Minster Lovell Hall - A J Taylor

The ruins of Minster Lovell Hall are situated in a picturesque spot on the banks of the River Windrush, about half way between Witney and Burford. The house was built in the first half of the fifteenth century by William, seventh Baron Lovell of Tichmarsh. It was at least the second house to occupy this site, which had belonged to the Lovells since the twelfth century. The house was bought by Sir Edward Coke in the seventeenth century. It was subsequently passed to his descendant, Thomas Coke, Earl of Leicester, who dismantled the buildings between 1740 and 1750, leaving the house to fall into decay. The principal remains are the great hall and entrance porch, the south-west tower and some buildings from the fifteenth-century farm, including a dovecote. This guidebook includes a tour of the site, and a history of the house and its inhabitants.