Sham Ruin, Corsham Court

Behind the Elizabethan stables of Corsham Court is an extraordinary folly, the monumental Sham Ruin built by John Nash c1797.

The towering edifice, about 60' high and 100' long, was intended to convey an ancient ecclesiastical impression

It  may have been built with stone recycled from Chippenham Priory, including some of the window tracery and also some of the material from Capability Brown's Bath House at Corsham Court. That there are more windows on the north side shows that it was primarily intended to be seen from the big house, rather than from the town.

Small rooms in the bottom of the wall may have been used for grand accommodation for poultry.