Rochford Hall
{{Short description|Manor in Rochford, Essex, England}}
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File:Rochford Hall - geograph.org.uk - 302375.jpg
Rochford Hall is a manor in Rochford, Essex, England. During the reign of King Henry VIII, it belonged to Thomas Boleyn, who was then Viscount Rochford, and it was the marital home of his daughter Mary Boleyn, sister of Anne Boleyn, and Mary's second husband, Sir William Stafford. It is now privately owned by Rochford Hundred Golf Club {{cite web| url = http://www.rochfordhundredgolfclub.co.uk|title= Name:Rochford Hundred Golf Club Official Website}} where it acts as the clubhouse and is a Grade I listed building.{{NHLE| num = 1112586|desc= ROCHFORD HALL AND RUINS |accessdate = 8 August 2014}}
History
File:Moat at Rochford Hall, Essex.jpg
The manor was originally built in 1216, which is the date carved into an old joist, and some of the arched doorways are original. In its 16th century form Rochford Hall comprised a sprawling turreted manor with a moat and great hall.In Anne Boleyn's Footsteps, by Catalina Stogdon, 20 March 2007 Telegraph.co.uk, retrieved on 9 May 2009.
Rochford Hall belonged to Sir Thomas Boleyn, father of Anne, as part of his rich inheritance from his mother Margaret Butler.{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} Sir Thomas was created Viscount Rochford in 1525 and Earl of Wiltshire and Ormonde 1529,Ives, E (1931) The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn [120] and his title derived from his ownership of Rochford Hall. Following the second marriage of Anne's elder sister Mary to William Stafford in 1534, Rochford Hall was given to the couple as their principal residence. In 1550 the Rochford estate was sold to Richard, Lord Rich.Andrews, D. D. (2003) 'Richard Rich's mansion at Rochford Hall' Essex Archaeology and History Vol. 34 [71]
By the late 17th Century Rochford Hall was owned by the Child Family of Wanstead House, Essex, later Earl Tylney. It then descended with the Wanstead Estate to James Tylney-Long, his daughter Catherine Tylney-Long and via the Long-Wellesley Family to Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley. He sold it to a local gentleman farmer in 1867.{{Cite web|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/essex/vol4/pp126-130|title=Rochford | British History Online}}
Rochford Hall was usually let, on long leases, or used by the Steward of the Rochford or greater Essex Estates of the Tylney-Long family.ERO D/DGn 384-394
There have been many additions and alterations to the manor over the centuries, not least a catastrophic fire in 1791. The {{convert|20|ft|m|adj=mid|-high}} stained glass replica window in the main hall consists of three coats-of-arms of previous owners including the crest of Anne Boleyn.
Rochford Estate
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References
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{{Coord|51.58092|N|0.69858|E|type:landmark_region:GB|display=title}}
Category:1216 establishments in England
Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1216
Category:Country houses in Essex
Category:Grade I listed houses