Lytes Manor is a modest but attractive mediaeval manor house, restored in the early 20th century,…read moresurrounded by lovely gardens in the Arts & Crafts style. It is now in the care of the National Trust. As well as the house and gardens, there is a cafe, and a small second-hand bookshop.
The area was part of the Lytes family manor and it's existence is recorded in a mid-13th century. The name derives from the family name (Lytes) and the nearby River Cary. The oldest part of the building is the small, mid-14th century chapel, originally a chantry chapel. The great hall was added in the 15th century, and the oriel in the 16th century. Further additions were made in the 17th and 18th century, but the house was sold by the Lytes family in 1755, and thereafter gradually fell into disrepair and the northern range of buildings was demolished in the 19th century.
It was saved in 1907 when it was purchased by Sir Walter Jenner, who gradually restored the house, acquiring genuine period furnishings and faithful reproductions. He also developed the gardens around the house, in the Arts & Crafts style, as a series of "rooms", including two orchards and a croquet lawn, a lavender garden, kitchen garden, and a long herbaceous border.
The house makes for a charming afternoon out; there are helpful volunteer guides in every room, the highlight of which for me was the chapel, which contains both genuine and very faithfully reproduced mediaeval stained glass. The gardens are delightful: the herbaceous border is one of the nicest I have seen for a long time, a mass of purples and reds, with delicate creams and yellows. At one end is a border created entirely from a range of white blooms, of different textures and heights.
Parking is a short walk from the house. The house mostly provides level access, but some rooms are upstairs. Some of the house corridors and garden paths are narrow, and the garden oaths are uneven. There is Blue Badge parking, an accessible toilet, and a wheelchair is available (best to call ahead).
