THE LORDSHIP of a Dorset manor is being put up for auction.
The chance to become Lord and Lady of Motcombe, near Shaftesbury, is up for grabs for offers in the region of £7,750.
The new lords will be able to use their title on official documents and will be eligible for membership of the Manorial Society of Great Britain.
The earliest historical recordings of the Lords of the 5,000-acre Dorset manor date back to the War of the Roses in the 15th Century, when the title belonged to the Payne family.
In the 16th Century the title passed through marriage to MP Sir John Croke and remained in his family until his grandson, who was convicted of conspiring to commit a robbery, was forced to sell the lordship.
The title was sold onto the Whitaker family, who lived at Motcombe House until 1816, when the house was sold to the Marquess of Westminster and the Lordship to Henry Sturt, of Crichel.
The lordship is now being put up for sale through Manorial Auctioneers in London. For further information contact Robert Smith on 02075 821588.
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