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Miniatures Adventure => Medieval Adventures => Topic started by: olyreed on September 24, 2020, 07:39:04 AM

Title: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 24, 2020, 07:39:04 AM
I'm planning on modeling a manor house for my barons war project, not knowing much about the buildings at the time and relying on the internet and the good people on this forum for help and ideas😁.  I assume there would be a wall surrounding it with a gatehouse of some sort, would there be other buildings inside the grounds? A kitchen for example along with gardens
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Atheling on September 24, 2020, 09:30:21 AM
Try Googling Boothby Pagnell Norman Manor House.

Here's on pic that poppe3d up immediately- built 1200 too boot.

Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 24, 2020, 10:11:41 AM
 Cheers Atheling. I will use that as a template. Just need to add walls and bits me thinks
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: sukhe_bator on September 24, 2020, 10:58:08 AM
Boothby Pagnell is pretty much the only freestanding manorial hall surviving of that period but the main hall of most castles and stone merchant's houses and hospitals e.g. in Canterbury followed a similar format. Stone houses often had a secure vaulted undercroft for storage. These structures followed the same architectural principles as timber halls. Imagine the length split into 4 sections. The entrance usually on one side at one end with a room for service (1/4), a main hall with raised platform at far end with fireplace either in the centre or a stone chimney behind the high table (1/2) with passageway to Lord's chambers behind (1/4) The centre of the building was full height with smoke escaping through the eaves or a smoke hood, and 2 levels at either end with small internal staircases. These dictated the window positions which were small arrowslits/loops at ground floor level for defence. With a lot of these earlier buildings an understanding of the function and the internal layout is diagnostic for the exterior look.
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: sukhe_bator on September 24, 2020, 11:11:44 AM
Many earlier structures had a hall on the first floor but transitioned into a full height structure in the 1200s. The Music House, Norwich is another example of a stone hall from the period. Kitchens were often separate buildings within a walled complex due to the risk of fire (like forges). Historians often look to how religious houses were laid out for cues to the operation of such complexes. I can thoroughly recommend Margaret Wood's The English Medieval House (1983) which contains a wealth of information and drawings/photos and architectural plans on all these issues...
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: carlos marighela on September 24, 2020, 12:09:48 PM
To save you some time:


https://www.thecollectionmuseum.com/assets/downloads/IS_arch_23_the_norman_manor_house_at_boothby_pagnell.pdf
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Atheling on September 24, 2020, 12:14:30 PM
When I was in my early 20's I used to see a girl who lived in the Crook Hall in Durham. It has a Norman segment though it was 'spoiled' over the years but still had the upper bed chamber above the hall. Really interesting. Well, that section of the building :)
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: carlos marighela on September 24, 2020, 12:35:32 PM
I have a strange feeling that story ends in a Roger Whittaker tune.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9XcuN5hZwk

 ;)
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Atheling on September 24, 2020, 12:56:37 PM
I have a strange feeling that story ends in a Roger Whittaker tune.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9XcuN5hZwk

 ;)

OMG!! I had hidden that horror to the back of my mind for years!  lol
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Maniac on September 24, 2020, 01:05:15 PM
Typically the house would have had a wall or pallisade around the perimeter of an overall area that included some of the following out buildings:  stable, kitchen, blacksmith, chapel, dovecote, brewery, and the like.  It would have also had some sort of apple orchard or fruit trees, vegetable garden, a pond or two that were stocked with fish, and herb gardens.

This would have varied from place to place based on wealth and location.  See below.

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/f1/94/27/f1942790635fd10eaf510eff0be1f00a.jpg)
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 24, 2020, 03:04:34 PM
Thanks for all the replies, the image will come in useful, I will base it on that but a bit smaller
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: painterman on September 24, 2020, 09:58:00 PM
This maybe of interest as a basis:
https://www.petitepropertiesltd.com/1/48th-hobbler-s-loft-part-of-cobblestone-snicket.html

Simon
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Rick F on September 24, 2020, 10:03:35 PM
Cheating a bit, but this could be the basis of a good model.
https://sarissa-precision.com/products/normanmanorhouse
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 25, 2020, 07:43:24 AM
Starting to get ideas down on paper, i will use the Sarrisa precision manor house as a shell another building or 2 as well, vegetable plot and herb garden. The walls I was thinking of using MDF again as a base and cover in plasticard like the church I made. Just got to think of how to finish the tip of the walls
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Atheling on September 25, 2020, 10:25:58 AM
This maybe of interest as a basis:
https://www.petitepropertiesltd.com/1/48th-hobbler-s-loft-part-of-cobblestone-snicket.html

Simon

Cheating a bit, but this could be the basis of a good model.
https://sarissa-precision.com/products/normanmanorhouse

Well, I've certainly made a note of these as with a degree of work (adding stone etc) they would be brilliant for my Hereford project, when resurrected!
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: carlos marighela on September 25, 2020, 10:41:58 AM
Starting to get ideas down on paper, i will use the Sarrisa precision manor house as a shell another building or 2 as well, vegetable plot and herb garden. The walls I was thinking of using MDF again as a base and cover in plasticard like the church I made. Just got to think of how to finish the tip of the walls

If you mean the stone quoins on the corners of the building your best bet is to buy the kit ones from Peco. Easy to fit and hides unsightly joins of mdf and plastic card.
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Mindenbrush on September 25, 2020, 01:13:26 PM
Pat of Wargaming with Silver Whistle made his walls from 2” foam
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 26, 2020, 01:24:18 PM
Thank you for the replies, I'm a bit stumped on what type of stone finish for the manor house. I'm gonna use plasticard like on the church in another thread but was thinking on a different style. Does anyone have ideas, I'm looking at the Slater's random stone sheets or the stone course one
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: carlos marighela on September 26, 2020, 02:17:56 PM
I’d go with coursed stone for the manor house itself. If you have some lesser outbuildings then the rubble might make a subtle change.
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Atheling on September 26, 2020, 02:22:19 PM
From my experience way back when I was working at Durham Cathedral (we had a lot of input from Durham Uni Archaeology Dept) layered and mortared cut blocks in courses (with lime) is the look you want to go for.

Of course this depends on how much the owner would spend but good defence in the 11th Century beats weak defence.
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: olyreed on September 26, 2020, 02:37:31 PM
Thanks for the replies
Title: Re: Norman manor house info required
Post by: Maniac on September 26, 2020, 02:58:56 PM
Alternatively, many of the buildings would have had a white wash applied to the exterior.  So a light plaster look would also be appropriate.