Court House Farm & Gardens, Somerset

Court House Farm: A Brief Introduction

The featured image of Court House Farm is re-used from courthousefarm.com

Court House Farm sits in Portishead’s pretty, coastal town – its name derived from ‘port at the head of the river’. Court House Farm is an ancient site home to a medieval manor and a Tudor manor house. After falling into disrepair, the buildings have recently been lovingly restored.

Portishead Historian, Sandy Tebbutt, has compiled the below findings on Court House Farm. The full article can be found here if you want to read more about the long history of the area and the building. However, here is a short extract that details the origins and early history of the farmhouse:

‘Who actually built the first “Great Mansion” here, sheltered from the winds by the surrounding hills, is lost to history.

Before the Norman conquest the land belonged to the powerful Godwin family – ill-fated King Harold was a member – as a single manorial holding.

By the 13th century, however, it had been divided into two rival manors, with the area around the present Court House Farm belonging to a man called William Le Bret. His ownership extended to the all important water powered grist mill (near where the White Lion pub is today), the lands around the church and Woodhill, then bare of trees.

The other manor, a smaller property held by the Tilly family, was centred around the present Grange, at the southern end of the High Street.

In 1300 the Le Bret’s sold their lands – they now included a one third part of two mills, four hides of land and three acres of meadow – to the De La Salles, a family from Bradford-on-Avon. One of the perks included the right to appoint the church’s rector, which could, should you wish, be a member of your own family.

In later years, and especially after the decimation of the Black Death of 1348, both manors were let out to tenants, often rich wool merchants or sheep masters, but also farmers.

Capenor Court and manor, a newcomer on the scene, became home to the Chappell family. Across 300 years the Chappells rose from being lowly tenant farmers to men of power, wealth and quality. Although parts of the building dated back to the 16th century, the court was unfortunately demolished in the 1960s.

Visitors can now enjoy stays in the Tudor and medieval manor houses. The five-bedroom Tudor manor house sleeps up to 14 people, and both manors can be booked, sleeping up to 20 people.

Historic Properties Nearby

• Thornbury Castle (16.5 miles)
• Acton Court (17 miles)
• Berkeley Castle (23 miles)

Visitor Information

Court House Farm can be booked through their website here.

Address: Church Road South, Portishead, Somerset BS20 6PU.