Dorney Court
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Dorney Court is a Grade I listed early Tudor
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 ...
, dating from around 1440, located in the village of
Dorney Dorney is a village and civil parish in the Unitary Authority of Buckinghamshire, England, bordering on the River Thames to the west and south, and bisected by the Jubilee River. In 2011 it had a population of 752. It is west of neighbouring E ...
,
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...
,
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 ...
. It is owned and lived in by the Palmer family.


Early history

Dorney Manor is recorded in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
of 1086, as having been held before the
Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
by Aldred, a man of
Earl Morcar Morcar (or Morkere) ( ang, Mōrcǣr) (died after 1087) was the son of Ælfgār (earl of Mercia) and brother of Ēadwine. He was the earl of Northumbria from 1065 to 1066, when he was replaced by William the Conqueror with Copsi. Dispute with t ...
. In 1086, it was among the lands of Miles Crispin, and his tenant was a certain Ralf. From here it passed successively to families named Cave, Parker, Newnham, Paraunt, Carbonell, Scott, Restwold, Lytton, Bray, and Hill. In 1542, James Hill sold Dorney to Sir
William Garrard This Profile Is Managed By / Garrett(-Garwood), Garrard, Gerard, FitzGerald, FitzWalter, FitzOtho, Gherardini Family Tree Research/Redesign Plan 2022/23. Family Tree Link : https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/tree/184159457?dtid=100 Sir W ...
, later
Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional powe ...
, and ancestor of the Palmer family which still owns and occupies Dorney Court today.


Palmer family

Sir William Garrard, who bought the manor of Dorney from James Hill in 1542, served as Lord Mayor of London in 1555. He died in 1571, and was succeeded by his elder son, also called Sir William Garrard, who died in 1607, leaving Dorney to his wife Elizabeth, to revert to his son and heir Thomas upon her death. The daughter of Sir William Garrard was Martha (died 1617), who married James Palmer (later Sir James Palmer, knighted 1629), and Dorney Court was acquired by her husband in 1624. This followed disputes within the Garrard family over the property, centred on Martha's brother Thomas Garrard, who married against the wishes of his father and whose own wife with her family also embroiled him in disputes.'Parishes: Dorney', in A History of the County of Buckingham: Volume 3, ed. William Page (London, 1925), pp. 221-225. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/bucks/vol3/pp221-225 Sir James Palmer (1585–1658), first of the Palmers of Dorney Court, was a younger son of Sir Thomas Palmer, baronet, of
Wingham, Kent Wingham is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Dover District of Kent, England. The village lies along the ancient coastal road, now the A257, from Richborough to London, and is close to Canterbury. History A settlement ...
. He was Gentleman of the Bedchamber to
James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
and
Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...
, Chancellor of the
Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George C ...
(from 1645), a personal friend of Charles II, and an artist and miniature painter. He was also an adviser to the royal collection, and governor of the Royal Tapestry Works, Mortlake. His portrait of James I is in the
Victoria & Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
collection, his portrait of the Earl of Southampton is in the Fitzwilliam Collection, Cambridge and his portrait of the Earl of Northampton is in the Royal Collection. From Sir James, Dorney Court has passed from father to son in direct succession in the Palmer family down to the present day. His younger son was created
Earl of Castlemaine The Earldom of Castlemaine was a title created in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created for Roger Palmer, the husband of Barbara Palmer (née Villiers), mistress to King Charles II. The Earl was also given the title ''Baron Limerick''. The ea ...
but his older son inherited Dorney (Sir Philip Palmer, 1615–1683). Sir Philip's fourth but, at his death, oldest surviving son was Charles Palmer of Dorney (1651–1714). Charles Palmer's son inherited a
baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
previously held by the senior branch of the family, the Palmers of Wingham in Kent. He therefore in 1723 became Sir Charles Palmer, 5th baronet, of Dorney. His own son, also called Charles Palmer, died before him, and so he was succeeded at his death by his grandson, Sir Charles Harcourt Palmer, 6th baronet, of Dorney. Sir Charles Harcourt Palmer of Dorney, 6th and last baronet, had a number of children by his cousin, but no marriage was proved, and so the children were illegitimate and the title came to an end at his death in 1838 (see G.E.C.'s ''Complete Baronetage'' vol I (1900) s.v. Palmer, and also ''Burke's Extinct Baronetcies''). Dorney Court, however, continued to be inherited by succeeding generations of the Palmer family. Dorney Court remains the family home of the Palmer family but is opened for visitors.


Building

On first appearances the building appears to be entirely medieval, but in fact some of the exterior is a
Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...
reconstruction. The remodelling of the house was undertaken at the end of the nineteenth century, and the original bricks were restored to the front façade of the house. The interior layout is little changed from 1500. The oldest part is the panelled parlour, which contains some very fine examples of antique furniture.''The Country Life book of Castles and Houses in Britain''. . The
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 ...
has numerous family portraits and contains
linenfold Linenfold (or linen fold) is a simple style of relief carving used to decorate wood panelling with a design "imitating window tracery", "imitating folded linen" or "stiffly imitating folded material". Originally from Flanders, the style became ...
panelling brought from
Faversham Abbey Faversham Abbey was a Cluniac style monastery immediately to the north-east of the town of Faversham, in north Kent, England. History It was founded by King Stephen and his wife Matilda of Boulogne in 1148. A party of monks from Bermondsey Ab ...
in Kent; in times past it was used to hold the
manor court The manorial courts were the lowest courts of law in England during the feudal period. They had a civil jurisdiction limited both in subject matter and geography. They dealt with matters over which the lord of the manor had jurisdiction, primarily ...
, and it is still the site of the annual Commoners' meeting.


In popular culture

Susan Cooper Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is an English author of children's books. She is best known for '' The Dark Is Rising'', a contemporary fantasy series set in England and Wales, which incorporates British mythology such as the Arthurian le ...
, who grew up in the village, uses Dorney Court (as the Manor) in her children's fantasy series '' The Dark Is Rising''. The house has been open to the public since 1981. It has featured as a location in numerous films and TV programmes, such as ''
Hogfather ''Hogfather'' is the 20th ''Discworld'' novel by Terry Pratchett, and a 1997 British Fantasy Award nominee. It was first released in 1996 and published by Victor Gollancz. It came in 137th place in The Big Read, a BBC survey of the most loved B ...
'' and ''
The Colour of Magic ''The Colour of Magic'' is a 1983 fantasy comedy novel by Terry Pratchett, and is the first book of the ''Discworld'' series. The first printing of the British edition consisted of only 506 copies. Pratchett has described it as "an attempt to ...
'' (
Death's Domain ''Death's Domain'' is a book by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Briggs, and illustrated by Paul Kidby. It is the fourth in the ''Discworld Mapp'' series, other publications of which include ''The Streets of Ankh-Morpork, The Discworld Mapp'' and& ...
), ''
Midsomer Murders ''Midsomer Murders'' is a British crime drama television series, adapted by Anthony Horowitz and Douglas Watkinson from the novels in the '' Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series (created by Caroline Graham), and broadcast on two channels of I ...
'',
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
's ''
Agatha Christie's Poirot ''Poirot'' (also known as ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'') is a British mystery drama television programme that aired on ITV from 8 January 1989 to 13 November 2013. David Suchet starred as the eponymous detective, Agatha Christie's fictional Her ...
'' episodes '' "The Adventure of the Western Star"'' and ''"
Sad Cypress ''Sad Cypress'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in March 1940 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year. The UK edition retailed at eigh ...
"'', '' 24: Live Another Day'', ''
Sliding Doors A sliding door is a type of door which opens horizontally by sliding, usually horizontal to a wall. Sliding doors can be mounted either on top of a track below or be suspended from a track above. Some types slide into a space in the parallel w ...
'', ''Zombies'', ''Pride and Prejudice'', ''
The New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
'', ''
All Is True ''All Is True'' is a 2018 British fictional historical film directed by Kenneth Branagh and written by Ben Elton. It stars Branagh as playwright William Shakespeare. The film takes its title from an alternative name for Shakespeare's play ''Hen ...
'' and ''
Bridgerton ''Bridgerton'' is an American historical- romance streaming television series created by Chris Van Dusen for Netflix. Based on the book series by Julia Quinn, it is Shondaland's first scripted show for Netflix. It revolves around the epony ...
''.


References


External links

{{commons category
aboutbritain.com (Dorney Court)Dorney Court, near Windsor, Berkshire.
Dorney Court Dorney Court is a Grade I listed early Tudor manor house, dating from around 1440, located in the village of Dorney, Buckinghamshire, England. It is owned and lived in by the Palmer family. Early history Dorney Manor is recorded in the Domesd ...
Tourist attractions in Buckinghamshire Grade I listed buildings in Buckinghamshire Historic house museums in Buckinghamshire