Little Durnford Manor is a Grade I-listed

country house image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...

in Durnford, Wiltshire, England, about northeast of the city of

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

. The current house was built in the late 17th century and remodelled for Edward Younge, a friend of Lord Pembroke, around 1720–1740.

History

The manor of Little Durnford was mentioned in an inquisition at

Amesbury Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first settl ...

on 6 October 1470, which found that John Wodhull, the great nephew of the owner at the time, was the heir to the manor and Tytherley. The current house was built in the late 17th century and remodelled for Edward Younge, a friend of Lord Pembroke, around 1720–1740. The house was designated a Grade I listing in 1953. Little Durnford Manor has been the seat of John Pelham, 9th Earl of Chichester, since he purchased it in 1966; the family's previous seat,

Stanmer House Stanmer House is a Grade I listed mansion set in Stanmer Park west of the village of Falmer and north-east of the city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The house stands close to Stanmer village and Church, within Stanmer Park. Co ...

in East Sussex, was sold by trustees for the earl when he was three years old.

Architecture

A drive approaches the main house from the southeast, which is separated from a landscaped park by a strip of trees. The house has two storeys faced with flint and stone chequerwork, with five bays under a slate roof, and central glazed doors set within a modest Tuscan

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cu ...

. It has a dining room described by Pevsner as "a splendid mid-C18 room with a proud chimmneypiece and wall panels of tapestry framed in plaster". The doors feature pulvinated

frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

and

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

s, and the walls inside the house feature an entitled plaster

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

with frieze and baroque plasterwork, dating to the late 1740s. The main staircase is at the end of the hall and features turned balusters. The service wing was heightened in the early 20th century.

Grounds

A walled

cottage garden The cottage garden is a distinct garden style that uses informal design, traditional materials, dense plantings, and a mixture of ornamental plants, ornamental and edible plants. English in origin, it depends on grace and charm rather than grandeu ...

of approximately half a hectare lies to the north of the house and is divided into several sub-plots, each with their own identity. The grounds also contain a lake, a swimming pool, and a cluster of cedar trees.

References

{{reflist Country houses in Wiltshire Grade I listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade I listed houses