Cumberland House

Details

NORFOLK CRESCENT (East side) Nos.1-7 (Consec) Flats 1-35 Cumberland House (Formerly Listed as: NORFOLK CRESCENT Nos 1-7 (consec) (Flats Nos 1-27 Cumberland House) & Nos 8-18 (consec)) 12/06/50

GV II*

Part of symmetrical crescent formerly of 18 large houses, now converted to flats behind the facade c1810, probably by John Palmer, completed by John Pinch, reconstructed, following severe war damage, 1960's. MATERIALS: Limestone ashlar, slate roofs. EXTERIOR: Originally deep double depth plans, with four storeys and basement, C20 additions to rear in six full storeys, resulting from fall in site, and in segment of circle to 420ft radius (Ison). Post-war reconstruction followed original fenestration, in total of twenty-seven-bays, with glazing bar sashes, six-pane in attic course above twelve-pane, and floor depth eighteen-pane to stone slab balconies with good iron balustrades at first floor. Ground floor has twelve-pane, and in basements twelve-pane, filled with masonry, with small vents, in bays eleven-twenty-two. Bays twenty-seven and twenty-eight have eighteen-pane sash to ground floor, and in basement area stone vaulted structure occupying most of space. First bay, at left hand end, has blind lights at each level, and first three bays are divided by four giant Ionic pilasters, whole of this unit brought forward slightly stopped end (repeated at far end, qv Nos 8-18), at right hand end group part of central pedimented five-bay section, with six giant Ionic pilasters, with two-bay flanking wings, in two slight steps forward. Panelled doors in bays seven,nineteen,twenty-two and twenty-five, each with transom light, and former doors have been replaced by sashes in bays ten,thirteen and sixteen. Ground floor rusticated, with rusticated voussoirs to windows and doors, balcony edges are reeded, sill band to second floor, threaded to pilasters, and continuous lintel and entablature, with small cornice, blocking course and parapet above attic, faced by enclosed pediment to bays twenty-six-thirty (part in Nos 8-18). Slate roof, hipped to left, has coped party divisions, with two-stage ashlar stacks. Return, to Great Stanhope Street, three bays, bay three having blind lights, other windows following pattern of front. Central panelled door in deep reveals with rusticated quoins, which also used at each end, floor not fully rusticated. Rear completely late C20, with ashlar above coursed rubble lower ground floors. INTERIORS: Not inspected; they have been comprehensively remodelled following war damage, but some features are thought to survive. SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: Across whole frontage are spearhead railings with tassels to basement areas, returned at doors and former doorways, including original iron overthrow at right hand end (No.7), matching that to No.14. HISTORY: The Crescent was part of an ambitious proposal, on land leased in 1792 to an attorney named Richard Bowsher, operating with two builders named James Broom and John King. Leases on individual houses within the development were then granted to tradesmen, but the squeeze on credit following the outbreak of the wars with France in 1793 led to considerable delays in the completion of the crescent, with only the first 9 houses (included in this group) being completed by 1810. The remainder of the development was continued in an identical style. The involvement of John Pinch in the design of the crescent has been suggested: Bowsher, the main promoter of the scheme, was responsible for the bankrupt Pinch¿s affairs in the 1790s. Along with the slightly later Nelson Place [q.v.], the crescent constitutes a notable edge-of-town development, which combined a major urban-scaled project with an unspoiled rural prospect in the manner of the Royal Crescent. Seven houses in the crescent were severely damaged during the air raids of 1942. The restoration of the crescent earned a Civic Trust award in 1963: see plaque on north return of No.1. The houses have been sub-divided into council-owned flats. SOURCES: Walter Ison, `The Georgian Buildings of Bath¿ (2nd ed. 1980), 180-81; Thom Gorst, `Bath. An Architectural Guide¿ (1997), 116. (Ison W: The Georgian Buildings of Bath: London: 1948-: 175).

Listing NGR: ST7438464938

Legacy

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Legacy System number:

511154

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LBS

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