8 bedroom house

Cathanger Manor is a substantial and important Manor House and retains many of the notable features expected of a house of its age. It is Listed Grade II* as being of historic interest and has been carefully preserved over the years. More recently, the property has been completely refurbished and exquisitely decorated to provide an extremely comfortable country home with modern comforts. A gracious entrance hall with staircase provides a wonderful entrance to the traditionally arranged and well-proportioned reception rooms. A wonderfully light drawing room with limestone fireplace and triple aspect. A formal dining room has a period fireplace and lovely views over the walled garden towards the gatehouse and lavender walk. A less formal sitting room provides good family space with large fireplace with a magnificent bressumer beam and Jetmaster open fire. The kitchen has been beautifully designed and hand made by Jake Chalon, set upon an antique limestone floor from Artorius Faber. There is a cloakroom and a boot room adjacent to the kitchen. On the far side of the kitchen is a guest annex comprising study/sitting room, large bedroom, kitchen, walk in larder, shower/laundry room and cloakroom. On the first floor, a generous landing is found beyond the turning staircase and leads to a particularly light principal bedroom with good cupboarding and door to a luxuriously fitted bathroom. There are four further bedrooms on this floor (two ensuite) and a family bathroom. The main staircase rises to the second floor with two characterful spacious bedrooms and well fitted bathroom. The Justice Hall, being one of the notable features of Cathanger Manor, provides a wonderful entertaining room and home cinema and has a turret staircase leading down to the walled garden.

Gardens & Grounds

The carriage drive leads down to the property and opens out to ample gravelled parking. Handsome high pillars support wrought iron drive gates that lead into the courtyard with lawns and a gravelled area edged with spherical box hedging. The paddock stretches out to the East side of the house with glorious outlooks towards the village of Fivehead. Just before the gated entrance the drive leads into a large garage with additional parking and access round to the West side of the house. A small arboretum lies to the South East which has a number of mature trees and mown paths in the summer months that lead to the all-weather tennis court, which is now in need of refurbishment. This gate from the arboretum also extends out to an old fashioned orchard and spring pond. The orchard can also be accessed from the pool area, where the heated Roman style pool (measuring 30 metres x 15 metres x 1.5 metres deep throughout) is set with a terrace and pergola and adjoined by attractively planted borders. A terrace is found immediately to the rear of the house and is accessed by the kitchen French doors; this provides a glorious West facing sitting out area and is adjoined by lawned gardens with central blue lias path edged with mature lavender and standard pink roses. An enviable kitchen garden has recently been created, with gravelled paths and raised beds and this produces flowers, salad and vegetables for the house. An original thatched gatehouse provides a focal point within the rear garden and has electricity and water supplies laid to provide development potential. A small original stable has two stalls and loft over. A newly designed and built soundproof studio is privately situated beyond a high yew hedge and provides excellent home office.

The gardens and grounds amount to approximately (3.301 hectares), 8.16 acres.

Location

Cathanger Manor occupies a private setting at the end of a long carriage drive and enjoys an open aspect with views across parkland and towards the village of Fivehead. Conveniently situated for local amenities, Fivehead itself has a village hall, inn and church. A little further long the A378, the village of Curry Rivel has additional day to day amenities, including a primary school, church, village shop, petrol station and popular restaurant, The Firehouse. The nearby historic port of Langport has a number of boutique shops, a supermarket and other good everyday amenities. The property is also within easy reach of Taunton, the County Town of Somerset, with its shopping centre, out of town supermarkets, a cinema and home improvement stores. Taunton is also the home of the Somerset County Cricket ground and has a number of well-respected golf clubs and a racecourse. This area of the West Country is renowned for its excellent schools, Taunton having Taunton School and King’s and Queen’s colleges, Kings Hall Preparatory School and Richard Huish Sixth Form College. Cathanger Manor is also within easy reach of Sherborne, Hazlegrove and Millfield Schools and, a little further away, Blundell’s School at Tiverton.

• Langport 5 miles
• Taunton 7 miles
• Ilminster 8 miles
• Exeter 41 miles
• Bristol 47 miles
(distances and time approximate)

Historical Note

Cathanger Manor is mentioned in the Domesday Book as belonging to the Abbot of Muchelney. The medieval house was rebuilt in 1559 as recorded on the date stone found on the exterior of the west wing ‘John Walshe Anno Dnie 1559 Serjeant at Lawe’. In 1563 John Walshe was made a Justice of the Queen’s Bench and his study, which probably also served as a courtroom, became known as the Justice Hall, which still exists today. His daughter married into the Seymour family, becoming Lady Jane Seymour – a niece of her more famous predecessor, the third wife of Henry VIII. The property has much historic attachment and in the 18th Century, Cathanger Manor was tenanted by John Stone who was converted to the new Methodism and John Wesley preached his first sermon there in 1740. He preached again in the house in both 1778 and 1785 ‘in an ancient and venerable building called Cathanger Manor…where I spoke exceeding plain and think many of them, even Somersetshire farmers, felt as well as heard’. The Wyndham family remained in possession – albeit somewhat tenuously at times – until 1928.



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