Harwell manor of the bishop of Winchester

Has been described as a Possible Palace (Bishop)

There are no visible remains

NameHarwell manor of the bishop of Winchester
Alternative NamesBishop's Harwell; Lower Manor
Historic CountryBerkshire
Modern AuthorityOxfordshire
1974 AuthorityOxfordshire
Civil ParishHarwell

Fletcher identified Lime Tree House as the site of the bishop's manor house at Harwell in his 1979 article. Currie (1993:137-8) has shown that this identification was incorrect and the site of the manor house was probably actually Bishop's Manor farmhouse, however, this does not detract from the fact that the bishop paid several visits to the house in the C13, there was a chamber called the bishop's chamber and fishponds at the site, all of which point to the fact that it can be classed as an episcopal residence, albeit one that was only used infrequently and fairly early on. (Payne 2003)

Not scheduled

This is a Grade 2 listed building protected by law

Historic England Scheduled Monument Number
Historic England Listed Building number(s)
Images Of England
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceSU493895
Latitude51.6027297973633
Longitude-1.28843998908997
Eastings449300
Northings189500
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.

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Books

Journals

  • Currie, C., 1993, 'Larger Medieval Houses in the Vale of the White Horse.' Oxoniensia Vol. 57 p. 81-244 online copy
  • Fletcher, J. M., 1979, 'The Bishop of Winchester's Medieval Manor House at Harwell, Berkshire, and its Relevance in the Evolution of Timber Framed Aisled Halls.' The Archaeological Journal Vol. 136 p. 173-92.

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)