Rowlands Manor Cople

The Spencer family coat of arms

Volume III of The Victoria County History for Bedfordshire, published in 1912, gives the histories of each of the six manors in the parish. THis manor first appears in the historical record in the 16th century with Sir Thomas Snagge as overlord.

In 1531 John Spencer settled the manor on his son Thomas and the manor remained in the family until the early 18th century, along with Hotofts Manor|, when Sarah, Dowager Duchess of Marlborough purchased it. She was widow of the great general, the victor of Blenheim, she died in 1744. She also obtained Willington Manor, Cople Manor| and Woodend Manor.|

In 1779 the Duke of Bedford purchased Rowlands Manor from the Duke of Marlborough and it remained in the family's possession until 1902 when it was sold to George and James Keeble of Peterborough. The manorial estate was quickly broken up with Colonel Frank Shuttleworth of Old Warden being the principal landowner in  Cople. A succession of Law of Property Acts in the 1920s abolished manorial fines and incidents as well as copyhold land tenure, thus abolishing manors in practically all but name.