Sheffield Manor Lodge

Sheffield Manor Lodge began life as a 12th century hunting lodge in the midst of a 2,500 acre deer park. With a prominent position at its highest point, Manor Lodge had a fine prospect over the park and much of Hallamshire beyond.

The park provided timber and stone for building, wood and coal for fuel as well as meat and skins. The right to hunt and later to farm and mine was jealously guarded by its landowners for hundreds of years, right through to the 20th century.

The lodge was extended extensively over the following centuries. By the early 1500's the 4th Earl of Shrewsbury had built a grand manor house which included one of the earliest long galleries in England. 

In 1530, a newly built tower housed Henry VIII's chancellor, Cardinal Wolsey, on his way to stand trial for high treason in London. Wolsey had been one of the most influential people at Henry's court. He fell from grace after failing to secure Henry's annulment with Catherine of Aragon from the pope. He stayed in Sheffield for 16-18 days before being taken ill with violent stomach pains toward the end of his stay. He died in Leicester 3 days after leaving Sheffield. 

George Talbot became the 6th Earl in 1560 and was one of the wealthiest and most influential people in Elizabeth I's court. He married Bess in 1568, herself a rich woman having already been married three times to increasingly wealthy men. 

They lived happily until they became custodians of Mary Queen of Scots in 1569. Over 15 years, the financial cost of maintaining a watch on this important prisoner, as well as rumours of a flirtation between George and Mary, took their toll. When Mary left, the couple lived apart. George had lost all his chances of further political advancement and the strain of caring for Mary had almost bankrupted him. He died at Manor Lodge in 1590.  Bess went on to build Hardwick New Hall.

Mary was held in the custody of George Talbot for 15 years, 14 of them in Sheffield, often at Manor Lodge. She arrived having been Queen of both France and Scotland. She had married three times and borne a son, James, who would go on to become the first monarch of both England and Scotland.

After Mary was implicated in the murder of her second husband she fled from Scotland. She sought the support of her cousin, Queen Elizabeth, to raise an army and regain the Scottish crown. The threat posed by the Catholic Mary meant Elizabeth imprisoned her instead. Though a prisoner, Mary was treated as a Queen, at great expense to Bess and George. She may have helped design the Turret House ceiling. She eventually left the custody of George for another jailor before being executed in 1587.

After the death of George Talbot, the Earls rarely visited the site and the land was leased to tenant farmers. It fell to the Duke of Norfolks in 1660 who have owned the land ever since. In 1708 most buildings were demolished and used for local building works. One tower stood until 1793 when it collapsed during a storm. The Turret House remains to this day having been used as part of farm buildings.

Coal had been mined in the park since Tudor times however in the 1800's miners transformed the ruins into a self-contained hamlet focused around a nearby colliery. The long gallery was converted into cottages and the Norfolk Arms pub built next to the remaining chimney. 

In the 1870s, the 15th Duke of Norfolk restored the Turret House, removing the surrounding farm buildings. The stained glass windows on the upper floors date from this Victorian restoration.

The colliery closed in 1896 and shortly after all post-16th century buildings were demolished. Some of the families who had lived within the ruins did not move away but lived in cottages in the bend of Manor Lane. Another self-contained community developed here and became known as the ‘Manor Castle Village’. The Manor Castle pub is the only remaining building of the village. The Turret House was occupied at this time by a series of families who acted as caretakers until the 1960s. 

Green Estate CIC has been managing the Sheffield Manor Lodge site for over 20 years. We believe in creating better places to live with nature at their heart.

Not only do we maintain the scheduled ancient monument but bring the site to life through open days and activities and manage green spaces across the Manor estate including Manor Fields Park.