Mount Edgcumbe Fortified House (The Gatehouse Record)

In the civil parish of Maker With Rame.
In the historic county of Cornwall.
Modern Authority of Cornwall.
1974 county of Cornwall.
Medieval County of Devon.

OS Map Grid Reference: SX45305275
Latitude 50.35805° Longitude -4.17351°

Mount Edgcumbe Fortified House has been described as a probable Fortified Manor House.

There are no visible remains.

This is a Grade 2 listed building protected by law*.

Description

The original fortified mansion of Mount Edgcumbe was built about 1553 but was burnt down during the Second World War; it was rebuilt on the original foundations in 1959. Details of the original plan were recorded by E.M. Jope during its demolition prior to rebuilding. The C16 house had round towers at the angles which were replaced by large octagonal towers in the late C18; a library wing was added in C19. The entrance hall was lofty and imposing with marble columns and pilasters (PastScape–ref listing description).

Comments

There was pirate activity in the area in the C16 but how fortified the house was may be questioned. Built by Sir Richard Edgecombe of Cotehele in an existing deer park (PastScape Hob no 437539) so probably a replacement for a medieval house, and given the family name, one of some antiquity. The Edgecombe's were a military family who held significant local positions (and consequently had local enemies in the gentry classes) and who's house at Cotehele was also fortified. Clearly residential rather than military, although dressed up with military symbolism reflecting the families social role, but also able to resist an armed band of pirates or jealous rivals.

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Listed Building number(s) 1160959
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 437551; 437539.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 6233.

Websites (Gatehouse is not responsible for the content of external websites.)
- Wikipedia entry
Books
- Cooper, Nicholas, 1999, Houses of the Gentry, 1480-1680 (Yale University Press) p. 30, 40, 158
  Rawlings, K.J., 1984, Defence Works Plymouth Area 1300-1983
  Pevsner, Nikolaus; revised by Enid Radcliffe, 1970, Buildings of England: Cornwall (Harmondsworth) p. 123
  Lake, W., 1870, History of Cornwall Vol. 3 p. 256-7
Periodical Articles
- 1974, 'Parochial Check-Lists of Antiquities' Cornish Archaeology Hendhyscans Kernow Vol. 13 p. 68, 71 online copy
  1958, Medieval Archaeology Vol. 2 p. 208 download copy
  1939, Transactions of the Devonshire Association Vol. 71 p. 178-9
  Edgcumbe, Lady Ernestine, 1899, 'Mount Edgcumbe' Cornish Magazine Vol. 2
  Country Life iv p. 238, xi p. 317, cxvi p. 794, cxxviii p. 1550, cxxviii p. 1550, p. 1958
Other sources: Theses; 'grey' literature; in-house reports; unpublished works; etc.
- Mount Edgcumbe Country Park, 1983/4, Manpower Services Commission Survey of Mount Edgcumbe Country Park (Cornwall County Council)

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.

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