Tofte’s History

The first mention of Tofte Manor lies in the Doomsday book in 1086.

The land was originally gifted by the Crown to Sir William Tofte, a Knights Templar, in the 12th Century.

The village of Sharnbrook was known as a Templar settlement and relics of this still appear in the names of the Streets such as ‘Templars Way’. Through the centuries, Tofte Manor passed into the hands of the Newham Priory and afterwards to the families of Boteler, Cornish and Gambier families who built a succession of houses on the original site. In 1876 it was purchased by Charles Magniac then owner of the neighbouring Colworth House estate.

The oldest part of the house as it stands today, goes back to the 17th century.

A plaque dated 1613 sits above the central doorway ‘Except the Lord build the house, their labour is lost that build it’. This inscription was copied onto the London house of the famous artist James McNeill Whistler who frequently visited the Manor as a guest and friend of the incumbent Lewis Jarvis whom he had met at the Slade College.

The Tofte Labyrinth

The Tofte Labyrinth copies the design of the ancient pattern of the labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral in France, but with a unique twist. The water that runs through the labyrinth pathway can be drunk. It is delicious, pure and vital, energised potent water.

The Earth Labyrinth

During this time in our planet's evolution, it seems we are being called to connect deeply with the Earth as a living entity. Walking this Labyrinth provides the opportunity to do this.

The Labyrinth is inspired by the sacred form of the vesica piscis or the vulva, the sacred entrance into the feminine, the womb and entry into the earth chamber which lies underground at the centre of this ancient pattern of the seven circuit labyrinth.

Rising above the labyrinth sits a bronze sculpture by Domenic Welch, called ‘Rising Form’ - A clarion call for us to raise our consciousness of our symbiotic relationship with the Earth.