Magor Mansion

Magor Mansion, also known as the Procurator's House or the Church House, is the ruin of a sixteenth-century house in the middle of the village of Magor in Monmouthshire, South Wales. It stands right beside the churchyard wall of St Mary's Church and can be visited without a ticket.

What is Magor Mansion?

It was a substantial rubble-built house, constructed roughly between 1500 and 1550, with two storeys above a basement. Today it is a complete ruin, yet the scale of the former residence is still easy to read in what remains. The site is a Grade II* listed building and a scheduled monument, placing it among the most significant historic structures in the area.

Why two names, Mansion and Procurator's House?

The name "Procurator's House" points back to the medieval story of the local church. In the Middle Ages the church lands were held by an Italian abbey, so an earlier building nearby may have housed its procurator, the agent who managed its affairs. The present house, however, came later, when Tintern Abbey controlled the advowson, the right to appoint the priest, of St Mary's. According to Wikipedia it is unlikely this house was ever occupied by a procurator, which is why the names "Magor Mansion" and "Church House" are also used.

A document from 1585 describes the building as the mansion house belonging to the vicarage of Magor, one of the earliest written references to it.

Why visit?

Wikipedia describes it as one of only two known examples of a procurator's house in Britain. For anyone interested in medieval church history, abbeys and their estates, it is a rare chance to see the administrative side of parish life just before the Reformation.

Practical information

• Location: centre of Magor, next to St Mary's Church, Monmouthshire, Wales.
• Entry: free, according to Visit Monmouthshire.
• Status: Grade II* listed and a scheduled monument.
• Time needed: the ruins take only a few minutes to see, and pair naturally with a visit to the neighbouring church.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a ticket for Magor Mansion? No, entry is free.

When was it built? In the first half of the sixteenth century, roughly 1500 to 1550.

Was it really a procurator's home? The name suggests so, but Wikipedia says the present house was unlikely to have been occupied by a procurator. That is why it is also called Magor Mansion or the Church House.

Where is it? In the centre of Magor, Monmouthshire, beside St Mary's churchyard.

Are there other old remains nearby? Coflein separately records a seventeenth-century gable and fireplace close to the ruins, but this is a different structure from the mansion itself.