This week Gerry Brooke makes his way to the South Gloucestershire hamlet of Horton, near Hawkesbury Upton

Ancient Horton, an idyllically peaceful place, nestles below the Cotswold escarpment near an Iron Age hill fort known as The Castles.

A delightful winding road, which passes both church and court, takes you along the edge of the hills with great views over the Sodbury Vale.

The setting is further enhanced by an expanse of woodland and open fields which are crossed by several footpaths – including the well trod Cotswold Way.

The original village must have been clustered here, near the church and manor, but all that remains today are earthworks, house platforms and abandoned tracks running down the hillside.

At some time in the distant past – nobody seems to know when – the houses were abandoned and the village re-established about a mile to the south.

St James the Elder stands, in time honoured fashion, next to historic 12th century Horton Court, which once had a 120 acre deer park.

Although as old as the court, the church was rebuilt in the 14th century and altered yet again in the 15th and 16th.

It was further restored, like many other churches in Victorian times, in 1865.

The building, which trustingly remains open to the public during daylight hours, still retains its Norman fort and Jacobean pulpit.

And the churchyard contains a goodly collection of 18th century chest tombs.

Next door Horton Court, essentially 16th century, was remodelled by its owners in Victorian times and now belongs to the National Trust.

Although not open to the general public (at present anyway) the court holds a rare secret.

Incorporated into it is a 12th century Norman Hall, built by the rector Robert De Beaufeu, who was also associated with Salisbury cathedral.

Architectural historians think that this single storied hall, with its small, round arched windows, may be the oldest rectory in the country.

It was used by a succession of rectors until the 1520s when William Knight, chaplain to King Henry VIII and later a Bishop of Bath and Wells, built the core of a new house at right angles to the old.

An important man of his time, lawyer William presented the King’s case for divorce from Catherine of Aragon to the Pope.

Did Henry visit the court, possible with Ann Boleyn? We will probably never know.

In the 18th century the Norman hall was divided into two with the upper floor being turned into a Roman Catholic chapel.

It has now been restored to just one floor.

The chimney piece, a delight, has fluted Corinthian columns, supporting a flat lintel decorated with mermaids and Knight’s Coat of Arms.

But it’s the 16th century, Italian inspired garden loggia that people come to see.

Knight, who had studied law in Italy, was obviously keen to have an outdoor dining area, whatever the weather.

Underneath the Gothic shaped arches are four busts of classical figures, such as Hannibal.

At present undergoing renovation the future of the court is as yet undecided