A very big house in the country: Whitestaunton Manor is a Grade-I listed estate with a very textured history

 

 

“They have created this spectacular juxtaposition between traditional architecture and modern interiors,” says Ed Sugden, director in sales agent Savills’ Country Department. “It has undergone a ten-year, roof-down refurbishment in partnership with English Heritage and it’s won numerous awards for the work that has been done.” This partnership has seen the kitchen’s Roman masonry with top-of-the-range appliances, a 16th century fireplace paired with modern lighting and a Great Hall with a fully restored hammer beam roof; this speciality of English medieval carpentry is a method of building open timber roofs with no visible support, leaving a decorative criss-crossing effect. It’s thought to be the only roof of its kind in private hands – the only other prominent example of this quality is in the historic Westminster Hall, where heads of state are invited to address the Houses of Parliament.

 

This seven-bedroom house also comes with an impressive amount of outdoor space stocked with ancient copper beech trees and willows, a vegetable garden, an orchard of fruit trees and an al fresco dining terrace.