Woodford Court House

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Wodeford Episcopi; Bisshopwodford; Bishop Woodford

In the civil parish of Woodford. In the historic county of Wiltshire (Modern Authority of Wiltshire, 1974 county of Wiltshire).

A house dating to C15 or C16 and originating as the Court House for the Bishop of Salisbury's manor. The south east range is the oldest part of the house with the north west range added circa 1830-1840. It is built of rendered brick with a slate roof, extended to north with flint and brick chequerwork on one bay, separately roofed. It has two storeys. A little to the east of the house is the site of a small medieval building, possibly a chapel, which was in a ruinous state and demolished in 1875. (PastScape)
licensed in 1337 and licence ratified in 1377. Leland writes 'Bishop Shaxton pulled it down because it was already somewhat in ruins.'
Geophysical survey carried out in 2001 by N. Payne. Payne writes 'The resistivity survey has confirmed that the main residential block of the medieval residence of the bishops of Salisbury was probably located to the east of the Court House in Lower Woodford, by the river Avon. The two courses of the river bounded the manor house to the west and east, and the artificial channel to the north may have been cut during the medieval period. Together, these watercourses formed what could be viewed as a partially moated site. The convenient location close to the river Avon meant that the bishops would needed only to take a short boat trip down stream to arrive at the cathedral and bishop's palace at Salisbury, which are situated close to the Avon.'

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SU12623532

Air Photo from Air Photo and general mapping	1st edition OS Map from Mid to late 19th century maps
Modern Map from Landscape form and features	Modern Map from General location and route planning
Geograph British Isles occasionally has photos of the site and will usually give an idea of the surrounding landscape.

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 1323779
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is SU13NW458 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

• Web site links
  • http://history.wiltshire.gov.uk/smr/getsmr.php?id=10482
• Books
  • Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p627-9, 695
    Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p167, 168, 184
    Crittal, Eliz. (ed), 1962, 'Woodford' VCH Wiltshire Vol6 p221-7 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=41813
    Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p411
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • Calendar of Patent Rolls (1334-38) p498
    Calendar of Patent Rolls (1377-81) p9, 10
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p495
• Other sources, 'grey' literature, unpublished works, etc. (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
  • Payne, Naomi, 2003, The medieval residences of the bishops of Bath and Wells, and Salisbury (PhD Thesis University of Bristol) p198-203 [available via http://ethos.bl.uk ]