Just outside the thriving town of Ivybridge on the edge of Dartmoor is Filham House, a grand, five-bedroom home set on the site of a former monastery. It's for sale via Marchand Petit at £1.75 million.
To say that it's a house for sale isn't quite accurate, actually. While the sprawling Georgian manor house is the centrepiece, this is actually a small estate that includes five further cottages, gardens, an outdoor swimming pool and half a dozen acres of parkland.
The original monastery that once stood on this site was apparently destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the reign of Henry VIII.
All that's left from those days are the remains of the 14th century St Andrews Chapel — but that's not the ruin you see here. That is actually a folly, Gaze Tower, which was built in 1794 by John Pearse and thus predates the main house by some years.
With its faux-ruined walls and ivy-clad tower it lends a wonderful romantic charm to the place. This is no crumbling hazard, however: there are steps to the top from where you can see across to Dartmoor.
Inside, Filham House itself is a grand house built in the early years of the 19th century, and extensively remodelled after the First World War.
There's a mix of old and new within, with traditionally-decorated reception rooms and a spectacular modern kitchen that leads through to a pretty dining room.
The centrepieces of the kitchen are an enormous double Aga and a large island. There is also a separate boiler room and utility room
On the ground floor of the house are three large reception rooms, with two of them — the sitting and drawing rooms — having French windows opening onto the gardens.
Those views of the gardens are also enjoyed from three of the five bedrooms, one of which is a huge master suite with a separate dressing area and a healthily-sized en suite bathroom.
Of all the rooms, however, it's the dining room which is perhaps the most striking, a double-height room overlooked by a gallery from the landing.
The grounds include a paddock, orchard and a small lake, which has a boathouse and a fountain in the centre.
Finally there are the cottages, approached by a separate driveway — all are currently let out, brining a healthy revenue for the owners and offering all sorts of possibilities for a future owner, subject to the usual permissions being granted.
Filham House is for sale via Marchand Petit — see more details and pictures
Credit: The Turner Twins
The twins from Dartmoor who defied near-tragedy and took on the world
Katherine Sopwith on the brothers who bounced back from teenage tragedy to forge a lifetime of adventure.
A Dartmoor manor house with its own hydro-electricity, and space for horses and helicopters
Holystreet Manor lies in a sweep of the River Teign and some magnificent ancient woodland.
Credit: Martyn - Marchand Petit
The unique chance to own of the great houses of Totnes, with stunning views of Dartmoor National Park
Highfield House hides behind its high walls but slopes down to a garden which reveals views of Totnes, Dartmoor and
-
Dream of revolution inside the 18th-century villa once occupied by Napoleon's French troopsAn apartment inside historic Villa Gnecchi Ruscone is on the market and it comes with a grand ballroom rumoured to have been frequented by Napoleon.
-
Get ready to get spooky in the Halloween edition of the Country Life Quiz of the Day, October 31, 2025Ghosts, ghouls and ghastly questions lurk in today's quivering quiz.
-
Dream of revolution inside the 18th-century villa once occupied by Napoleon's French troops
An apartment inside historic Villa Gnecchi Ruscone is on the market and it comes with a grand ballroom rumoured to have been frequented by Napoleon.
-
May the force be with you if you move into this London apartment block that Obi-Wan Kenobi (and Cher) once lived inOliver’s Wharf was once the residence of megastar Cher and the actor Sir Alec Guinness — as well as Mark Knopfler of the Dire Straits.
-
125 glorious acres of Elizabethan elegance for sale in Cheshire that comes with a moatIs this real life? Is it just fantasy? No, it's Holford Hall.
-
Look around this James Bond-themed house for sale in Nottinghamshire and release your inner MI6 agentNow, come, come dear reader, you get as much fulfilment out of Skyfall as I do, so why don't you admit it?
-
The eclectic New York townhouse that Lily Allen sings about in her new, headline-making album is for sale381, Union Street is on the market just days after the singer’s latest album details the alleged infidelity in her marriage.
-
This Suffolk home is a perfect escape from the world and it comes with its own stretch of river and 20 acresThis idyllic home in Suffolk is the perfect village home.
-
The quaint Alpine village that got taken over by The BeatlesThe Beatles visited the Austrian resort of Obertauern to film their 1965 film Help!. Despite a distinct lack of prowess on the slopes, the Fab Four got by with a little help from some new-found friends, discovers Russell Higham.
-
The ultimate treehouse escape, where you can have a sauna and hot tub 12 metres above the forest floor, is for sale in DorsetGuy Mallinson's award-winning treehouses in Dorset are a true escape from the world. Anna White takes a look.
