Rudloe Manor and the medieval elements are first documented from the early 13th century, when it was owned by the Beauplan family. In the reign of Henry III (1216-72) the rectory of Box and Rudloe including all tithes was granted to Monkton Farleigh Priory and the tithe barn remained in their hands, separate from the Manor until The Dissolution.
The Manor changed hands frequently and c1346 it was owned by John Bishop, then subsequently by the Baldwins of Ridlaw (Rudloe) who sold it to Thomas Tropenell of Great Chalfield in 1465.
The Manor was then rebuilt by Thomas Tropenell (c.1405-88) as his principal residence and it is possible that he was responsible for the work at Rudloe Manor following his purchase in 1465.
The Leversegge family acquired the estate in 1568 and it passed by inheritance to Sir Edward Hungerford of Farleigh Hungerford Castle in 1629;
The Hungerford Estate (including Rudloe) are not shown on the 1630 map of the Manor of Box. His nephew another Sir Edward, known as ‘the Spendthrift’ for his extravagance during the reign of Charles II, was forced to sell the Manor to Richard Kent of London. He sold it in turn to Thomas Goddard who is credited with rebuilding the Manor House in 1685.
By the turn of the century the Manor was owned by Jacob Selfe of Melksham who died in 1702. His descendants intermarried with the Methuen family of Corsham Court and Rudloe became part of their estates. The house is shown on the 1773 Andrews and Dury Map of Wiltshire in conventional form, flanked to the south by the tithe barn and to the north by another range of outbuildings.
At the time of the Box Tithe Award of 1840, the Manor was a working farm with an extensive range of outbuildings tenanted by Henry Poulson and owned by Henry Hall Joy Esq. In 1870 the farm was sold to Thomas Poynder and became part of the Hartham Park Estate which were held in trust until 1887 for his nephew Sir John Dickson, later Lord Islington and MP for Chippenham 1892-1910.
An estate map of 1891 depicts the farm as shown on the Tithe map (from which it was
probably traced) but the first edition Ordnance Survey map published in 1889 shows that the south-east corner of the house had been rebuilt by then, some farm buildings demolished and others built in their place.
Much of the Hartham Park estate was sold in 1918. An illustrated sale catalogue of 16th
May 1918 describes the site as: a valuable mixed arable and grazing farm; charming and fine old Manor House, a terraced garden, two cottages, 371 acres, Rudloe Farm in the occupation of Mr George Parkhouse (a then tenant of many years standing).
The house then changed hands four times in rapid succession; the Corsham based architect Harold Brakspear, who specialised in the restoration of historic buildings, prepared drawings for an unexecuted scheme of enlargement in 1919 for a Captain Daniell.
In 1928 it was bought by Sir Felix Brunner, who later restored Grey’s Court, Oxfordshire (now National Trust). He spent large sums upgrading the property; turning the farm buildings into additional accommodation and laying out a terraced formal garden before selling it to Countess Pappenheim the American widow of a German Count. In 1936 the house passed to her daughter Countess Raben, a member of a distinguished Danish family, who lived there with staff and servants.
By the outbreak of war in 1939 the estate was mortgaged and in 1941 it was sold to the Air Ministry to serve as sector headquarters for 10 Group Fighter Command. It was ultimately the Headquarters of the RAF Provost & Security Services and Nos.1 & 1001 Signal Units. In November 1998 Group Fighter Command moved to RAF Henlow (Bucks) and Security Services Nos.1 & 1001 were outsourced under Public Finance Initiative (PFI) Rudloe Manor then became surplus to requirements and the site was decommissioned and sold by the MOD in 1999.
To safeguard the future of the historic buildings, a new enabling consent was granted in 2010 which saw some new houses, most of which were built in 2015 on land to the west in ‘Randall’s Garden’. Also under this consent, all the pre and post war buildings (and additions) within the curtilage of the listed buildings were demolished. Rudloe Manor and Rudloe Farm received planning consent to form new residential dwellings, following completion of structural works and new roof coverings to all the listed buildings.
Today, Rudloe Manor is owned by a local family and the Manor, the historic buildings and grounds are being carefully restored into a family home.