| What: | Post-Restoration Manor House |
| Where: | GL6 7LS Above Quarhouse |
| Then: | The present house was built by 1717. Its unusual interior plan incorporates a staircase rising through five floors from basement to the attics. |
| Now: | Bought in 1980, by Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. It was sold in 2005. |
The Freame family had a house close to the present site by 1509, and retained it until 1689, when on the death of Thomas Freame the house passed to his daughter, Anne Chamberlayne. Her daughter, Catherine, married Charles Coxe, who was MP for Cirencester and later for Gloucester, and also a circuit judge in Wales. They built the present house about 1710-17. The latter date is given on the rainwater heads.
Nether Lypiatt is a delightful example of the post-Restoration small manor house. This type of tall, four-square main block with a tall roof was beginning to look old-fashioned by 1710, but the care with which the elements of the composition are balanced, the lack of compromising additions, the quality of the craftsmanship and the mellow colour of the mauve-grey stone are enchanting.
Inside, the house has an unusual and ingenious plan, which incorporates a staircase rising through five floors from the basement to the attics.
Nether Lypiatt remained the property of Charles Coxe's descendants until 1884, but was mostly occupied by tenants. It therefore escaped alterations which might have compromised its perfection. It was restored by P.R. Morley Horder, architect to the Stroud Brewery, in about 1920, and in 1931 he added the north-west pavilion. Mrs. Gordon Woodhouse, who acquired the house in 1923, made it famous through the literary and artistic friends she brought here. After her death, it passed through several hands before being bought in 1980, by Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. It was sold in 2005.
From January 2016, this website is managed by Stroud Local
History Society
Revised 2018 EMW
