The Ministry Reconstructs

The Tithe Barn in Bradford-on-Avon is considered to be one of the finest medieval barns in England and at 51 metres (168 ft) in length it is also one of the largest. Built in the 14th century, it was part of the estate of Shaftesbury Abbey in Dorset. The farm brought in a large income for the Abbess and her nuns, and it would have been here in the barn that the tithes would have been collected.

In 1534, when King Henry VIII broke from the church of Rome and made himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England, he began the dissolution of monasteries in England and Wales. Initially the Abbess of Shaftesbury manage to hold off the dissolution of her Abbey, but by 1539 further laws had been passed which ensure every monastery and abbey would be closed. After the abbey was suppressed in 1539, all of its estates were passed into private hands. The Tithe Barn and its associated farm – Barton Grange – passed into the hands of Sir Edward Bellingham, one of Henry’s cronies. He never married, and so on his death 10 years later Barton Grange reverted to the Crown.

Over the next 80 years this large manor farm passed through many private hands until eventually, in 1850, it was bought by the Hobhouse family. The Tithe Barn remained part of the working farm until 1914, when the Hobhouses decided they no longer had any use for it. Probably because by this point the barn was in a poor state of repair and they didn’t want to spend any money on repair and maintenance. They did though recognise its historic and architectural value, and sought new owners as were loathe to tear it down. 

At first it looked like the Ministry of Works would take responsibility for it but the First World War scuppered those plans. Fortunately the Wiltshire Archaeological Society came to the rescue and took on the responsibility for it. A successful fundraising appeal enabled the society to replace the many rotten timbers in the roof and carry out other repairs. By 1939 however the Society was struggling with their finances and the Tithe Barn was once again at risk. This time the Ministry of Works were able to step in although nothing happened for the next decade or so. Finally in the 1950s the Ministry of Works were able to undertake the much needed major repairs, including reconstruction of the roof.

It was the description and image of that work on one of the two information boards that led me to include this magnificent building in this month’s squares.