The History
The history of Lords of the Manor begins in Liverpool England, where Edward Oates, son of William and Ann Oates, formally of the Isle of Man , was born 13/01/1841.
When Edward was 9 years old, the family emigrated to the new colony of Natal. His parents were allocated land near Richmond , but chose to settle at Town Hill in Pietermaritzburg. This property today is part of Cordwalles School established in 1912.
Edward Oates was educated in Pietermaritzburg and subsequently served an apprenticeship as a bricklayer. However he chose to become a transport rider, moving goods between Heilbron in The Republic of Orange River, The Transvaal Republic and the Colony of Natal. He married Elizabeth Evans 1862 formally of Lhanddinam, Wales and lived on a farm near Heilbronn with their family of eight children. He was a very successful transport rider as he purchased 1000 acres of land in both the old Republic and Weenen, in the highland area between Mooi River and Estcourt, which he named Oatsdale. In 1886 Edward was commissioned to build the Weenen Country Girls School on Oatsdale. Construction commencing the same year, but was only completed after the Anglo Boer War in 1902. During the period 1896 to 1899 Edward was joined by his son Ted who, together with one labourer dressed sandstone available on the farm and began the arduous task of building this stately country manor. The walls were 18 inches thick and a six foot patterned sand stone floor was laid around the building. The building had a total of 39 rooms, fireplace surrounds were carved from local thorn wood and roof trusses, constructed from rolled steel. The double story building is claimed to have had a passages wide enough to allow an ox wagon through in order to get building material to the top floor. The building was occupied as a girl’s school until 1914; it was then taken over by William Oates as the family home, which it remained until 1916.
It has survived the ravages of wars, the rigours of a boarding school and home to a large family. It has been altered and changed from an institution, to a guest house to its current status as a Country Manor, from colonial design to Swiss décor. By the year 2007 it was tired, falling apart and in need of an enormous amount of tender loving care. It was also for sale.
Sometimes the Gods smile generously on the most unsuspecting situations. Two intrepid businessmen from Durban heard about the property and decided that the potential of “Oatsdale House” even through all the dereliction, neglect would become a worth while investment in the lucrative hospitality trade. It would be restored back to its colonial Victorian Splendour, they obtained the skills of a specialist stonemason and restorer of graded buildings of England. They sought out an exclusive interior designer specializing in colonial refurbishing, and so began the task of restoring this magnificent monument to its original splendour.
The name change to Lords of the Manor, was felt, would reflect the history of Kwa-zulu – Natal and the links to the United Kingdom, by those who had settled here. The task now is to ensure all the guests who visit Lords of the Manor are not only impressed by its aesthetic splendor, but leave with the feeling that they have enjoyed hospitality commensurate of a manor house.