A historic country manor, which featured in Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbervilles, is on the market.

Woolbridge Manor, which is located on the north side of Wool Bridge, is a property understood to date back to the early seventeenth century.

The building has a great deal of history behind it, not least because it was once the property of the Turberville family - a medieval family of Bere Regis.

The red brick and stone manor also served as the inspiration for Wellbridge House in the 1891 Thomas Hardy novel where Tess spent her ill-fated wedding night.

The five bedroom manor, which is being sold through Savills, is said to be in need of modernisation and refurbishment.

A spokesman for Savills said: “Woolbridge Manor would now benefit from modernisation and refurbishment, yet offers huge potential for a purchaser to improve and personalise this magnificent home to their own specifications. The principal rooms of the house are well proportioned with excellent ceiling heights, and retain many period features.”

The home boasts an entrance porch with a stone that dates it to 1635.

The property features an oak front door with a tiled reception hall upon entrance, and has a drawing room, a sitting room/study, a dining room and a kitchen including a four oven Aga (albeit one that is not in working order) on its ground floor.

On the first floor, there is a linen cupboard, a master bedroom with country views and a fireplace, as well as two other bedrooms and a family bathroom.

Outside, there is a 0.6 acre garden the stretches over three sides of the house. It features a walled front garden, and there is a thatched shed and a log store at the rear. There is also a building called the Chapel Barn by the road, which is used as a garage and storage building.

There are two more bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor.

It is on the market at £850,000. It is about 400 metres from the centre of Wool, about five miles from Wareham, and is approximately equidistant between Dorchester and Poole.

Jamie Morten of Savills Wimborne, said: “Woolbridge Manor is a landmark property with fascinating literary connections. The house offers an incredible opportunity to purchase a real slice of history and for the buyer to improve and personalise to their own specifications.”