Ends or Sutton is a semi-rural village and civil parish, approximately one mile south of Macclesfield. In 2020 it had an estimated population of 936. The parish includes the villages of Langley and Oakgrove and the hamlets of Gurne ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, England. The present building dates from the middle of the 17th century, with additions and alterations in the late 18th century, and replaced a previous manor house. It has since been converted into a pub/restaurant.

Description

The house is constructed partly in stone, and partly in

timber framing 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 ...

, with a U-shaped plan. The arms of the "U" end in irregular

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. The left gable is in stone, and the right is timber-framed. The upper storey of the right gable is

jettied Jettying (jetty, jutty, from Old French ''getee, jette'') is a building technique used in medieval timber-frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the availa ...

, the jetty being supported on brackets carved with wooden figures, one a knight in chain mail. Between the two wings is the former

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great ...

. A 16th century chapel at the rear of the house, which has served at different times as stables and as a convent, now serves as the restaurant kitchens. The house is recorded in 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 ...

as a designated 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 ...

. Not far from the hall is a Bronze Age barrow or cairn, probably a cremation site, now much reduced in size.

History

Once the property of the Sir Humphrey Davenport,

Chief Baron of the Exchequer The Chief Baron of the Exchequer was the first "baron" (meaning judge) of the English Exchequer of Pleas. "In the absence of both the Treasurer of the Exchequer or First Lord of the Treasury, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, it was he who pre ...

in 1631, the Manor of Sutton later passed by marriage to Sir Rowland Belasyse, an ancestor of the Earls of Fauconberg. In 1819 it was acquired by the Countess of Lucan and descended to her successors, the Lords Lucan, primarily used as a farmhouse. The countess had been born Elizabeth Belasyse, daughter of

Henry Belasyse, 2nd Earl Fauconberg Henry Belasyse, 2nd Earl Fauconberg (13 April 1742 – 23 March 1802) was a British politician and peer. Family Fauconberg was the son of Thomas Belasyse, 1st Earl Fauconberg and Catherine Betham. Career He served as the Member of Parliament fo ...

and in 1794 had married Richard Bingham, who became the 2nd Earl of Lucan in 1799. By 1804, after six children, they had separated. In the 1880s and 1890s, the property was rented by the explorers

Theodore Bent James Theodore Bent (30 March 1852 – 5 May 1897) was an English explorer, archaeologist, and author. Biography James Theodore Bent was born in Liverpool on 30 March 1852, the son of James (1807-1876) and Eleanor (née Lambert, c.1811-1873) B ...

and his wife

Mabel Bent Mabel Virginia Anna Bent (née Hall-Dare, a.k.a. Mrs J. Theodore Bent) (28 January 1847 – 3 July 1929), was an Anglo-Irish explorer, excavator, writer and photographer. With her husband, J. Theodore Bent (1852–1897), she spent two decades (1 ...

.''The Gentlewoman – The Illustrated Weekly Journal for Gentlewomen'', No. 175, Vol. VII, 11 November 11 1893, pages 621–2. In 2008 the building was substantially refurbished as a restaurant by Brunning and Price, the then owners.

References

{{Reflist Houses completed in the 17th century Country houses in Cheshire Timber framed buildings in Cheshire Grade II listed buildings in Cheshire

Description

History

See also

References