Page 4 - The House in the Hills Information Booklet

The Caemarchog story
Caemarchog
Translated into English as knight’s field, or the field of the horse rider.
The deeds and related documents to the property go back as far as
1770, at which point it belonged to a James Ticknor, who resided in
Westminster, London. On his death, he was buried in the chancel of
St Giles-in-the-fields. His family sold the property in 1830, at which
point it was rebuilt. In 1841, it was brought by Thomas Greenow and it
has remained in the family ever since.
In 1998, Steve Greenow decided to apply for permission to rebuild the
house and barn - which were at this point in ruins and without a roof.
Before permission could be granted, conditions were applied to ensure
this would not appear to be a new build. The house had to be built on
the original footprint and all windows and door openings were to be
kept to the original dimensions. All stone on site was to be reused in
the house, and lime mortar was to be used in all pointing work. Green
oak was to be used in the roof and all fixtures and fittings were to be of
the original design of the time. Boundary walls were to be built of dry
stone and to match existing detail as in all local walls. Finally, original
stone slabs inside the house and on the roof had to be sourced locally.
These conditions were met and the house and the barn restoration
was finally completed in the spring of 2010.
Caemarchog is now operating as a 25-acre smallholding on which
there are approximately 50 sheep. The site includes woodland which
provides all the wood for the farm - as we harvest trees as they fall
down.
In 2014, The Huts in the Hills opened, to expand the accommodation on
offer at Caemarchog without extending the house. The shepherd huts
can be hired with the house and the barn, or completely independently
as exclusive use accommodation (sleeping up to 8 people). The huts
are located two fields below the house and the barn in a secluded
woodland clearing further down the Digedi Brook. The huts offer a
special opportunity to stay off-grid - somewhere where a house could
never be built. Energy is provided through wind, sun and fire.
The huts are very well insulated, so they are warm all year round.
They are very comfortable, with double spring mattresses, a fully
equipped kitchen and a shower/WC room.
More details and photos at: www.thehutsinthehills.co.uk