East Sussex country house for sale; it comes complete with an enormous rectangular moat allegedly dug by an eccentric parson in the 1700s

One generally associates moats with castles and manor houses – such as the one we featured last month – but an old rectory currently for sale for £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million) in East Sussex comes with an especially impressive ground water-fed, rectangular example complete with three timber footbridges.

A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA
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A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
The house in Victorian times with the Reverend Thomas Harry Lee Jellicoe outside with his servants circa 1900
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
This fireplace is one of the most stunning and historic features internally
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
It is situated within this reading room
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A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
Another view of the main house shows the size of the moat

Previously marketed for £3.5 million ($4.4 million or €4.1 million or درهم‎‎16.2 million) in 2007 but not sold at that time, Grade II listed Chailey Moat at Chailey Green, near Haywards Heath in East Sussex dates to around 1540 and was previously known as ‘The Parsonage’. It blends Tudor, Carolean, Elizabethan and Georgian elements and is centred on an original timber framed medieval structure hidden by later additions. The south-eastern façade is described by selling agents Savills as “most striking” and amongst other unusual features are a Venetian window on the first floor and a brick fireplace in a reading room with an intricately carved overmantel that allegedly came from part of a Charles I bedstead.

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Two stories to keep beside you

Mind the Moat – Morley Old Hall, Morley St. Peter, Wymondham, Norfolk, NR18 9TT – £2.25 million ($2.8 million, €2.6 million or درهم10.3 million‎‎) – Strutt & Parker
The same people in the Steeple archive

Mind the Moat

Grade I listed moated Norfolk manor house put on the market for £750,000 less than it was promoted for in 2012 Illustration of the troubled state of the UK’s prime property market is provided in the form of Morley Old Hall in Norfolk. This Grade I listed manor was marketed for £2.65 million in […]

The House of Mogg – The Old Rectory, Hinton Blewett, Somerset, BS39 5AN – £2 million ($2.4 million or €2.2 million) – Killens – For sale – Jacob Rees-Mogg MP – Perfect for those who aspire to be Mary Berry as it has a pastry kitchen and perfect for those who aspire to be Jeremy Clarkson as it also has a ten car garage
From the same Steeple territory

The House of Mogg

The house where the eccentric MP Jacob Rees-Mogg grew up is for sale – and it comes with two things that aspiring Mary Berry’s and aspiring Jeremy Clarkson’s will love Previously marketed for £2.5 million ($3 million or €2.8 million) in April 2015, a Georgian former rectory at Hinton Blewett in Somerset is for […]

Aside from a 6,146 square foot main house with 5 reception rooms and upto 8 bedrooms over three floors, there is a 398 square foot 1 bedroom cottage and a 4 bedroomed, 17th century barn conversion that extends to 807 square foot and also provides a substantial games room.

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Gardens and grounds extend to 43.76 acres and aside from the moat – which was allegedly singlehandedly dug by the Reverend Richard Porter, rector from 1713 to 1753 – there is also a enclosed tennis court, an outdoor swimming pool, a stream fed lake, a productive orchard and rolling pastureland.

Chailey Moat is offered by Savills and was described by Country Life’s Penny Churchill as a “mansion of peace” in June this year. In October, the medieval property’s current owner, businessman Andrew Colin, described its idyllic setting to The Times. “It’s like sitting in the middle of a nature reserve”, he said.

A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
The dining hall
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A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
The drawing room
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
The staircase dates from the 18th century
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
The kitchen has a four-oven AGA
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A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
This barn conversion provides ideal staff or guest accommodation and beyond it is a full-sized tennis court
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
A lake is situated within the grounds
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
Whilst extensive lawned gardens extend out across the moat
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
Another view of the gardens
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
A floor plan of the main house
A Parson’s Moat – Chailey Moat, Chailey Green, East Sussex, United Kingdom, BN8 4DA – £5 million ($6.3 million or €5.9 million or درهم‎‎23.2 million)
Floor plans of the barn conversion, cottage and outbuildings