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Haselour is an ancient manor and hamlet about a mile west of Harlaston. The name Haselour comes from Old English and means hazel ridge. In 1851 it was described as having a population of 29 people in 5 houses, and covered 570 acres (230 ha). The area was extra-parachial and the people were served by the chapel at Harlaston.
For local government purposes Haselour was extra-parochial until 1858, when it became a civil parish within Lichfield Poor Law Union. In 1894 it became part of Lichfield District Council in 1934 the civil parish was incorporated into Harlaston.
Listed Grade II are Haselour Hall and its associated chapel. The manor house of Haselour Hall, with its traditional half-timbered Tudor appearance, dates back to the 16th century.
This is a remarkable mansion which boasts a unique place in the nation’s history.
Encompassing more than 19,000sq ft, the hall, which is located just outside Harlaston.
In 1484 the land that the historic hall now sits on is thought to have provided accommodation to Henry VII the night before The Battle of Bosworth Field, the last significant battle in the War of the Roses. It’s said that during the night, Henry and small band of his guards slipped away and rode to the hall, to visit someone very special who lived there – his mother, Margaret Beaufort.
After the death of Henry’s father she had remarried, choosing the powerful Lord Thomas Stanley, whose home was Haselour Hall, as her new husband. So, while Henry’s visit may have indeed allowed him to see his mother, it’s also believed that he pleaded with Stanley to join him in battle against Richard III.
Oak fire surround depicting the Battle of Bosworth
The Stanleys, however, were wily power brokers and refused to choose sides in the battle. This was a bloodthirtsy time for the English aristocracy, and nobles chose their allegiances very carefully. The support of the Stanleys was so important that Richard kidnapped one of Stanley’s sons to force him to join his ranks. Stanleys answer to the king was starkly cold: “I have other sons.”
On the day of the battle, it’s said that the Stanley’s watched from atop a hill to see who would win, and only swore allegiance to Henry once he had vanquished Richard. In fact, a Stanley of Haselour is said to have found the defeated King’s ringlet – the small crown from the top of his helmet – in a thorn bush and used it to crown Henry VII.
Early in the 15th century the heiress of the Arderne family married Sir Thomas Stanley, carrying Haselour to the Stanleys. It was during their overlordship, in 1485, that the manor house figured in English history. For here the Earl of Richmond (later Henry VII) is said to have passed the night on his march from Lichfield to the battle of Bosworth. So it was probably at Haselour that Stanley secretly promised Henry his help, deceiving Richard III to the last because of the hostages.
In 1508 John Stanley died leaving no male heir, and for many generations the manor of Haselour passed through female inheritance. Finally it descended from the Huddlestones to the Brookes, when Lucy Huddlestone, who was co-heiress, married John Brooke in 1557. Her sister, the other heiress, married Sir John Bowes, taking as her share of the inheritance the manor of Elford. So the two manors became finally saparated. The Brookes, who held Haselour for over 200 years, were there at the time of the Civil War. It was probably the impoverishment due to this which led them to sell Haselour to Samuel Dilke in 1672, so ending the lineal descent from the Ardernes, which had lasted for three and a half centuries. In 1692 Mary Brook, sole daughter and heiress to William Brooke, Esq., of Haselour, who died in 1672, married Christopher Heveningham of Lichfield.
When was the house built? It was not there when William I compiled his Domesday survey. But it is likely that the double moat which used to surround the manor house (and of which traces can still be identified) goes back to Norman times. There was probably a house occupying the present site of Haselour Hall when the Selviens held the manor in the 12th century. There may even be parts of the present house which go back to the Timmors and the Ardernes. But most of the building (except the modern west wing built after 1885) are unmistakably Tudor. The present house may have been built by the Stanleys. It would be romantic to think so and that it was in this very building the Henry VII passed the night before Bosworth. Romantic, but – alas – without corroboration. The black and white half-timber work of the South front gives Haselour Hall its characteristic Tudor appearance. There are still the original tiles on most of the roof, which are said to date from 1550.
The De Trafford lived in Haselour Hall. Augustus Henry De Trafford died in 1895 but the Census of 1901 shows that his wife Gertrude and their 7 children were still living there. (still on 1911 census too). In 1885, Augustus Henry de Trafford, a member of an old Lancashire family and son of a first Baronet, had bought Haselour Hall. He had 11 children, one of whom, also Augustus, died in the Boer War. A further son, Henry Joseph, bought Edingale House Farm in 1901. The stained glass windows in the Catholic church at Haunton relate the fate of Henry Joseph and his brother, Captain Thomas Cecil de Trafford:
The chapel of Haselour is even older than the house. Most of the present building appears to belong to the 14th century, but there was certainly a chapel here long before that date. was only intended for the private use of the family at Haselour Hall. In the grounds of Haselour near the chapel are the remains of the ancient family burying place.
The hall is a stunning 5 gabled, Elizabethan residence with stunning original features including the oak panelled reception hall and dining room, a Norman oak front door, stained glass leaded windows and magnificent oak framed fire surrounds depicting scenes from the Battle of Hastings. It is set over four storeys, with 11 bedrooms. numerous stables and outbuildings, in addition to the Chapel which is now linked to the main building. It has a central oak staircase that leads to the first floor. On the first floor are nine bedrooms and 2 more on the second floor.
It has four stables and 11 garages, plus an outdoor swimming pool.
It is reputed to have large tunnel leading from the cellar across the fields to the Old Black and White Manor House, on the Main Road, Harlaston. It is known that a tunnel exists from the Manor House but as yet no one can say where it leads.
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