- Greys Court
Greys Court is a Tudor
country house and associated gardens, located at gbmapping|SU725834, at the southern end of theChiltern Hills atRotherfield Greys , nearHenley-on-Thames in the English county ofOxfordshire . It is owned by the National Trust and is open to the public.The name derives from an old connection to the Grey family, descendants of the Norman knight
Anchetil de Greye . The estate or manor of Rotherfield Greys upon which Greys Court is situated is specifically mentioned in theDomesday Book .The mainly
Tudor style house has a beautiful courtyard and gardens. Thewalled garden s are full of old-fashionedrose s andwisteria , an ornamental vegetable garden,maze (laid to grass with brick paths, dedicated by ArchbishopRobert Runcie on12 October 1981 ) andice house . Within the gardens is a medieval fortified tower of 1347, the only remains of the previouscastle , giving extensive views of the gardens and surrounding countryside. Also to be found within the gardens is a Tudor wheelhouse, where adonkey operated atreadmill to haul water from a well.The house itself has an interesting history, and the interior, with some outstanding 18th-century plasterwork, is still furnished as a family home.
Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned here while Queen Elizabeth I was on the throne. Greys Court was for a time owned by Sir Francis Knollys, treasurer to Elizabeth I.External links
* [http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-greyscourt/ Greys Court information at the National Trust]
* [http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/museum_gfx_en/SE000527.html Information] from the24 Hour Museum
* [http://www.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-000-653-128-C A bird's-eye view of Greys Court Rotherfield Greys in the 17th or 18th century] fromScran
* [http://www.aboutbritain.com/GreysCourt.htm AbouBritain.com information]
* [http://www.touruk.co.uk/houses/houseoxf_grey.htm TourUK information]
* [http://www.gardens-guide.com/gardenpages/_0136.htm Gardens-Guide information]
* [http://www.petergoodearl.co.uk/laceygreen/days/greys/ Photographs]
* [http://www.castles-abbeys.co.uk/Greys-Court.html Castles Abbeys and Medieval Buildings information] by Michael W. Cook
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