Lyveden New Bield (sometimes called New Build) is an unfinished Elizabethan summer house in the parish of Aldwincle in North Northamptonshire, commissioned by Sir Thomas Tresham and now owned by the National Trust. It is a Grade I listed building, classing it as a 'building of exceptional interest.'
Construction
It was constructed for Sir Thomas Tresham, the fervent Roman Catholic of Rushton Hall, and is thought to have been designed by Robert Stickells. The exact date is unknown but can be estimated to circa 1604–05, the year of Tresham's death. The New Bield was on the estate of Tresham's second home, Lyveden Manor House, also known as Lyveden Old Bield.
Design & Catholic Motifs
Just as at Tresham's smaller folly, Rushton Triangular Lodge, his principal estate, the New Bield has a religious design full of symbolism. Designed on a plan reminiscent of a Greek cross, the facades have a strict symmetry.
Purpose as a 'Secret House'
thumb|Ground Plan of Lyveden New Building.
The house was likely meant for occupation, as it has a great hall and parlour on the first floor, kitchen and buttery in the basement, and a bedroom on the upper floor. However, it was probably never intended for full-time occupation. Too close to the main house for use as a hunting lodge, it may have been intended for use as a "Secret House"—keeping a secret house was a custom of the 16th century. Often within a mile of the main house, the secret house was a place where the head of the household would retire for a few days with a minimum of servants, while the principal house was thoroughly cleaned and, bearing in mind the sanitation of the time, fumigated. One wing remains with mullioned windows.
In 2013, the National Trust acquired Lyveden Manor House, it is open to the public, with the Trust's long-term aim to restore the historic gardens and open them to the public.
Gardens & Orchard
thumb|Orchard, Lyveden New Bield.
Set on 60 acres Lyveden lies in the heart of the medieval Royal Forest of Rockingham. Tresham designed extensive gardens between the manor house and the New Bield, but for centuries little evidence of the gardens remained. However, in 2010, National Trust experts studying photographs taken by the Luftwaffe during the Second World War discovered the remains of an Elizabethan labyrinth, garden and orchard in the grounds. The gardens were subsequently upgraded to a Grade I listing by English Heritage.
The Tresham Family and The Gunpowder Plot
thumb|An anonymous letter, sent to [[William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle, was instrumental in revealing the plot's existence. Its author's identity has never been reliably established, although Francis Tresham has long been a suspect. ]]
Sir Thomas Tresham died in 1605 following decades of religious persecution, his once vast wealth having been severely depleted. His son Francis Tresham inherited the estate, but within the same year, along with his cousins Robert Catesby and Robert and Thomas Wintour, he became involved in the Gunpowder Plot. Thus, within a year the estate had a third owner, Francis's son Lewis Tresham. The estate was managed by Lewis's mother until her death in 1615.
After this, Lewis Tresham, a spendthrift, lost the remaining family wealth.