Tofts is a Georgian property in the eastern part of Little Baddow.
At the time of the Norman Conquest area was known as Middlemead and was held by Alwin a freeman. In the 13th century the manor came into the hands of the Tofts family and when it was later divided between them and the Bassett family, the different parts were named after the families holding them.
When William Toft died in 1570, he left the manor to his daughter Isabella, who married Thomas Smythe of Rivenhall. Their son, Sir Clement, married Dorothy the sister of Henry VIII’s third wife, Jane Seymour. Sir Clement and Dorothy lived at Tofts manor house, which at this time was a substantial house with a park and warren. The manor was inherited by their son, Sir John Smythe in 1552. Sir John was a military man and sometimes diplomat and acquired a portfolio of property in Little Baddow – including the manors of Little Baddow Hall, Graces, Riffhams and Mowden Hall – but was later forced to sell them due to financial difficulties.
The current house dates from the early 19th century. In 1778, Tofts had been bought by John Strutt, a wealthy miller who main home was Terling Place in Terling and whose descendants include the Barons Rayleigh. When he died, Tofts passed to his son William Goodday Strutt. Known as the General, William Strutt had a distinguished military career but was obliged to retire after losing his right leg in action in the West Indies. He rebuilt the manor house, diverted the road to run further away from it, and lived there until his death in 1848, often in pain, surrounded by his dogs.