Summary : The 14th century inner gatehouse is now part of Priory Farmhouse. The inner gatehouse was built opposite the contemporary entrance gatehouse, behind and over the south wall of the entrance courtyard. The gatehouse was built of stone though the south wall of the west part of the building was removed and replaced with timber framing at some point. The building was enlarged in the 15th century, an ornate ceiling, removed from a first floor room in 1868, may have been inserted as part of these improvements. The original external staircase was probably covered in at this time. following the Dissolution of the Priory the gatehouse was converted into the principle domestic accommodation on the site. The archways were infilled to create a room with an external stone stack across the south arch and a doorway in the north arch appears to have provided the principle entrance to the house. The east part of the range was refenestrated in the late 16th-17th century, and it may have been at this time that the roof of the whole range was replaced. The house was extended to the east in the late 17th-early 18th century, an outshut containing service rooms was added in the mid 18th century and the kitchen was rebuilt in the mid 19th century. The house was extensively restored in 1868 and the medieval painted ceiling on the first floor was dismantled and moved down to the ground floor though little of the original work survived. |