Mansion near Dudley where Gunpowder Plot conspirators made their last stand could be converted into office block
A Black Country Elizabethan mansion where the Gunpowder Plotters made their last stand could be converted into the headquarters of a healthcare provider under plans to restore the building.
Concerns have been growing about the future of Holbeche House at Wall Heath, near Dudley, since a nursing home that was based in the building closed in 2022.
The building, thought to date back to about 1600, had fallen into a state of disrepair since the nursing home closed, and in 2023 it was placed on the Heritage at Risk register.
The National Trust ruled out adding it to its property portfolio.
Dudley-based Select Health Care, which has 21 care homes predominantly in the West Midlands, has now lodged a planning application to turn the Grade II*-listed building into its head office.
The company has applied to Dudley Council for permission to remove internal stud walls, carry out repairs to the roof, and repair and repaint existing windows and French doors. An assessment will be carried out of all windows, replacing them like for like where appropriate.
If the plans are approved, a link building that joins Holbeche House to an annexe previously used for care accommodation will also be demolished.
In a statement supporting the application, Neil Ranford of NCR Architectural Design said the building had seen many changes over the centuries, and it was hard to tell which features dated back to the Gunpowder Plot.
But he said damage to the masonry and the front door was believed to have been caused by musket fire during the final siege which took place on November 7, 1605, when the King's forces finally rounded on the remaining plotters.
Oak panelling and the fireplace had distinguishing features relating to the reign of King Charles I or II, and priest hides were also evident.
"Holbeche’s special historic interest, the people who used it, the things that have happened there, the ideas that have been developed there and the unique role the building played in the nation’s history cannot be understated nor undervalued," he said.
"The associations are nationally and internationally substantiated not only in the literature but also in the historic fabric, the physical, touchable aspects.
"For example, it is understood the front door and walls hold evidence of shots fired from a matchlock musket, that priest hides are evident and the panelling and fireplace have distinguishing features giving reference to the reign of Charles I or II.
"Holbeche has a defining spirit of a particular age. Its importance to the local community, its role in collective memory, its status as a landmark are tangible."
The application includes a series of photographs showing the current state of the interior, with many historic features but also showing years of deterioration.
Holbeche House was originally home to plotter Stephen Lyttleton, and two days after the failed attempt to blow up Parliament, surviving members of the conspiracy took refuge inside the property.
During their flight, the plotters’ gunpowder had become sodden with rain, and there was an explosion when they tried to dry it in front of the fire.
The following morning the building was surrounded by 200 men led by Sheriff Richard Walsh.
Ringleader Robert Catesby was fatally wounded, and most of the other plotters were either killed or wounded in the ensuing fight. Lyttleton was executed for attempted treason.
The proposals will now be considered by Dudley Council's planning department.
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