Picture of Richard III bones. (c) LEICESTER UNIVERSITY
Picture of Bones of timber frame (c) NHG
Picture of Mona Lisa. (c) LOUVRE PARIS
Picture of Sistine Chapel. (c) GIAMPAOLO CAPONE
Map of village. (c) NHG
Edward IV
Richard III
Picture of cannon at Woolbrough. (c) NHG
Picture of Battle of Bosworth Field (c) NHG
Picture of Confinement room (c)BBC
Picture of the two sisters. (c) NHG
Picture of Chalfield. (c) NHG
Picture of Shipton.
Picture of Panelling. (c) T WESTON
Picture of sketch. (c) NHG
Picture of oil painting of the Castellum. (c) NHG
Picture of Chilmead. (c) Surrey History Centre
Map of village green. (c) NHG
Picture of oil painting of the Nutfield Market Hall. (c) NHG
Picture of QH Tudor wing top floor. (c) NHG
Picture of QH Tudor wing ground floor. (c) NHG
Lecture by Mike Garwood
Last year, the suspected bones of Richard III were discovered under a Leicester car park in excavations in the choir area of the medieval Grey Friars Church under the leadership of Richard Buckley. Subsequently the bones were proved by DNA to be those of Richard III.
Like the bones of Richard III, we also have the bones of a Timber framed cross-
Each year, a tree adds a new layer of wood immediately below the bark. The width of each new ring will vary with the weather experienced, especially sunshine and rainfall. Over the tree's lifetime, the succession of growth rings will show a pattern of wide and narrow rings unique to that time period and climatic area.
1505 -
As an artist interested in history, this date also was fascinating to me; I could not help thinking about the artists working in 1505.
Leonardo da Vinci was painting the Mona Lisa. 500 years later we are now about to solve, with the use of DNA, one of the art world's biggest mysteries: 'Who was the Mona Lisa?
My namesake Michelangelo, the sculptor, was asked to paint the Sistine Chapel by Pope Julius II which he said he did not want to do as painting was not his first love. The Pope told him that if he did not take it on he would be excommunicated. This was devastating to Michelangelo as he was a devout Catholic and so he agreed. It turned out to be one of the most brilliant works of art from this time, and was to take him 5 years to complete.
Apart from that, English history was being rewritten with a Tudor king on the throne, Henry VII.
What an interesting time period this proved to be.
What a challenge, to find out all about the mystery of the Tudor cross-
The BBC are also interested in this time period with productions of many dramas and documentaries.
So what was this 1505 cross-
The construction pointed to the fact that we had something very special in the 1505 Tudor Wing. It was my first thoughts that led me to what was proved to be its provenance. A Tudor Market Hall for Nutfield.
The finds on the Tudor wing were so successful we informed English Heritage. As you
probably know, the Queens Head already has an English Heritage Grade II listing,
and we hope to move on to getting it registered as something special -
But first we must tell you what led us to this conclusion.
Going back to Richard III you might wonder why I used the simile of Richard III comparing him to the Queens Head building?
Strange as it may seem, there was a real connection.
The Carews.
Carew IV was Lord of the Manor of Nutfield as well as being the Kings Sergeant. He
died in1457, leaving a son and heir as well as three daughters. We now know two of
these children went on to build the Queens Head 1505 cross-
Unfortunately, it was not so straightforward as that and we have to go back a few years to find out what actually led to the reason for building it, who built it and who owned the land it was built on?
But first, it might help us to understand the layout of our village in 1505 to see where the Lords of the Manor's Demesne (which is on the northern side of the main road) and the Church fitted into the village way of life.
The map is based on the later Rocque map of 1760 and is not a map dating to that time. It has been redrawn to show how the village would have been with its buildings' names in 1505. The big difference from today's layout is that Mid Street (Kings Highway) did not go direct to the Rygate to Bleechingly (now Bletchingley) road, today known as the A25, but joined up with Coopers Hill Road, giving easy access to the church and the centre of the village and the positioning of the Tudor Wing which is marked by a red arrow. The northern end of Mid Street today goes straight to the A25 by joining up with Sandy Lane and is a comparatively modern addition.
Carew IV's son, Carew V, the heir to Nutfield, was made a ward of the court of Edward IV being only 4 when his father died. This was the law of the land. On the death of Edward IV the guardianship passed to King Richard III,who is well remembered for his connection with the Princes in the Tower, although it is questionable whether he was responsible for their deaths. Under Richard III, Nutfield was administered through a servant and steward Stephen Dyneley for 18 years.
In 1484 Carew V became Nutfield's Lord of the Manor, gaining his authority over the village when he became of age.
What a bizarre period in English history this proved to be. It was the War of the Roses. A time of turmoil.
It is even said a small battle took place in the grounds of Woolborough Farm in the south of Nutfield with the finds of cannon balls
By a cruel blow of fate in 1485 Carew V died, having been Lord of the Manor of Nutfield for only one year, dying at home in Hyde Hall Berkshire, most likely from his wounds supporting his King at Bosworth.
Then this was where things really got interesting.
Sir James Carew, Chevalier, a member of a certain order of Knighthood, (Carew IV's brother) on the death of Carew V, had his own ideas on who should be the Lord of the Manor for Nutfield and took control for 7 years.
During this time the three Carew Sisters were married -
Sanchia, to Sir John Iwardby,
Anne to Sir Christopher Tropenell,
Elizabeth to Walter Twynyho.
Sir James Carew, Chevalier, died in 1492 leaving a son and heir aged 23, Richard Carew.
This date, 1492, may ring a ship's bell for you.
One year later, at the time Columbus was discovering the Americas, Carew V's three sisters issued a writ via John Leigh the Sheriff of Surrey and successfully commanded Richard Carew, a Knight, to return their inheritance, including Nutfield and the title of Lords of the Manor.
Life was not all plain sailing in 1501 for the sisters
Sanchia died, most likely in childbirth. The historian Dr Helen Castor recorded
that the word confinement meant just that. Hidden behind closed doors, in a dark
womb-
Following Sanchia's death in 1501, her husband, Sir John Iwardby, married for the third time and conveyed his late wife Sanchia's share of the Manor of Nutfield to her two sisters, Dame Anne and Elizabeth in equal proportions as he knew how the sisters felt about Nutfield.
With so many changes in one family I don't blame you for not taking it all in.
Just think what the villagers in 15th century understood.
Now there were only the two sisters, Dame Anne Tropenell and Elizabeth Twynyho. They needed to establish their authority as Lords of the Manor in Nutfield.
Dame Anne lived some 120 miles away from Nutfield in Chalfield Manor Wiltshire.
This picture shows the back as this view of the building remains the same as in the 1500s. If you've seen the film 'The other Boleyn Girl' you may remember this building.
The other sister, Elizabeth lived in Shipton Solers Manor Gloucestershire, although there is no record of this in the house records. However, there is evidence that Elizabeth resided in a manor of the same name, according to her own records.
As they were, in effect, absentee landlords living hundreds of miles away, they would have needed a Steward to look after the day to day running of Nutfield village.
It proved difficult to find the Steward's name for Nutfield in 1500, as manorial documents of this period of time were of a poor state and not available to read.
This is where our luck changed.
With the discovery behind the panelling at Hamme House in South Nutfield, a 500
year old sketch with the title 'The Jewell Hous' hidden for 5 centuries, which was authenticated by the late Dick Deacon, the Surrey historian.
The artist appears to have recorded the roof section to the left of the building as under construction. The wall on the left would have been part of a defensive wall that would have run round the back of The Jewell House to create a cloister and a well area. A second drawing was made because of an ink spill on the first drawing by the artist. The sketch not only gave us the name of Nutfield's steward but it also led us to the discovery of the Norman building. The Jewell House, a Castellum, built on what would have been on the Lords of the Manor's Demesne (estate). It had no windows on the ground floor because at that time warfare was a way of life.
According to Eric Fernie, an authority on Norman buildings, this kind of building would have been a centre for governing the area with a garrison. The sketch could have been a record of the building for the artist to paint a bigger rendition later.
This Nutfield building had a very sad end.
Henry VII outlawed private armies. Later, in 1535, The Jewell House may have been considered a religious building, having a chapel and was probably destroyed under the dissolution of the Monasteries. 'This could have been put into action by the Valor Ecclesiasticus' ruling of 1535 by Cromwell and Henry VIII
Some of the stones seen on the side wall of Chilmead Farmhouse could have been recycled from The Jewell House. There was a theory that the stones could have been from a Roman villa, but this has been discounted by Surrey archaeologists.
By tradition, the name The Jewell House in the 16th century would have been the name of the person who would have resided there. This meant that the name on the sketch would have been a man of importance, living in the Norman Castellum on the Lords of the Manor's estate, the steward of Nutfield.
By cross-
This information led us to identify who would have been in control for the Lords of the Manor as their steward in 1505 when the Nutfield Tudor wing was built, Nutfield's Market Hall.
The building of Market Halls was an established building practice used by other Lords
of the Manors in towns and villages around the country at that time, demonstrating
their authority, wealth and influence -
And after all, with 8 changes in 44 years and with the infighting over who should be governing the village, there would have been a need to establish their authority as the Lords of the Manor and their Rights, with the established practice of the construction of a Market Hall. A prestigious central building that would be the tallest building in Nutfield village high street.
As our Lords of the Manor in 1505 lived hundreds of miles away, with their rights of enclosure, their Nutfield steward, Richard Jewell would have overseen the construction of Nutfield's Market Hall, by building it on a then much larger village green of that time.
The painting shows the Lords of the Manor visiting the Tudor Wing (the market hall)
and depicts Dame Anne Tropenell on the grey horse with Walter and Elizabeth Twynyho
on chestnut horses.
A fourth person, on the chestnut horse on the left, would have been their steward, Richard Jewell, who would have lived at The Jewell House on the Lords' Demesne.
It would have been an opportunity for the villagers to meet socially and have the odd glass of ale or a picnic for old and young alike. Farm workers of that time would have had large brimmed hats.
The view is looking south from the main road (A25) which would have run from Reigate
to Bletchingley. It would have been stony and on a much lower level than it is today.
Therefore there would have been a slope up to the Tudor Wing which not only was
built on an incline up from the road, but had ground that fell away to the right.
Today the ground has been levelled to allow car parking with a much diminished village
green. Another observation of the period, in the painting, is the shape of the trees
which would have been managed by cutting the lower branches for animal feed and household
needs, fires etc, allowing them to develop knot-
The top floor would have been used by Richard Jewell for settling disputes and collecting
dues for his lords beneath an impressive crown post -
Only Peter Burnett, who recently died, has seen this structure. Something else worth noting is the roof hips which are at different angles with the greater angle on the back wall, giving a better setting for the steward.
The ground floor would have been used as a local trading area for the village as the main market was in Bletchingley.
In my view there are 8 points that establish the Tudor Wing as Nutfield's Market Hall
1 It established the wealth and importance of Nutfield's Lords of the Manor after so much change.
2 The need for an administration building which would be more approachable, sited in the middle of the village, as a replacement for the Norman Castellum.
3 Showed the Lords of the Manor's commitment to the village with the size and quality of the timber used.
4 Its closeness to the centre of the village and being next to the Lords of the Manor's Demesne.
5 Built on a much larger green at the time, it also established the building's true meaning to the village of Nutfield as well as offering a local trading area in the centre of Nutfield.
6 Only the Lords would have had the right to enclose and build on the village green, which established their manorial rights.
7 Its height, which made it the tallest in the village high street.
8 Its proven importance, having stood on its own for 100 years before being joined to Pagements Farmhouse.
To give some idea of the wealth of information sought, it included many trips to National Archives at Kew to look out old records.
Working with one of National Archives researchers, who translated some of the old documents, which gave our new publication some fascinating information.
Reading of three Nutfield lay subsidy rolls established the names of families living and working in the village during the 16th century and its growth.
Discovering the Jewell House sketch and examining the will of Dame Anne. The visiting of the Chalfield Manor house Dame Anne lived in, supplying information to the current owner on the Nutfield connection. The research on Elizabeth Twynyho all added to a wealth of information
We also discovered that two English Kings had an interest in our village and used their steward to administer it. Today we are honoured to have Dame Sarah Goad, the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey here today as the Queens Representative.
Discovered that the Sheriff of Surrey was involved in deciding who ran the village and changed Nutfield's history. And it's our pleasure to have the current High Sheriff of Surrey Dr Helen Bowcock also here today.
Left to right:
Beverly Connolly, Chairman of Tandridge DC, High Sheriff of Surrey, Dr Helen Bowcock, Mike Garwood, Author of Market Hall Theory and Lord Lieutenant of Surrey Dame Sarah Goad
The rediscovery of the Jewell House sketch, a seat of local government, behind panelling in Hamme House. The Today we have Beverley Connolly, Chairman of Tandridge District Council.
I would like to leave you with two thoughts
1. In 1500 it was three women who set the control of Nutfield -
Today we have Sarah, Helen and Beverley.
2 The public still enjoy the area of the Tudor Market Hall -
To tell all, would stop you enjoying the pages of NHG's findings in our publication of Queens Head 1505 Tudor Wing.
(c)Mike Garwood 2013
(c) National Archives
