Bucklebury Manor is a

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

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 usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

in the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

Bucklebury Bucklebury is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Berkshire, England, about north-east of Newbury, Berkshire, Newbury and north of the A4 road (England), A4 road. The parish has a population of 2,116, but the village ...

in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

county of

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

. Since 2012, it has been the home of

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

and

Carole Middleton Carole Elizabeth Middleton (''née'' Goldsmith; born 31 January 1955) is an English businesswoman. She is the mother of Catherine, Princess of Wales, Philippa Matthews, and James Middleton. Born in Perivale and brought up in Southall, Londo ...

, parents of

Catherine, Princess of Wales Catherine, Princess of Wales (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982), is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne. Born in Reading, Catherine grew ...

History

Manorial status

The land on which the house stands was part of the Bucklebury Estate, belonging to the Winchcombe family and their descendants for many generations. In 1830, their home, Bucklebury House, was gutted by fire and demolished shortly afterwards, leaving only servants' quarters and associated outbuildings standing. In the mid-1830s, Winchcombe Henry Howard Hartley had a smaller Georgian

built on the higher ground immediately south of the old house, calling it 'The Cottage'. The Hartley family then mostly lived on their estates in Gloucestershire. However, shortly before these were sold in 1906, the chief heiress to the estates, Mrs Nina Webley-Parry, moved to the Cottage and renamed it 'Bucklebury Manor'.

Post-manorial house

The Winchcombe descendants finally left the Manor and it ceased to be the local manor house when Major Derrick Hartley Russell restored the buildings at old Bucklebury House in 1957. In 2012, Bucklebury Manor and its eighteen acres of grounds were purchased by

and

, the parents of

Architecture

The Georgian Bucklebury Manor contains within its interior an early C17

ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...

fireplace that is carved with panelled pilasters that support a rich cornice. There is also an over-mantel with shallow carved decoration, and a moulded flat arch with Delft type glazed tiles behind. There are seven bedrooms. Bucklebury Manor has been listed as Grade II by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

since 22 November 1983.

Location

Bucklebury Manor is located at Pease Hill in Bucklebury, a village in

West Berkshire West Berkshire is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, England. It is administered from Newbury by West Berkshire Council. History The district of Newbury was formed on 1 April 1974, as a merger of the borough of Newbur ...

.British Listed Buildings: The Manor, Bucklebury
/ref>Why Prince William and Kate Middleton have chosen Bucklebury as Prince George's first home
''

Hello Hello is a salutation or greeting in the English language. It is first attested in writing from 1826. Early uses ''Hello'', with that spelling, was used in publications in the U.S. as early as the 18 October 1826 edition of the '' Norwich Cou ...

'', 20 August 2013 The house's surrounding estate covers 18 acres.

References

{{Authority control Country houses in Berkshire Grade II listed houses Bucklebury