Rydal Old Hall

Has been described as a Questionable Fortified Manor House

There are masonry footings remains

NameRydal Old Hall
Alternative Names
Historic CountryWestmorland
Modern AuthorityCumbria
1974 AuthorityCumbria
Civil ParishLakes

Rydal Old Hall, site on Old Hall Hill ½ m. S.E. of the church, is marked by the rubble foundations of the mediæval hall. These are too overgrown and fragmentary to indicate the form of the building, but there seems to have been a round turret at the S.E. angle. (RCHME 1936)

The rubble foundations of the medieval hall are still evident although well spread and overgrown (S1389 p. 201) ~ According to OS the ground plan of the hall is still discernible. According to L. Cantor, there was a park as early as 1277 at Rydal, which may be connected with Rydal Old Hall (Cantor p. 80).

Gatehouse Comments

Site of a medieval hall of the Fleming family associated with a deer park. Included by Perriam and Robinson in their gazetteer of medieval fortified buildings but there is no evidence the medieval house was fortified. There is no mention of a moat or a tower. However this was a significant manor house of a fairly major gentry family so some form of expression of their military role in the architecture of that house can not be excluded.

- Philip Davis

Not scheduled

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceNY369055
Latitude54.4410705566406
Longitude-2.97395992279053
Eastings336930
Northings505510
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

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Books

  • Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 361
  • Cantor, L.M., 1983, The medieval parks of England: a gazetteer (Loughborough University of Technology) p. 80
  • RCHME, 1936, An inventory of the historical monuments in Westmorland (HMSO) p. 201 no. 3 online transcription
  • Armitt, M.L., 1916, Rydal (Kendal) p. 216, 220, 564 online copy
  • Hodgson, J., 1810, Topographical and Historical Description of Westmoreland p. 221 online copy

Antiquarian

  • Hughes, E. (ed), 1962, Fleming-Senhouse Papers (Carlisle: Cumberland Record Series 2) p. 15
  • Ewbank, J.M. (ed), 1963, Antiquary on Horseback: The first publication of the collections of the Rev. Thos. Machell (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 19) p. 134
  • Collinwood, W.G. (ed), 1928, The Memoirs of Sir Daniel Fleming (Kendal: CWAAS Tract Series 9) p. 53, 86

Journals

  • Tyson, B., 1979, 'Low Park Barn, Rydal: The Reconstruction of a Farm Building in Westmorland in the Seventeenth century' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 79 p. 85 online copy
  • 1934, 'Proceedings' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 34 p. 204-5 online copy
  • Porter, R.E., 1934, 'Two Charters at Rydal Hall' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 34 p. 188 online copy