Description

CHELTENHAM

SO9422SE IMPERIAL SQUARE 630-1/13/418 (North side) 12/03/55 Nos.1-13 (Consecutive) with attached area railings throughout, and pier to No.1

GV II*

Terrace of 13 houses and attached area railings throughout and pier to No.1. c1834, shown as laid out but not yet built upon on Merrett's Map of 1834. Builders, Robert Todd and William Prosser, probably to designs by John Forbes. Stucco over brick with concealed, double-pitched roofs; iron railings and verandahs; ashlar pier. Double depth plan with side stairhalls and mainly 3-lower-storey service ranges to rear. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys on basements, 39 first-floor windows (2 per house). Stucco detailing includes horizontal rustication to ground floor, first-floor band surmounted by Doric pilasters to ends and between windows through first and second floors, interrupting second-floor band; architrave, frieze, cornice and blocking course with copings. Mainly 6/6 sashes (where original) taller to first floor, some blind central openings to second floors; all in plain reveals and with sills to ground and second floors. Entrances to right and left: flights of roll-edged steps to double 4-panel doors with overlights (with glazing bars where original), some set back, several retain hand-and-wreath motif knockers. Entrance to No.13 to right return has Ionic porch with 2 pairs of columns, architrave, frieze and cornice; bay above porch breaks forward. Windows to right return (3+1) have tooled architraves, 6/6 sashes and blind openings. To rear of No.13 a full-height wide bow with 8/8 sashes with tooled architraves. Rear has 6/6 and 8/8 sashes; a later Victorian oriel window to No.7. INTERIOR: many retain original features, varying in level of embellishment; No.7 has egg-and-dart cornice to hallway, dogleg staircase has stick balusters with wreathed handrail; Art Nouveau arcade to hall has roses and cartouche; first floor has fireplace with pilasters and dentil cornice, main room to front has late C19 panelling and egg-and-dart cornice with scrolled ceiling frieze; panelled dividing doors between front and rear rooms. No.8 has similar staircase. No.9 has similar staircase, ground-floor front room has egg-and-dart cornice and deep moulded frieze; first-floor has fireplace with fielded panels and to rear a Regency fireplace with circle motif. No.10 has similar staircase with alternate stick

and rod-and-bobbin balusters, marble fireplaces with corbels, good cornices. No.11 has similar staircase (balusters renewed), cornices embellished with egg-and-dart, acanthus modillions and fleurons. Many retain shutters to windows. Otherwise not inspected. SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: first-floor verandah has double heart and anthemion motif balustrade supplied by Carron Company except to right (No.13) which has ground floor verandah to front and return with X- and circle-motif balustrade. Area railings have X-motif and embellished rods to sides of steps. Some ground-floor window boxes with circle frieze. To No.1 are spearhead railings at left with pier to end. HISTORICAL NOTE: the Square originally overlooked the Imperial Nursery. (Chatwin A: Cheltenham's Ornamental Ironwork: Cheltenham: 1975-1984: 38; Radford S: The Terraced Houses of Cheltenham 1800-1850: 1992-: 106-113; Cheltenham Local History Society Journal, Vol 7: Blake S: The Unfortunate Mr Forbes: 1989-: 7-27).



Listing NGR: SO9483222105

External Links

• Wikidata Q17535355

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