BOCHYM MANOR

NEAR MULLION

CORNWALL

An important Grade II* Jacobean and Gothic Revival manor house in an enchanting and tranquil wooded valley

BOCHYM MANOR
NEAR MULLION

| CORNWALL | TR12

7AZ

7 Reception rooms | 10 Bedrooms | 3 Bathrooms Kitchen | Extensive domestic offices Staff flat | Gothic farmhouse | 13 cottages | Outbuildings | Clock tower Historic landscaped walled and water gardens | Paddock | Bluebell wood Waterfalls | Arboretum | Trout river | Abundant wildlife

About 18 acres
Poldhu cove 1 miles Helford River 3 miles Truro 20 miles

AN IMPORTANT AND WONDERFULLY PRIVATE GRADE II* JACOBEAN AND GOTHIC REVIVAL MANOR HOUSE IN AN ENCHANTING AND TRANQUIL WOODED VALLEY

SITUATION
Bochym Manor is situated in an enchanting and tranquil wooded valley on the Lizard Peninsula, about five miles north of Lizard Point, the southernmost part of the United Kingdom. The property is about one and a half miles from Poldhu Cove, a delightful sheltered sandy bay on the western side of the Lizard, and about three miles from the international sailing waters of the Helford River, romantically linked with the novels of Daphne du Maurier. Bochym is the most southerly mansion in the country. Truro, the cathedral city and county town of Cornwall, with its fine Victorian cathedral, is able to offer a comprehensive range of facilities and a number of excellent independent schools for boys and girls of all ages. There are also primary schools at Cury and Mullion and a secondary school at Helston. Cornwall was recently voted by Country Life magazine as one of the most attractive and desirable counties to live in the British Isles. It has one of the finest coastlines in Northern Europe, much of which is in the ownership and protection of the National Trust and varies from the rugged and dramatic granite coastline in North Cornwall to the multicoloured and towering cliffs and gorgeous coves of the Western Lizard Peninsula and the deep wooded valleys of the Helford River and Carrick Roads. Cornwall has a number of wonderful gardens benefiting from the Gulf Stream and providing a wide variety of sub-tropical plants, with magnificent displays of camellias, magnolias and rhododendra in the spring. Cornwall also has benefited from the Eden Project near St Austell, the rediscovery of the Lost Gardens of Heligan, near Mevagissy, and other interesting attractions in the area include the Minack Theatre at Porthcurno and the Maritime Museum at Falmouth. The Isles of Scilly, with their turquoise bays and white sandy beaches, can easily be accessed via a helicopter service from Penzance, aeroplanes from Lands End and Newquay, or the Scillonian boat from Penzance.

COMMUNICATIONS
Road The A30 from the M5 at Exeter now provides a superb dual carriageway (with few exceptions) link to West Cornwall. Rail Regular intercity trains operate from Truro to London (Paddington). Air Newquay Airport provides flights to London, the Isles of Scilly and a number of continental destinations. Plymouth and Exeter Airports provide further flights to the Continent. Those wishing to view by helicopter should contact the agents, who will make arrangements either to land at the property or at a nearby airfield. Ferry Cross-Channel ferry services operate from Plymouth to Brittany and Northern Spain.

RECREATION
Sailing In the nearby Helford River, Carrick Roads (Fal Estuary) and along the South Cornish coastline. Bathing In a number of sheltered nearby sandy coves around the Lizard Peninsula. Walking Along the South West Coastal Footpath. Golf At Mullion and a number of local golf courses. Riding In the surrounding countryside. Field Sports Facilities and clubs in Helston.

HISTORICAL NOTE
Archaeological evidence suggests that the site of Bochym Manor has been inhabited since the Stone Age. However, the earliest documentary evidence is to be found in the Domesday survey of 1086 (Exeter Roll). The Reverend Alfred Hayman Cummings published his Churches and Antiquities of Cury and Gunwalloe in 1875 and wrote of Bochym: It is, indeed, a remarkable manor and estate, with a pedigree as long as any could wish for, and a history romantic enough for the most ardent imagination. The ancient house and manor of Bochym is truly the first and last gentlemans house in England. At the time of the Domesday recording of Bochym, it would seem that the property was then owned by Robert, Count of Mortein, who was half-brother to William the Conqueror. The survey also mentions a mulberry tree in the lower gardens, which can still be seen and is believed to be the largest and oldest surviving specimen in the country. By the end of the 13th century Bochym was owned by the Le Bret family and was passed by marriage to John Winslade. As one of the ringleaders of the Prayerbook Rebellion, he was beheaded and his property forfeited to the Crown. Bochym Manor was eventually passed, again by marriage, to Francis Bellot of Corsham in Wiltshire.

During the Civil War in 1648 the property was a Royalist stronghold and was consequently ravaged and put to the torch by Cromwells troops. The Bellot family had therefore to rebuild, at great expense, and a date stone inscribed RBM 1699 was put up on the east wing, commemorating the completion of the work. Unfortunately the costs incurred crippled the family financially, and the property was sold in 1712 to George Robinson of Nansloe, whose family subsequently sold it to the Trelawney family. After this, Bochym Manor was again sold to Robert Furneaux, who was best known as the designer of the first Lizard lighthouse. The house then fell into disrepair until it was purchased in 1825 by Stephen Davey from Redruth, whose fortune was derived from tin mining and brewing (the Redruth Brewery). During his ownership the manor flourished and was completely restored, while the familys fortunes were added to with ownership of serpentine quarries on the Lizard. The magnificent serpentine entrance pillars, the French Empire drawing room, the battlemented clock tower and the exceptional Italian walnut panelled library are examples of Stephen Daveys imprint on Bochym Manor. In addition in 1851 a secret passage was discovered, which is said to have run to Mulllion and

which is alleged to have been used by smugglers. Known throughout the Lizard as the torchlight tunnel, its location was subsequently lost. At this time Stephen Davey became Member of Parliament for West Cornwall and in 1846 Queen Victoria and Prince Albert stayed at Bochym when they visited Kynance Cove and popularised the Lizard Peninsula and its spectacular serpentine rock. It is understood that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle also stayed at Bochym Manor before the First World War and set his Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Devils Foot on the estate. W Herbert Thomas wrote in his book, A Visit to Bochym in 1895: As one wanders . . . one can readily imagine Mr Daveys fondness for the home of his ancestors, and will not fail to recall in after-years the atmosphere and over-shadowing presence of the past that pervades the place, and the many beautiful avenues, gardens, paths and tumbling waterfalls of Bochym. Today the privacy, beauty, serenity and tranquility of Bochym are still remarkable.

BOCHYM MANOR
Bochym Manor is Listed Grade II* as being of Significant Architectural Importance and Historic Interest. It dates partly from the late mediaeval period, was extended in the mid 17th century and, by 1699, partly remodelled, then rebuilt in the 1840s. The principal accommodation in the manor house is laid out in four wings lying at right angles to each other and dating from the 17th century (East and West Wings) and early 19th century (South West and South Wings). The property is principally of serpentine ashlar stone and coarse dressed serpentine with granite dressings for the principal architectural details. The house has many lovely old stone floors and elegant mullion windows, some of which have beautiful stained glass, under a Delabole slate roof with ashlar chimneys of the 1840s over the gable ends and the gabled lateral stacks. The original house was probably a three room and through passage plan house, with the lower end to the left. In the 17th century a long cross wing was built at the higher right end, turning the original inner room into a stair hall, and adding a parlour to the front and service rooms at the rear. By 1699 the parlour wing had been extended by a further parlour to the front and remodelled. The original three room and through passage range was rebuilt in the 1840s, probably retaining the rear wall with its central lateral fireplace, but the plan was remodelled to form two equal-sized principal rooms on either side of the central entrance hall. Today Bochym Manor retains a dazzling wealth of fine architectural features including an exquisite drawing room to the left of the entrance hall in the French Empire style with ornate wall panels, pilasters, door architrave and ceiling cornices and a stunning fireplace. The library contains exposed and chamfered beam and joists and ravishingly beautiful hand-carved Italian walnut linenfold panelling. The Victoria and Albert Museum in London holds all the original documentation for the library panelling which cost in the region of 2,000. It was carved in Bond Street in the 1840s (by the firm that undertook similar panelling in the rebuilt Houses of Parliament) and shipped from Tilbury to Falmouth Docks and transported by cart to Bochym. Two craftsmen accompanied it and it took 72 days to install with the two craftsmen only taking two days off during that period.

The Jacobean drawing room has a substantial and very early plaster relief ceiling with robust oval roll-moulded central feature, moulded in high relief as well as bolection moulded English walnut panelling . In the main hall is an impressive cantilevered Jacobean oak staircase and the house contains a number of fine marble, serpentine, granite and other (around 20 in total) fireplaces. Bochym Manor contains seven elegant and well-proportioned reception rooms, a number of which are illustrated by colour photographs in the brochure and as shown on the floor plans. On the ground floor are atmospheric early Victorian service rooms comprising scullery, kitchen, game larder, dairy, laundry and dispensary, while under the house is a charming wine cellar and a very large principal cellar.

At first floor level there are 10 bedrooms (five panelled) and three bathrooms, each in a different style, including Art Deco, Art Nouveau and Gothic Revivial. At the far end of the first floor is a self-contained apartment, ideally suited for staff and comprising sitting room, kitchen, two bedrooms and bathroom. On the second floor there is a complete run of five principal ancillary rooms (boarded), plus one substantial unboarded room and several smaller boarded rooms, the total extending the full length of the house and accessed by two staircases.

Bochym Manor circa. 1870

ESTATE BUILDINGS
Approached via a continuation of the main entrance drive, and also via a spur drive to the north, is a charming former farmhouse, known as Swifts Cottage. This is understood to have originally been the estate stewards house and manor bakery, and is built in the Gothic Revival style of the 1840s with Gothic doorways, honeysuckle covered porch and diamond paned windows. The farmhouse is currently divided into two apartments. Bochym Manor has 13 holiday cottages, all skilfully created from early Victorian coach houses, stables and barns, and formed from part of the early Victorian Model Farm. Above Swifts Cottage is Davey Barn, a very large cottage which sleeps up to 10 and is ideal for large family holidays. Six of the cottages, formed from early Victorian coach houses and stables, are arranged around the delightful and spacious historic clock tower courtyard. These comprise three two bedroom cottages, two one bedroom cottages and one three bedroom cottage. There are a further six one bedroom cottages formed from the Victorian Model Farm. The cottages are let mainly between Whitsun to September and have a large number of repeat visitors coming back to enjoy the peace and tranquillity of Bochym Manor and the wonderful Lizard coastline.

Adjoining Davey Barn is a large barn on two levels and several further structures with potential to complete the conversion works to provide an additional seven cottages, if required. Full planning permission has been obtained. The business turnover is substantial and could easily be increased. Alternatively, the holiday cottages could be simply derated and returned to stables, domestic storage and accommodation if any purchaser so wishes. The clock tower to the north west of the manor house affords magnificent views and is the Lizard Peninsulas tallest building. The outbuildings and clock tower are all Listed Grade II, to form, together with the manor house and garden walls, one of the largest and most complete assemblies of Listed structures in Cornwall.

mile of three ancient tree-lined carriage drives, a Jacobean bowling green, a Victorian croquet lawn, an Elizabethan serpentine wallwalk, a venerable holy well, an historic bridge over the Poldhu, a Regency rock dell and pool garden, mediaeval earth ramparts, an early Victorian bothy, ancient half-moon steps and numerous stone pillars, balls and other features. The sub-tropical climate of the Lizard Peninsula enables the growth of a number of trees and shrubs which are rare in other parts of the country. There are some magnificent trees including English oak, Holm oak, beech, horse chestnut, Spanish chestnut, ash, hazel, copper beech, mimosa, palms, lime and Monterey pine. Like most Cornish gardens, Bochym Manor contains a profusion of shrubs, including echium, azaleas, camellias, escallonia, fuchsia and rhododendra. In the spring there are swathes of snowdrops, primroses, daffodils, orchids and bluebells. Later there are drifts of ox-eye daisies, valerian and many other wild flowers. Ferns abound all year-round. The wildlife within Bochym is prolific and includes abundant species of butterflies with nearly 30 species (over half the national total) having been recorded at Bochym. There are large

GARDENS AND GROUNDS

One of the principal features of Bochym Manor are the delightfully tranquil and landscaped gardens and grounds which extend in all to about 18 acres. The intact formal gardens of Bochym Manor are an improbable 17th century survivor, a genuine time trip hidden down narrow winding lanes, and most rewarding . . . the garden has hardly suffered a scrap of change and remains one of the most likeable and covetable gardens in Cornwall . . its particular charm is its mystery. (Dr Mowl, Reader in Architectural and Garden History at the University of Bristol. From his book Historic Gardens of Cornwall.) The gardens comprise formal terraces, semi-formal areas and extensive areas of wildlife garden. One of the features of the garden is the large mulberry tree, which is mentioned in the Domesday Book and is, as mentioned, understood to be the oldest mulberry tree in the country. In addition to the many mysterious and enchanting tracks and pathways in the grounds, the gardens include 17th century walled parterres, a substantial serpentine ha-ha, the Regency period romantic remodelling of the Poldhu River to create a series of ornamental ponds connected by rapids, ravines and waterfalls as it races down to the sea, and early Victorian arboretum, over half a

Nearby Poldhu Cove

numbers of are swathes at the property and newts, toads and frogs spring there nesting birdsof snowdrops, primroses, daffodils, orchids in and by the Later there are drifts a ox-eye daisies, valerian and and bluebells.River Poldhu, which isof trout river. many other wild flowers. Ferns about year-round. The wildlife The lower garden comprises of some of the most impressive within Bochym is prolific and includes abundant species of flowering shrubs and trees in West Cornwall and the River Poldhu butterflies with nearly 30 species (over half the national total) flows through the property with cascades, waterfalls, pools and two having been recorded at Bochym. There are large numbers of stone bridges. nesting birds at the property and newts, toads and frogs in the River Poldhu, which is a trout river.carpeted in the spring with bluebells, A delightful woodland walk, wild garlic, orchids and campion, leads down to and through the The lower garden comprises of some of the most impressive spectacular arboretum. A bluebell wood with a central track runs flowering shrubs and trees in West Cornwall and the River Poldhu for nearly a third of a mile down the Poldhu valley towards the sea flows through the property with cascades, waterfalls, pools and two and contains numerous wonderful mature trees. stone bridges. In all about 18 acres with an enviable level of privacy and A delightful woodland walk, carpeted in the spring with bluebells, tranquillity, an almost total absence of road noise and with birdsong wild garlic, orchids and campion, leads down to the southernmost all around. Bochym Manor offers a combination of history, beauty, part of the property. A bluebell wood with a central track, runs for atmosphere and serenity almost unique, even for magical Cornwall. nearly a third of a mile down the Poldhu valley towards the sea and contains numerous wonderful mature trees. GENERAL REMARKS AND STIPULATIONS In all about 18 acres with an enviable level of privacy and treaty Tenure: The property is offered for sale freehold, by private tranquillity, an electricity and water. Private drainage. Night storage Services: Mainsalmost total absence of road noise and with birdsong all around. Bochym Manor farmhouse and cottages history, beauty, heaters in the manor house, offers a combination of atmosphere and Kerrier almost Council, Dolcoath Avenue, Local Authority:serenity Districtunique, even for magical Cornwall. Camborne, Cornwall TR14 8SX, tel. 01209 614000 Bochym Manor House Council tax Band G Cottages, business rating 6,583.50 per annum Notes: All items known as tenants fixtures and fittings are excluded from the sale. The fire surround in the dining room is not part of the Listing and will be removed by the owners prior to completion. The holiday cottages will be sold with their contents to enable a buyer to continue to run the holiday cottage business, if so desired. Certain items may be available in addition, by separate negotiation. Electrical and other appliances mentioned in the sale particulars have not been tested by Strutt & Parker LLP or Lillicrap Chilcott, therefore prospective purchasers must satisfy themselves as to their working order. Rights of way, wayleaves & easements: The sale is subject to all rights of support, public and private rights of way, water, light, drainage and other easements, quasi-easements and wayleaves, all or any other like rights, whether mentioned in these particulars or not.

DIRECTIONS GENERAL REMARKS AND STIPULATIONS

From Helston take the offered for sale freehold, by private treaty Tenure: The property isA3083, signposted to the Lizard. Continue south for about three miles to Cury Cross Lanes. Just after passing Services: Mains electricity and water. Private drainage. Night storage the Wheal Inn public house, fork right marked unsuitable for heavy heaters in the manor house, farmhouse and cottages goods vehicles and signposted Chypons and Trewoon. Continue for

about 300 yards Kerrier entrance drive to Bochym Avenue, Local Authority: and the District Council, DolcoathManor will be seen on the Cornwall TR14 8SX, tel. 01209 614000 Camborne, left, marked by two serpentine stone pillars. Viewing strictly House Council tax Band with the vendors joint Bochym Manor by confirmed appointment G agents, Strutt & Parker 01392 215631 or Lillicrap Chilcott 01872 Cottages, business rating 6,583.50 per annum 273473.

The Davey Family circa. 1870

If you require this publication in an alternative format, please contact this office on tel: 01392 215631. IMPORTANT NOTICE Strutt & Parker LLP for themselves and for the Vendors of this property, whose agents they are, give notice that: 1. The particulars are intended to give a fair and substantially correct overall description for the guidance of intending purchasers and do not constitute part of an offer or contract. Prospective purchasers and lessees ought to seek their own professional advice. 2. All descriptions, dimensions, areas, reference to condition and necessary permissions for use and occupation and other details are given in good faith, and are believed to be correct, but any intending purchasers should not rely on them as statements or representations of fact, but must satisfy themselves by inspection or otherwise as to the correctness of each of them. 3. No person in the employment of Strutt & Parker LLP has any authority to make or give any representations or warranty whatever in relation to this property on behalf of Strutt & Parker LLP, nor enter into any contract on behalf of the Vendor. 4. No responsibility can be accepted for any expenses incurred by intending purchasers in inspecting properties which have been sold, let or withdrawn. Photographs taken, details prepared April 2008. Ref: 13AE/2653. MEASUREMENTS AND OTHER INFORMATION All measurements are approximate. While we endeavour to make our sales particulars accurate and reliable , if there is any point which is of particular importance to you, please contact this office and we will be pleased to check the information for you, particularly if contemplating travelling some distance to view the property.

Tel: 01392 215631

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Tel: 01872 273473

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