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Great Shefford Manor

Great Shefford Manor, adjoining the church in West Shefford, is a Grade II* listed building, principally constructed of brick with half flint infilling under a fully clay tiled roof with dormer windows. It is believed to date from the 16th Century but more recent evidence suggests early Norman origins. The house has undergone many changes over the centuries, but a priest's hiding hole in the chimney in the Great Hall is still visible.

The manor house is mentioned in local historical documents during the Civil War. King Charles I is said to have slept in the house at which stage "The Kings Room" was then painted with rural landscapes. The House then belonged to Sir George Browne, a staunch Cavalier, three of whose sons fell in the service of the King. The diary of Capt Symonds, the Royalist Chronicler, mentions "Tuesday 19th November 1644. The army marched. His Majestic lay at Great Shefford in The Old Manor House of Mr Browne Esq; a parke belonging to it. This day in the March a soldier hanged for plunder, but the rope broke". The Brownes were relatives of Viscount Montagu and Sir George was made a Knight of the Order of the Bath at the coronation of Charles II. The Brownes sold to Sir William Trumbull, Secretary of State to William III. It then went to the family of The Marquis of Downshire, but both Trumbulls and Downshires lived chiefly at Easthampstead Park.

Great Shefford Manor is a private residence. It was last offered for sale by Strutt & Parker in June 1998.