The Barley Barn (Click here for an mpeg of the Barley Barn).

This huge timber-framed barn was built by the Order of the Knights Templar at Cressing some fifty years before the more refined Wheat Barn whose west end it faces across the farmyard green. Constructed in oak in the Romanesque tradition of carpentry of the early 13^th century, it was built of 480 oak trees felled between 1205 and 1235, barely 100 years after the granting of the site to the Order by Queen Matilda.

Technically Speaking
The barn now measures 36m long by 13.6m wide with a maximum height of about 11.3m and is only smaller than the Grange Barn at Coggeshall, Essex for a barn of this period. Originally it was both longer and wider but a major repair phase has seen the replacement of all the walls inside the line of the originals and the reduction of the cantilevered ends by half a bay. This phase has been dated to c.1400 at the same time as repairs to the west end of the Wheat Barn were carried out.

About 1500 a second major phase of repairs was undertaken and the passing brace roof construction was replaced with a crown post roof with collars and purlins in the style of the day. The original construction is marked with circles and crescents made with a race knife while in both barns the later carpenter’s marks are Roman numerals. The Barley Barn shares the same ground plan as the Wheat Barn having a midstrey with an added porch, four equal bays and cantilevered ends.

Unlike the other barn the trusses in the Barley Barn follow two designs with the two forming the midstrey carrying elegant double scissor braces between the double tie beams. Evidently the carpenter wanted to ensure the integrity of the building for such an important client. There is some evidence that originally the trusses were groundfast as one of the stone pads is still visible. Like the Wheat barn however the whole barn has been raised onto brick plinths.

The Modern Barley Barn
Whilst the greater part of the Barley Barn remains mediaeval with the arcade posts and main ties dating to 800 years old, there is little doubt that this barn suffered prolonged periods of damage and neglect resulting in significant repairs being made in the style of the day. Unlike the Wheat Barn the original boarding in the walls was not replaced with brick but with wattle and daub panels and the slots and grooves for this are evident in the studs and top-plates. Later the whole barn was weatherboarded and this extremely strong and durable form of cladding is present today. The interior of the barn is lath and plaster, some of it being done recently as part of our craft courses.

Because the walls have been brought in and the end shortened there appear to have been many problems with racking and stress and as a result there are many nailed on inserted timbers to prevent movement and help strengthen the structure. Most impressive of these are two specially shaped arcade post pairs with are clamped with forelock bolts to the south end arcade posts to prevent further bending of the timbers. Dating to the 18^th century there are a number of other forelock bolts in the post heads to prevent splitting.

During Victorian times there was a whole series of dated repairs including replacing again the whole of the east wall on a high brick plinth that the animals in the farmyard could not damage. Later, doors were put in to service the yard directly. Inside the building was divided up into a number of large rooms divided off by studded and weatherboarded walls some of which were still present in 1964 when they were photographed. All these divisions are now gone and the solid concrete floor, laid in the 1960’s and used it is said for a Young Conservatives Dance, creates an air of perfect calm in a timber building of cathedral proportions.

The building required extensive repairs in 1987, not only because of damage during the gales but also due to neglect which saw holes in the roof for a number of years which led to serious water erosion. Because of the extent of the damage to this and the Wheat Barn they were both re-roofed in 1988-89.

Using the Barley Barn.
The barn is a regular venue for Craft and Antique fairs, product displays and corporate events. Schools, colleges, private groups and wedding receptions often make bookings. This barn can be transformed overnight into a bustling 360 seat tiered theatre for live music performances with excellent acoustics, full lighting and audio facilities. Used also for historical purposes the barn has recently featured as a film set and has featured on programmes as diverse as Lovejoy and Top Gear. The Antiques Roadshow used it as a studio when they visited in 2003.

Details can be obtained by telephone only on (UK) 01376 584903.