Ferdinando Gorges (c.1565-1647) was an English soldier whose establishment of the Province of Maine saw him called the "Father of English Colonization in North America".[1] His descendant, also Ferdinando, bought the Eye estate in 1673 and began building the house shortly thereafter.[2] A datestone above the main doorway carries a date of 1680.[3]Coats of arms within the house carry the insignia of Gorges and of his wife, Meliora Gorges, née Hilliard.[4] Gorges' son, Henry sat as a member of parliament for Herefordshire in the early 18th century.[5]
Eye Manor is noted for the quality of its interior decoration,[14] which Pevsner and Brooks describe as "an astonishing surprise" within an exterior "as noncommittal as a black double-breasted overcoat".[3][15] The house is built of red brick to a traditional double-pile plan. Later additions include the doric porch which dates from the 18th century,[3] and some minor modification undertaken in the early 20th century. It is of two storeys, with cellars and attics.[4]
The plain exterior conceals the embellished interior[16] which has "gorgeously enriched" panelling, bolection moulded stone fireplaces and "outstanding" plaster ceilings.[3] The quality and style of the plasterwork in the house bears similarities to that at Holyrood Palace which led Geoffrey Beard, a historian of English decorative arts, to suggest that the same craftsmen may have been involved.[a][18]
Laughton, J.K. (1890). "Gorges, Sir Ferdinando". In Stephen, Leslie; Lee, Sidney (eds.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 22. New York: Macmillan and Co. pp. 241–43.
