The Manor of Husthwaite has a long history, reaching back to a time before the Norman conquest of England.
The listings found in the Domesday Book suggest that the original Coxwold estate had become fragmented before the Conquest. One of these smaller territories Domesday recorded as ‘Carleton’; another was ‘the larger part of Bachesbi’ (the old inclusive name for the area) - this was in fact Husthwaite.
On the eve of the Conquest both these settlements from the later Anglian period were held by Ulfr, a native Northumbrian of some standing with land-holdings across Yorkshire, who was said to have had a manor in each.
Ulfr made a “pious gift” gift of these lands to the new Archbishop of York at the time of the conquest, ingratiating himself with the Norman conquerors and seemingly avoiding confiscation of his widespread properties.
The Domesday survey of 1086 showed that these settlements, donated by Ulfr, were then owned by York Minster for the maintenance of the clergy there.
The Archbishop had divided these and other benefices – “the Prebends of York”- known by territorial names according to the original endowments - into distinct ‘livings’ for senior members of the clergy.
Early documents show that a Prebend of Husthwaite was in place by the middle of the twelfth century. Both properties had been made into one manorial unit and the earliest reference to the “Manor of Husthwaite” appears in the records of the King’s exchequer for 1167.
Apart from a brief period at the end of the Civil War, the Manor was managed for eight centuries or so by York Minster authorities for the benefit of the succession of Prebendaries appointed. The Prebendary of Husthwaite was a Canon of York Minster
This summary is extracted from Professor Stuart Marriott’s book: “The Manor of Husthwaite –From the Norman Conquest to the Twentieth Century” –Carlton Letterworks. I I am indebted to Prof. Marriott for his permission to make use of extracts from this very soundly and widely researched book for the benefit of those interested.
Buildings on the site over the centuries
Although situated adjacent to the Norman Church in Husthwaite, as was the custom, the Manor Hall/ House has never been connected with the parish.
The site has a number of interesting buildings and remnants of the original Manor Hall built after the Conquest.
The current house was built just after the beginning of the 20th century on the same footprint as “the Old Manor House”, a substantial farmhouse built around the end of the seventeenth century of which early photographs exist.
Prior to the ‘Old Manor House’, a very substantial Manor Hall or mansion existed, with four hearths; the largest house in Husthwaite. There are no records of what it looked like, but it was suitable for the use and entertainment of visiting Church dignitaries.
This fell into dis-repair around 1650 and was replaced by a substantial farmhouse (the ‘Old Manor House’) around the end of that century.
In the ‘Hearth Tax assessment’ of 1670 a ‘single hearth dwelling’ was recorded and the ‘Old Hall’ had gone. It seems that the remains of this ‘single hearth dwelling’ are the current day ‘Boiler Room’, etc. (probably built from the massive stone block from the ‘Old Hall’) and now with a single pitch roof.
There is an adjacent building of great age which appears to be constructed from sandstone blocks identical to the Eastern part of the parish church, built around 1170. This features internal niches (which may have displayed statues or been used or candles) and we now believe this may have been a chapel for the original Manor Hall.
A building behind the Parish church, made of stone block and sharing the rear wall, was demolished in 1985 as it had become unsafe. Its foundations remain.
It is clear that some of the remains of the ‘Old Hall’ have been used in the construction of other buildings and walls on the site. “Ruins of the Old Hall have been used in the present erections, and are of free-stone in massive blocks”. (From Thomas Gill’s ‘Vallis Eboracensis’.1852) Jim Murray January 2023