Details
BUCKINGHAM
SP6934 WEST STREET
879-1/5/197 (North side)
13/10/52 Castle House
GV I
Large town house. Main range of 1708, late C15 wings to rear
either side of open court. Both wings altered c1623; left
(west) wing restored and altered 1881 by E Swinfen Harris.
Other early C19 and C20 alterations.
Main range of red brick in Flemish bond with limestone
dressings, hipped plain-tile roofs, brick ridge stacks. West
wing of coursed limestone rubble to ground floor with
limestone dressings and timber-framed 1st floor, all now
rendered, and plain-tile roof; east wing of similar
construction, also rendered. U-plan 8-window front range of 2
storeys and attic with 2:4:2 composition.
Pair of moulded stone doorcases to centre joined by continuous
plain frieze and moulded cornice, each with segmental
pediments, which meet in the middle. Left doorcase frames
6-panel door and large overlight with ornamental glazing bar
pattern of central horizontal oval and 8 radiating spokes.
Right doorcase frames 12-pane sash window with moulded stone
sill. Similar sashes to ground and first floors with moulded
stone sills and surrounds. 2 bays either end of front break
forward to form shallow wings and have raised quoins to
angles. Wave-moulded limestone plinth, one stone step to door,
stone storey band and wood modillion eaves.
Centre is pedimented; rubbed brick pediment framed by wood
modillioned slopes. Centre has group of 3 roof dormers, the
middle one with segmental pediment, those either side with
hipped roofs. Wings each have a central gabled roof dormer.
All have 2-light leaded casements.
Symmetrical stacks have wave-moulded stone coping to bases and
tall brick flues with stone corner strips and hollow-chamfered
stone cornices.
West wing has been partly rebuilt in brick with wood mullion
and transom window to ground and 1st floors on garden side.
Rest has similar windows to 1st floor and pair of 2-light
Perpendicular windows to ground floor of stone with straight
heads, transoms, cinquefoil-headed main lights, secondary
trefoil-headed lights to head and hoodmoulds. Pair of 2-light
stone mullion cellar windows, that to left with arched heads
to lights. C19 two-storey canted bay window to gable end with
impressed decoration to render above ground-floor windows and
datestone above inscribed 1623/L/WM. 2-storey corridor
extension to court side.
East wing is narrower and survives more complete. Irregular
glazing to garden side of wood mullion and transom windows, 16
and 20-pane sashes to 1st floor and 3 gabled roof dormers with
2-light leaded casements. Lower two- and single-storey
extensions to gable end. Datestone to court side very similar
to that on west wing.
INTERIOR: main range has staircase hall with open-well stair,
slender turned balusters of columns on bulbous feet, column
newels, carved tread ends and ramped handrail, swept up where
it meets newels; pilastered and panelled dado. Dining room to
west of hall has painted deal fielded panelling with
segmental-arched recesses above cupboards either side of
chimneybreast. Eared wood chimneypiece with egg-and-dart
ornament and overmantel panel with similar ornament and swan's
neck pediment framing reused plaster panel of Cupid and
Psyche.
Study to east of hall has late C18 painted wood and
composition chimneypiece. First floor sitting room has fielded
panelling. Main bedroom has reused C17 panelling with
strapwork ornament to top row. West range appear to have
originally consisted of a large ground floor room over a
cellar and 1st-floor hall; both rooms have been reduced by at
least one bay.
To ground floor the Drawing Room, formerly Great Parlour, has
many-moulded cross beam ceiling with wall posts,
hollow-chamfered arch braces to tie-beams and cusped tracery
to spandrels. Post and braces rest on moulded oak corbels.
Original windows have chamfered oak lintels with heart stops.
Chimneypiece is a C19 composite affair, incorporating old
woodwork. It has Salamonic half-columns flanking fireplace
bearing 2-tiered overmantel, the lower tier divided in three
with central panel inscribed ANNO 1619/ WL ML, the upper tier
probably a Jacobean bedroom overmantel with paired columns and
twin round-arched headed panels with strapwork. Distinctive
late C19 woodwork to doors, bay window etc designed by E
Swinfen Harris.
Bedroom above at bay window end has C17 panelling with
strapwork ornament to top row and fireplace with Jacobean
overmantel, which has vine trail to columns which frame 2
round arch-headed panels. Former open hall roof survives in
attic substantially intact, with 3 surviving trusses. 2 main
trusses have double hollow-chamfered arch-braced and cambered
tie beams with queen posts to principal cambered collar and to
secondary collar. Posts frame arch-bracing to collars,
multi-foiled to upper collars and meeting in an ogee arch.
Arch-braced collar truss to lower end, probably marking
position of screen, has foiled bracing to secondary collar. 2
tiers of clasped, wind-braced purlins. Most members
hollow-chamfered. Principal collars have been cut to give
access to attic room. Moulded wall-post to roof visible on 1st
floor court side, where a tension brace is also exposed.
East range survives largely complete. It evidently consisted
of a large ground-floor room over a stone cellar, and 2
chambers to 1st floor, one much larger than the other and with
open timber roof.
Cellar has small rectangular stone windows, now blocked, in
deeply splayed bays, to court side and spine beam.
Ground-floor room has chamfered cross beam ceiling of 3 bays
and large open fireplace with cambered bressumer. 1st floor
has blocked ovolo-moulded wood mullion and transom window to
court side and is divided unequally by original framed
partition with Tudor-arched doorway beside courtyard wall and
braced central post. Original open roof in attic has tie beam
trusses with queen posts to cambered collars and remains of
arch-bracing between posts. Original closed truss to gable end
survives in later, possibly C17 extension to that end. C18
front range probably replaces original solar wing.
A Tudor-arched stone doorway, double wave-moulded, by gable
end of west range on court side leading to parlour suggests
that no substantial original north range has been lost and no
evidence for one was found in recent renovation.
HISTORICAL NOTE: Castle House was residence of the Bartons
from late C14, then of the Fowlers from mid C15 till 1590.
William Fowler, MP for Buckingham in 1467 and Chancellor of
the Duchy of Lancaster, who died in 1477 may have been the
client for the C15 house. The Lambards were owners in the
early C17 when important alterations were made; the initials
on the datestones are those of William and Mary Lambard. The
front range was rebuilt for Matthias Rogers, who succeeded to
the property in 1706.
(Victoria County Histories: Buckinghamshire: London: 1928-:
484-5; Buildings of England: Pevsner N: Buckinghamshire:
London: 1960-: 76).
Listing NGR: SP6940534020
