Historic house can be yours for only £1.75m

A lavish Jacobean manor house is still for sale – but for almost a third less than the price at which it was initially marketed.

Boys Hall, in Willesborough, was made available five years ago, for £2.4 million, with estate agent Strutt and Parker.

But the grand property, which boasts 10 bedrooms, five reception rooms and walled gardens, is now being advertised at a cutprice £1.75 million.

In its history of more than 400 years, the building has been a home as well as being used to host weddings and conferences, and offering luxurious bed and breakfast accommodation.

It is a Grade II listed property which was originally built in 1616 by the Boys family, who had previously been known as De Bois, having landed in England from France at the time of the Norman conquest.

The estate passed into the Mersham and Knatchbull fami- lies – and it is believed Charles I stayed at the home while fleeing the forces of Oliver Cromwell. Samuel Pepys, the 17th century British diarist, is also understood to have been among its visitors.

The house is set in spacious grounds of about three acres, with formal lawns and a walled garden that contains a large stable block and courtyard.

The property, off Boys Hall Road close to the railway line, also features an indoor swimming pool, which could be re- opened. The main bedroom is oak panelled with a domed ceiling and a white marble chimneypiece with intricately carved panels, which were believed to have been gifted from Windsor Castle.

A detached Victorian stable block in the grounds was granted planning permission to be converted into a home, but the permission has expired. For details of the sale, visit www.savills.co.uk

King Charles I, top, and diarist Samuel Pepys are believed to have been among the visitors to Boys Hall, which has been on the market for five years

Boys Hall has been reduced in price from £2.4m to 1.75m