Rugeley Manor of Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield

Has been described as a Questionable Palace (Bishop)

There are no visible remains

NameRugeley Manor of Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield
Alternative NamesPuysland Farm; Lower Hall; Ruggel
Historic CountryStaffordshire
Modern AuthorityStaffordshire
1974 AuthorityStaffordshire
Civil ParishRugeley

Thompson lists as residential manor of the Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield.

The manor had no capital messuage in 1298, and there seems to have been none before or after that date. (VCH)

The site of the mansion house of the Dean and Chapter in Rugeley in the mid 14th century. It was originally known as Puysland Farm, but from the 16th century it was known as Lower Hall. The 14th century timber-framed house stood until 1790, and the remaining part of the old stone wall around the ground was demolished in 1939. (Staffs HER)

Gatehouse Comments

There was a court held at Rugeley and the manor was held by the bishops but this does not seem to have been a residential manor. This is definitely not the supposed moated manor, in Elmore Park, suggested by Salter which is no such thing (it was a small summer house on an island in a mill pond). The Hagley manor of Rugeley was not held by the bishops. The Hagley manor was called Bank Top and clearly lay where Hagley Hall lay (SK039180), It is unclear as to why the VCH would suggest otherwise. It has been suggested that an old manor house, of which there are no remains, lay on the other side of Market Street from the churchyard of the (new) church (SK045138), this is a entirely possible location for the manor house. Ruggel is in a list of the bishops manors granted free warren in 1259. The Staffs HER record certainly suggests the manor was later held by the dean and chapter and the early use of the name 'farm' implies it was let out, presumably after 1259. The bishop had several manors in close proximity in mid Staffordshire and can not have needed all of them as residential sites.

- Philip Davis

Not scheduled

Not Listed

County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceSK044183
Latitude52.7630081176758
Longitude-1.93505001068115
Eastings404470
Northings318370
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

No photos available. If you can provide pictures please contact Castlefacts

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.

Calculate Print

Books

  • Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p. 174
  • Salter, Mike, 1997, Castles and Moated Mansions of Staffordshire (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 63 (erroneous)
  • Greenslade, M.W., 1959 in Midgley, L.M. (ed), VCH Staffordshire Vol. 5 p. 154 - online transcription

Journals

  • Landor, W.N., 1940, Rugeley Parish Magazine
  • 1914, Transactions of the Burton-on-Trent Natural History and Archaeological Society Vol. 7

Primary Sources

  • Maxwell Lyte, H.C. (ed), 1906, Calendar of Charter Rolls Henry III-Edward 1 1257-1300 Vol. 2. (HMSO) p. 18 (grant of free warren) online copy

Other

  • Payne, Naomi, 2003, The medieval residences of the bishops of Bath and Wells, and Salisbury (PhD Thesis University of Bristol) Appendix B: List of Medieval Bishop's Palaces in England and Wales (available via EThOS)