Muggleswick Grange

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Mugleswick; Priory Farm; Hunting Lodge

In the civil parish of Muggleswick.
In the historic county of Durham; County Palatinate of (Modern Authority of Durham, 1974 county of County Durham).

Remains of monastic grange at Priory Farm. Built between 1258 and 1272 on what is thought to be site of earlier grange. In 1464 site consisted of a hall, chapel, grange and dairy, the latter in poor state of repair. Visible remains consist of 2 rectangular blocks. Eastern block stands to complete height of 15.5m at eastern gable, which has corbelled turrets, but is elsewhere much lower (average surviving height of N wall is 0.7m). Western block survives to 4m at western gable but is not visible on surface elsewhere although foundations are thought to survive underground. This building had an undercroft that was at least partly removed in C19. The building was originally scheduled as a hunting lodge and listed as a manor house. It's certainly finer in quality than most farmhouses and may well represent the Priors Hunting lodge. Does not seem to be particually fortified and Salter may have included this in his gazetteer of fortified buildings merely for it’s architectual interest.

This site has been described as a;
Fortified Manor House.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Questionable.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 439111)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NZ04435003

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 20352

County Sites and Monuments Record number; D6420

• Web site links
  • http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=D6420
• Books
  • Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles and Tower Houses of County Durham (Malvern) p47
    Corfe, Tom (ed), 1992, 'The Visible Middle Ages' in An Historical Atlas of County Durhan p28-9 [where marked as domestic building]
• Journal Articles
  • Greenwell, W. and Knowles, W.H., 1890, 'Muggleswick Prior's Camera' Transactions of the Architectural and Archaeological Society of Durham and Northumberland Vol4 p287-308