Country mansion at Hayes Barton in about 1585. Detail taken from the Braun & Hogenburg engraving of Exeter
Copyright Exeter Archaeology
Buildings at Hayes Barton in 2007
Death of an Elizabethan country house
By Sarah, Curator of West Exe and Oliver Blackmore, Assistant Curator of Antiquities
Hayes Barton was a small country mansion which stood on the flood plain of the River Exe in St Thomas Parish. Exeter Archaeology excavated the site in the 1980s. They worked out the entire layout of the site, and traced its development from a late medieval building to a typical Elizabethan country house and farm.
This detail is taken from an engraving surveyed in Queen Elizabeth's reign in 1584-5. It was not published until published in 1617.
Hayes Barton was the scene of dramatic action in July 1643, when it was captured by Royalist troops in the English Civil War. The house was completely demolished following its capture.
Find out about some finds from Hayes Barton: ring and lead shot