From the late 13th Century, the manor of Campden had undergone various divisions and amalgamations, and it was not until the 16th Century that it fell into the hands of a single owner. Thomas Smyth was a wealthy, successful and influential figure of the time, and through marriage he acquired one half of the manor of Campden. He then set about buying various plots of land until he owned nearly all of Campden, the few parcels of land that were not in his possession being bought at a later date by his son.
Unfortunately neither Mr Smyth nor his son were at all popular with the townsfolk, and the arrival of Baptist Hicks in the late 1500s was probably greeted with some relief. Hicks was, like Smyth, a self-made man, having come from a Gloucestershire family of moneylenders and traders in fine textiles. He was also a man of considerable wealth, reputedly providing financial support to James I by way of loans as large as £150,000, and it was this largesse that no doubt helped to bring about the knighthood that was conferred on him in 1603.
Shortly after that Hicks bought the manor of Campden from Thomas Smyth's son Anthony, together with the nearby estate of Weston Park. Although he built himself a substantial property in Kensington, London, in 1612, naming it Campden House, he chose to spend much of his time in Campden itself. Whilst here he involved himself in the lives of the townsfolk and spent very large sums of money for their benefit.
Not only did he pay for significant work to be carried out on St. James's church, he also built the nearby row of almshouses at a cost of £1,000. (An aerial view of the building reveals it to be in the shape of a capital letter " I ", no doubt as a compliment to James I ). Then, in 1627, he paid for the building of what has become one of Campden's famous landmarks, the Market Hall, a structure that was intended to protect the locals from the elements when selling their eggs, butter and cheese and the like.
However, the most substantial building erected by Sir Baptist Hicks was undoubtedly his own mansion, Campden House, built next to St James' Church. Built between 1610 and 1620 this magnificent Jacobean mansion survived for less than 30 years, being burnt to the ground in May 1645 by the Royalist commander who had commandeered Campden House as a garrison in December 1643. The lodges and gateway adjacent to the church escaped the fire, as did the two banqueting houses which have recently been restored by the Landmark Trust for use as rented holiday accommodation.
September '10 Bulletin