Trinity House was a small country house in the village of

Allesley Allesley is an English suburban village and civil parish in the City of Coventry metropolitan borough, West Midlands, about 3¼ miles (5.25 km) west-northwest of Coventry city centre and 4 miles (6.5 km) east-south-east of Meriden. ...

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

in the West Midlands, formerly the county of

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...

. It stood at the end of Rectory Lane immediately north-west of All Saints Church on the crest of the hill between the

River Sherbourne The River Sherbourne is a river that flows under the centre of the city of Coventry, in the West Midlands, in England. The source of the river is in the fields near Hawkes End in the parish of Allesley. It flows for about 8 miles or 13 km ...

and Pickford Brook. The house became one of "the lost houses" of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

after being demolished in the mid-1960s as part of the wider

destruction of country houses in 20th-century Britain The destruction of country houses in 20th-century Britain was the result of a change in social conditions: many country houses of varying architectural merit were demolished by their owners. Collectively termed by several authors "the lost hous ...

History

The original structure was likely

late medieval The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...

, similar to the nearby Stone House and other notable surrounding structures close to the All Saints Church. The house was greatly expanded over the following centuries, growing from a cottage to one of the larger country houses in the area. At its fullest extent the house formed a large T shape, having been constructed and then enlarged during three separate and distinct architectural periods. The earliest parts were the Tudor cottage rooms which formed the far end of the length of the house and included the original medieval doorway. During the

17th century The 17th century lasted from January 1, 1601 ( MDCI), to December 31, 1700 ( MDCC). It falls into the early modern period of Europe and in that continent (whose impact on the world was increasing) was characterized by the Baroque cultural moveme ...

, a Jacobean style dining room, breakfast room and large additional bedrooms were added to the south side of the house, and acted as the central conjoining section. Lastly, a large 3 storey

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was added in the early 19th century, running perpendicular to the earlier structure, and becoming the principle part of the house with an ashlar stonework facade facing out over the lawns and gardens. In 1966 the house was demolished and the land used for the development of 13 separate detached houses that now form Rectory Close. The wider grounds of the house contained several outbuildings including the gardener's cottage, known as Trinity Cottage, which has survived to this day though now heavily modified.

Grindlay family (1924–1965)

In the early 20th century the house came into the possession of the Warwickshire branch of the

Grindlay family The Grindlay family (Old English: Compound_(linguistics).html" "title="nowiki/>Compound (linguistics)">compound] ''Grēne''/''Grynde'' + ''Leāh''/''Leā'') is an ancient knightly family of England and Scotland, whose ancestry can be traced bac ...

, when

Alfred Robert Grindlay Alfred Robert 'Bob' Grindlay CBE, JP (1 February 1876 – 14 April 1965) was an English inventor, industrialist and official during the 19th and 20th centuries. He co-founded Grindlay Peerless, the motorcycle engineering company and was M ...

, the English industrialist, official and future Mayor of Coventry took up residence with his wife and sons. The family held numerous events at the house including

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

and district fêtes, charity pageants, and gatherings of local political groups including the Coventry

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swi ...

, the Coventry Liberal Association, and the Coventry Progressive Party. Alfred and his wife, Emma Grindlay ( née Chaplin), were keen gardeners and made considerable improvements to the grounds resulting in their winning several awards at various competitions and open days. The house sheltered 4 generations of the Grindlays of Trinity House, who were the final owners before its sale in 1965 and eventual demolition in 1966.

Gallery

File:Trinity House (South face).jpg, South face of Trinity House File:Map of North Allesley, Coventry (1884-1889).jpg, Map of Allesley (1884 – 1889) File:Map of Trinity House, Allesley, Coventry (1884-1889).jpg, Trinity House and grounds on map of north Allesley (1884 – 1889) File:Map of Allesley, Coventry (1900-1910).jpg, Map of Allesley and Trinity House (1900 – 1910)

References

{{reflist Country houses in the West Midlands (county)