Monkton House in

Broughton Gifford Broughton Gifford is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish about west of Melksham in Wiltshire, England. The parish includes the hamlets of Norrington Common and The Common. History Formerly much of Broughton Gifford and the s ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England 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 ...

16th-century house.

History

In the 12th century

Cluniac Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter, Saints Peter and Saint Paul, Paul. The abbey was constructed ...

monks of the

Order of Saint Benedict The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

founded a monastery at

Monkton Farleigh Monkton Farleigh is a village and civil parish in west Wiltshire, England, on high ground northwest of Bradford-on-Avon, and a similar distance east of the city of Bath. The parish includes the hamlets of Farleigh Wick and Pinckney Green. In th ...

, acquiring land in the neighbourhood. On the Dissolution of the Monasteries the priory and abbey land, including the manor of Monkton, were given to Sir

Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Baron Beauchamp, KG (22 May 1539 – 6 April 1621), of Wulfhall and Totnam Lodge in Great Bedwyn, Wiltshire, of Hatch Beauchamp in Somerset, of Netley Abbey, Hampshire, and of Hertford House, Ca ...

. Seymour leased it in 1600 to Edward Long, son of a wealthy Wiltshire clothier, Henry Long of Whaddon. Edward had already purchased the manor of Rood Ashton three years before. Long later bought the house on 15 May 1615 and left it to his two sons Edward and John, who occupied it in succession. John appears to have carried out an extensive building programme in or around 1647 (marked by a plaque on the wall of the house) involving repairs, alterations, re-roofing and an extension on the eastern side. A chimney-piece with heavy carving, believed to be part of an altar tomb from

Monkton Farleigh Priory The Priory of St Mary Magdalene was a Cluniac priory in Monkton Farleigh, Wiltshire, England, in the 12th to 16th centuries. The priory was founded soon after 1120 by Maud (Matilda) of Salisbury, daughter of Edward of Salisbury and widow of Hump ...

is in one of the bedrooms. At some point during the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

the household was forced to accommodate soldiers fighting for

Cromwell's Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially a ...

Parliamentarian army. Possibly John's building programme stretched his finances as he was labelled a delinquent (1649–50) and his estate was sequestered. He was succeeded by his son Thomas Long of Rowden in

Chippenham Chippenham is a market town in north-west Wiltshire, England. It lies north-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, west of London and is near the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon, ...

(died 1691), the estate was secured, and continued in the Long family until 10 May 1669 when Thomas sold it to Sir James Thynne of

Longleat Longleat is a stately home about west of Warminster in Wiltshire, England. A leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house, it is a Grade I listed building and the seat of the Marquesses of Bath. Longleat is set in of parkl ...

. However, Thomas appears to have continued to rent the property until 1671. William Thynne then appears as the owner.Peter Waterman, Wiltshire Libraries and Heritage Service The house is currently owned by the Kirk family.

References

{{coord, 51.35998, -2.16872, format=dms, region:GB-WIL_type:landmark, display=title Houses completed in the 16th century Country houses in Wiltshire Grade II* listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade II* listed houses