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The origins of New Place
Hugh Clopton’s ‘grete house’ of c. 1483
in Finding Shakespeare’s New Place
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Hugh Clopton was a wealthy mercer, benefactor and public official. He was the youngest son of John and Agnes Clopton and was born near Stratford-upon-Avon at Clopton House, his ancestral home, in 1440. The earliest reference to a building on this plot is Clopton's own will of 1496: 'my grete house in Stratford'. Archaeological evidence suggests that it is likely that Hugh Clopton used the frontage range as shops. The upper floor of the front range probably contained bedchambers and additional storage rooms. Wells were the most efficient and practical source of water. Three wells are known to have existed on the site, although only two seem to date from Clopton's New Place. A passageway ran along the northern side, between New Place and the neighbouring buildings, from Chapel Street in an easterly direction. Hugh Clopton's New Place is known to have been built of brick and timber.

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Finding Shakespeare’s New Place

An archaeological biography

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