Sinnington Hall

Description

Standing and still roofed remains of a listed 12th century great hall located 40m NNW of All Saints Church, Sinnington, just to the east of the later and still occupied Sinnington Hall. The hall, which is Listed Grade I, is believed to have been built by Guisborough Priory in the later 12th century for the grange that was acquired from Ralph de Clere after 1168. At the same time, de Clere had given the church at Sinnington to the Benedictine nunnery at Yeddingham. In 1239 Yeddingham Priory agreed to support the chapel of St Martin and the other buildings at Sinnington owned by Guisborough Priory. In 1431-32 Matilda of York paid for a series of modifications to the chapel at Sinnington, which has been identified as being the great hall, including the installation of partitions and flooring, and the filling of holes and old windows. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 1530s the hall is thought to have reverted to domestic occupation, becoming the rectory of William Thwaytes, but in the following centuries the building was re-roofed and converted into a barn and stables. The hall is orientated roughly north-south and is approximately 21m by 11m externally, stone built with a pitched slate roof. The west wall retains two partially blocked three light 15th century windows and, at the north end, a pair of two centre arched doorways. The east wall has an original 12th century door and window together with an additional larger three light 15th century window, all of which are now blocked. There is part of a large blocked 15th century window in the south wall together with two doors and a small rectangular window related to the change of use of the hall into a barn. Two later doorways, both relatively modern, have been inserted into the north wall and the northern end of the east wall respectively. Internally the hall has four bays, with the two end bays divided from the central pair by 2.5m high stone partition walls. These partition walls are later than the main shell of the building and form two separate rooms with a floor above open to the main body of the building. The southern partition wall partly blocks one of the 15th century windows and is considered to have been a post-Dissolution modification. The northern room, which has been used as a stables, is accessed by one of the two arched doorways and is believed to be earlier. The central pair of bays were originally divided by a 15th century oak screen which survived into the early 20th century. The carved oak cross beam for this partition believed to have been paid for by Matilda of York is still in place. (Scheduling Report)

Grange hall, later used as a Chapel; now barn. Late C12, converted to chapel before 1430; refenestrated before 1430; floor inserted c1430; reroofed probably in C17 or later; further later alterations. Grange hall probably built for Guisborough Priory. Corallian limestone with slate roof. West front: 2 storeys, 2 windows. 2 doorways to left. End opening double chamfered with 2-centred, roll-moulded arch over a board door and screen with a square-paned pointed overlight. To right of this a lower plank door in a chamfered opening with rough quoins and 2-centred arch. Over this door and to right are 2 blocked 3-light windows with cusped pointed heads in elliptical-arched, double-chamfered openings. East front: 2 storeys with irregular openings. Inserted doorway with timber lintel to right of centre. At centre left an earlier blocked doorway with 2-centred head. Further left, a deeply-splayed chamfered opening with a segmental head containing a recessed trefoil-headed light. To right of blocked doorway at first-floor level an original window, partly decayed, of 2 pointed lights with colonnettes beneath a shallow pointed outer arch on colonnettes which show traces of waterleaf capitals. Further to right another, partly blocked, elliptical-arched, 3-light window similar to those on west front. Gable wall to south: later openings on ground floor. Above, 5-light window in double-chamfered opening, almost completely blocked. Interior is divided into 3 unequal parts by 2 massive beams, one chamfered, the other finely- moulded: both have mortices on their lower side for partitions which were in place in the early C20. 4-centred arch to south window over a moulded beam carved with floral motifs. Roof consists of 6 trusses with chamfered tie beams; wind-braced purlins and sprocketed rafters. History. After 1168 Ralphe de Clere gave to the Benedictine nuns at Yedingham the Church (qv) at Sinnington, together with lands; and a grange site to Guisborough Priory. In 1239 the Yedingham nuns agreed to support the Chapel and buildings owned by the Guisborough Priory for the purpose of entertaining the Canons. The Grange was let back to Simon of Guisborough in 1368. In 1431-32, Matilda of York, whose second husband was John, Lord Latimer, paid for the installation of partitions and flooring in the "Chapel at Sinnington" and for other works including the filling of holes and "old windows under the space of the said room". After the dissolution the grange probably passed to William Thwaytes, as the Rectory. Building in dilapidated condition at time of resurvey. (Listed Building Report)

Comments

Ingham quotes Pevesner as writing "must once have been the great hall of a manor house or castle", but there does not seem to be any other suggestion the site was fortified. It should be noted that almost every manor house on the edge of the uplands of the North Yorkshire Moors was fortified.