ALVATIA: Ingsby - Village and Manor

Overview

Ingsby is a small village on the River Ive that is home to approximately 200 people. It's most notable structure is the modest manor house of a landed knight.

Village Detail

Just south of the River Ive is Ingsby. A patchwork of fields and pasture, about a mile across, surrounds the village itself. To the northeast, towards -another place-, is a broad water meadow. Past the fields north of the river, at the edge of the woods, stumps and brush piles mark several acres of recently cleared land. The three heavily rutted roads away from Ingsby lead generally: northwest across the Ive to -place-, east to -place-, and southeast to -place-. Other small trails and paths meander among the fields and into the woods. Two bridges, both of wood, cross the Ive north of the peasants’ huts; one is of sturdy construction, and carries the road, while the other is flimsy and will not bear great loads.

A mill on the river bank, a stone-built shrine, a wooden barn, and the inn bracket the village; the manor house itself sits on a few acres of ground behind a low stone wall. A shallow pond sits among the cottages and huts; a small well, a stock, and a stone cross, grace the green in the center of the village.

The footpaths and roads within the village wind and wander among the cottages, which are placed seemingly at random. A few shallow ditches run through the village towards the Ive. From end to end, the village is almost half a mile long.

Except for the shrine, the barn, and the manor house, all of the buildings here are of the same construction: crutch frames, wattle and daub walls, and thatch roofs. A couple of the peasant’s homes have chimneys, but most have just a ragged hole in the ridge of the roof to let smoke out. Low wattle or picket fences surround small gardens, or crofts, around each cottage. Some of the crofts contain fruit trees, manure piles, hayricks, chicken coops, dovecotes, small pens, or beehives. There are nearly three dozen cottages.

The shrine, at the east edge of the village, is of stone construction, with a slate roof. The rectory next door is similar to any of the larger peasant homes. Within a low stone wall south of the shrine is the cemetery.

Southeast of the village is the sturdy wooden barn, 96 feet long and 36 feet wide. The roof eaves come within a few feet of the ground, and each end has a pair of large doors.

A weir on the Ive just north of the village creates the millpond. The millrace turns the undershot wheel of the mill, and then rejoins the Ive below the weir. The mill itself is a bit more sturdily constructed than the peasant huts.

Just west of the green is the inn, a large thatched building. Several small sheds and pens face into the innyard. A painted wooden sign, depicting two hard-to-identify animals butting heads, hangs from a pole over the front door of the inn.

From the debris in the yard, and the broad fieldstone chimney, one of the peasant cottages would seem to be the home and workplace of a smith.

The manor house, south of the village, is a two story structure (the only one in the village), with a stone foundation, half-timbered walls, and a thatched roof. A chest high stone and hedge wall encloses several acres of ground around the manor house; within this yard are a few small thatched buildings, a large garden, and a stable. A clumsy wooden gate opens from the manor yard towards the village; two narrow gates on the far ends of the yard wall allow access towards the fields and woods.

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