Mapledurham House

About the venue

Family estate beside the Thames near Reading, owned by Richard Blount's descendants since 1490, with the last working watermill on the river. Weddings use licensed outdoor ceremony spaces and a permanent oak-framed tipi for 160 seated and 200 in the evening. The Grade I listed Old Manor takes meetings of 15 to 20.

Mapledurham's watermill, the last working one on the Thames, appears on the cover of Black Sabbath's debut album and in the 1976 film The Eagle Has Landed. The estate is recorded in Domesday as two manors. Richard Blount of Iver bought the larger one in 1490, and his descendants still own it. The present house was completed by Sir Richard Blount in 1612.

Roundheads besieged and sacked the house in 1643. Between 1707 and 1715 the poet Alexander Pope was a frequent visitor, courting the two Blount daughters. Pre-booked tours cost £31.50 with scones, cake and drinks, and take in the priest holes, the Jacobean Hall and the Strawberry Hill style chapel. Two magnolias in the grounds are reputed to be the oldest pair in England.

Weddings run through Tipis at Mapledurham, a partnership with B Corp Raw Tipis since 2025. The tipi stands permanently in front of the house, with solid oak frames, movable panoramic windows and wooden floors. It seats 160 for the day and holds 200 in the evening, with a built-in stage, a circular bar and shepherd hut restrooms. Couples can arrive by boat and moor in view of the watermill before the ceremony.

Smaller events use the older buildings. The Grade I listed Old Manor, written up in Domesday, takes 15 to 20 for meetings. The main hall, dining room and library can now be hired exclusively for conferences and dinners. The Country Park covers nearly 12 acres by the river and hosts dog shows, car meets and charity runs. Boats can moor on the estate's stretch of the Thames for £15 a night.

Estate recorded in Domesday

Blount family descendants since 1490

Last working watermill on the Thames

Licensed outdoor ceremony spaces

Oak-framed tipi: 160 seated, 200 evening

Arrive by boat

Old Manor meetings for 15 to 20

Nearly 12-acre riverside Country Park