Details
PILLATON
SX 46 SW
6/174 Pentillie Castle
21.7.51
GV II*
Country house. Late C17, dated 1698 and 1699; alterations of the early and late C18.
Considerably enlarged and remodelled circa 1810 by William Wilkins senior, completed
after 1815 by Wilkins junior. In 1967/68, the additions by Wilkins were demolished,
leaving the late C17 wing, with pavilions built at each end. Stuccoed stone, with
brick dressings. Slate roofs; with gable ends; hipped roofs over the C20 pavilions,
with lead rolls to ridges. Polygonal clustered chimneys.
Plan: What survives appears to be a wing of the original C17 house, with a projecting
wing to north which is said to have been a chapel; this is aligned east/west. The
rear range, with cellars below, is the early building; from north to south, there is
an office, kitchen, pantry and large dining room. The dining room may be the site of
a through passage; there is a window on the garden front (to rear) which was formerly
a door, and a door on the front opposing it. To south of the dining room is a large
stair hall and a drawing room, each heated by back-to-back fireplaces set in the
front corner, probably of late C18. The stair hall was probably reconstructed in the
late C18, possibly on the site of an earlier stair. Probably also in the late C18, a
lateral corridor was built to the front of the wing, and further rooms built along
the front, including an entrance hall to the centre. The additions by Wilkins formed
2 wings to the front and enclosed an inner courtyard; these have been completely
demolished, and 2 pavilions of one-room plan added to the front to right and left. A
porte-cochere has also been added to the right (south) end of the C17 range. In the
early C19, the rear (garden front) was also re-faced and given an embattled parapet,
which survives; the polygonal clustered chimneys are probably also of this phase.
Exterior: The entrance front is symmetrical, of 2 storeys, with 3 central bays, one
bay with attic storey to right and left, and the C20 pavilions slightly broken
forward at each end, with a wall projecting from each pavilion to form an entrance
courtyard. The central 5 bays have a ground floor arcade of granite Doric columns,
of the circa 1700, supporting later brick segmental arches. Central 6-panelled door
with overlight, frieze and cornice on brackets; two 12-pane sashes to right and left.
There is a modillion cornice over the 3 central bays; the attic storey of the outer
bays each have 6-pane sash, cornice and embattled parapet. The C20 pavilions have two
12-pane sashes, first floor string course, moulded eaves cornice and hipped roof.
Attached to each pavilion, a slatestone rubble wall with coping, about 3 metres high
and about 10 metres long, each with doorway to centre, and each with terminal pier
in granite on moulded plinth with cornice and ball finial on shaped stem; the wall to
left is swept forward, with granite quoins to the return enclosing a service
courtyard to left, with an entrance gateway with brick piers. At the right side, the
pavilion has two 15-pane sashes at ground floor and two 12-pane sashes at first
floor. The right end of the main range has a C20 porte-cochere, with a slate sundial
dated 1693; C20 double half-glazed doors. At the left side, the pavilion has 4-pane
sash and door, 12-pane sash at first floor. Attached to left a single storey service
wing, with a hipped roof and arcade of 3 round brick arches to front, 16-pane sash
and 6-panelled door with overlight. Attached to left and forming an L-plan, a single
storey range of outhouses.
Interior: The cellars are below the main range of the house, with a cellar below the
chapel wing; at the front and rear of the northern cellar is a granite doorway,
chamfered, with 3-centred arch, roundel and pyramid stops, with initials St IT,.
probably for James Tillie and the date 1698 and 1699. The cellars are vaulted,
floored partly in a herringbone brick design, with a stone winder stair, blocked,
leading to the ground floor. On the north side, there are oval windows, set in deep
splayed reveals, now below ground level on the outside. At the right end, to the
front, there is a similar granite doorway with initials RIT 1698. The rooms on the
garden front are of the main range; from the north, there is the office; this has a
plaster ceiling, with a quatrefoil set in an oval. The kitchen has a plaster ceiling,
with a bolection-moulded circle design. There is a narrow pantry next to the
kitchen, and between the two rooms, a cupboard, concealing an early C18 doorway; this
has an eared architrave, with pilasters and modillion cornice, with an outer
segmental arch with a key block. Next to the pantry is the dining room, with fielded
panelling and a jib door to the pantry; the rear door to the room is now a window
with pilasters to each side, opposing the door which now leads to the lateral
passage, also with pilasters. On the passage side, this doorway has a Greek key
surround, with eared architrave with rusticated quoins to each side and a lion mask
set as a keystone above the doorway. This is in a central position, and may be the
site of the original C17 entrance to the wing; it would have formed the main entrance
in the early C18, becoming an internal doorway in the later C18. The dining room has
a modillion cornice, panelled shutters to the windows and a plain chimneypiece at the
right end. The next room in this range is the stair hall; open-well stair with stick
balusters; the room is panelled, 6-panelled doors with eared architraves and Greek
key surrounds, Greek key frieze and moulded cornice. There is a marble chimneypiece
in the front right corner of the stair hall, overmantel with dentils and carved
wooden eagles with fruit. The end right room has a marble chimneypiece with reeded
surround, back-to-back with the stair hall fireplace; moulded cornice and dado rail.
At first floor, to end right, there is a bedroom and dressing room with complete
fielded panelling and modillion cornices, 6-panelled doors, there is another panelled
room with moulded cornice to the left of the stair well. The end rooms to left
appear to have been partitioned in the mid-late C18, with service stair added in the
front range. Pentillie Castle retains fine features of the early and late C18; the
arcade along the entrance front may originally have been open at ground floor,
leading to the main front entrance in the centre; this may have been the central
range of a late C17 U-plan.
Listing NGR: SX4099864557
