Tabley Old Hall
| Tabley Old Hall | |
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Photograph of Tabley Old Hall in the 1860s
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| Location | Tabley Inferior, Cheshire, England |
| Coordinates | 53°17′33″N 2°25′18″W / 53.2926°N 2.4216°WCoordinates: 53°17′33″N 2°25′18″W / 53.2926°N 2.4216°W |
| OS grid reference | SJ 720 774 |
| Governing body | Crown Estate |
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Listed Building – Grade II*
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| Designated | 3 September 1984 |
| Reference no. | 1139011 |
| Official name: Tabley Old Hall moated site and gatehouse. | |
| Designated | 24 September 1992 |
| Reference no. | 1012354 |
 Location in Cheshire
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The ruin of Tabley Old Hall (more properly known as Nether Tabley Old Hall) is located on an island surrounded by a moat in the civil parish of Tabley Inferior, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the west of Knutsford, Cheshire, England. The ruin is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and the moated site on which it stands is a scheduled monument.
The hall is the ancestral home of the Leicester (or Leycester) family of Tabley. The estate of Nether Tabley was acquired in the 13th century by the marriage of Sir Nicholas de Leycester (who died in 1295) to Margaret de Dutton. The first house on the site was a timber-framed hall built by John Leycester, who died in 1398. This consisted of an open great hall, with a screens passage, and a two-storey domestic wing. During the 16th century Adam de Leycester made alterations to the house, and built a half-timbered gatehouse to the bridge crossing the moat. His descendent Peter Leicester (1588–1647) married in 1611 and, to celebrate it, installed in the great hall a large, highly-decorated, carved chimney-piece, which was dated 1619. The carvings consists of heraldry, and of figures including terms, a merman, a mermaid, a naked child holding an hourglass, an owl, and a dove. Peter Leicester's son, the historian Sir Peter Leycester (1614–78), altered and extended the house between 1656 and 1671. The main alterations were to the east front. This was extended forwards in brick, with projecting wings on each side, giving the house an E-shaped façade. It had a battlemented parapet below which were oculi. The latter gave the appearance of a two-storey façade, although the oculi looked only into the roof space. The house had a central entrance porch, with an archway flanked by Ionic columns decorated with lions sejant. The doorway from the porch leads into the former screens passage. The back of the hall was left untouched at this time. Alterations to the interior included re-panelling the great hall, adding an impressive staircase, and creating a study for Sir Peter's collection of over 1,300 books. Between 1674 and 1678 Sir Peter also built St Peter's Chapel alongside the hall. During the 18th century the house was extended further by Sir Francis Leicester (1674–1742); this included increasing the servants' quarters. He also added another wing incorporating a new library (Sir Peter's old study was preserved), and a nursery. Stained glass portraits of English monarchs were inserted into the large window in the great hall.
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