Milton Manor (Milton)

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Milton Manor is a tall classically inspired mid-17th century red-brick house.

The estate was purchased in the mid-16th century by a London goldsmith and the present house was probably built by his descendant, Paul Carlton, shortly after his marriage in 1659.

The architect is not known but it may well have been the London builder, John Jackson, who moved to Oxford in the 1630s to superintend the construction of the Canterbury Quadrangle at St John's College.

In 1764 the property was purchased by Bryant Barrett, lace maker to George III.
The next year he commissioned Stephen Wright, master-mason in the Office of Works, to add wings and provide further service accommodation in outbuildings to the north.

The wings contained a new Roman Catholic chapel and library but because Catholicism was still officially banned in England the exterior of the wings was kept deliberately plain. The interiors, in contrast, were decorated in elaborate Gothic style.

From this period onwards there have been no major alterations to the house and the property has passed by descent to the present owner, Anthony Mockler-Barrett.

Milton Manor stands on the edge of the village and the first view of the house is across a lake.

The main block, dating from the 17th century, is five bays wide and has three storeys and a basement under a hipped roof.

The main facades have Ionic pilasters and further decoration is provided by the white-painted eaves cornice.

Each floor has four rooms. The Hall and Drawing Room are on the ground floor of the entrance or east front.

The Hall is reached through screen opening off the passage which divides the building. The Dining Room is on the garden front, next to the staircase which rises to the height of the house.

Many of the rooms were remodelled by Bryant Barrett in the 18th century but the carved wooden chimneypiece in the Hall is contemporary with the original house. The Drawing Room has a plaster ceiling, with oak and laurel wreaths, which is also original.

The Library situated in the south wing is a larger 18th century room decorated with a plaster frieze and cornice. The Gothic windows and bookcases were carved by Richard Lawrence of London and are surmounted by ogee arches. Items from the family's collection of late-18th and 19th century English porcelain are now displayed in the Gothic bookcases. Over the fireplace is a group portrait of Bryant Barrett, with his wife and brother-in-law by Joseph Highmore.

The Gothic Chapel was dedicated in 1773. The windows contain medieval English and 17th century Flemish stained glass. Some of the Mass vestments date from 1760.

The grounds surrounding Milton Manor House were laid out when the house was remodelled by Bryant Barrett in the 18th century.

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