18-26 King Edward Street and 49-51 Vicar Lane, Leeds, City and Hunslet, Leeds

Summary

Block of shops, offices and former restaurant, 1898-1904, altered in the C20. By Frank Matcham for the Leeds Estates Company as part of the County Arcade development. Free Baroque style.

Description

Block of shops, offices and former restaurant, 1898-1904, altered in the C20. By Frank Matcham for the Leeds Estates Company as part of the County Arcade development. Free Baroque style.

MATERIALS: pressed brick and Burmantofts buff terracotta, mahogany shopfronts with black Siena marble dressings. Slate, asphalt and corrugated-steel roof coverings.

PLAN: a long linear development block on the south side of King Edward Street with an eastern return onto Vicar Lane and a western return onto a narrow alley named Fish Street approximately halfway along the street, which divides the block from its western counterpart (separately listed at Grade II).

EXTERIORS: the block is of three-storeys plus basement and attic with decorative work in Burmantofts terracotta, including shaped window surrounds, shaped and Dutch/Flemish gables, and relief strapwork scrolls, foliage, carved heads, and plaque decoration. A domed turret exists to the north-east corner with Vicar Lane, along with a smaller turret with a polygonal roof to the north-west corner with Fish Street.

To the ground floor of 20-24 King Edward Street are mahogany shopfronts with slender mullions. An entrance to the upper floors lies at 26 King Edward Street, and has a square-panelled door and screen above, whilst 51 Vicar Lane has a corner entrance. The ground-floor bays are separated by black polished-granite pilasters. On the first floor are large casement windows with round and basket-arched heads, prominent keystones, and carved Ionic mullions in the style of gaines (a form of decorative tapered pedestal), whilst the windows to the second floor are simpler and contain plate-glass sashes; those to the easternmost section of the elevation have carved aprons below. An oriel window exists towards the eastern end of the King Edward Street elevation and forms part of 51 Vicar Lane. To the top of the elevation is a dentilled cornice and balustraded parapet surmounted by shaped, pedimented and Dutch gables and ornamented corner towers. The short Vicar Lane return and Fish Street returns are similarly styled to the King Edward Street elevation, including a further oriel window at 49 Vicar Lane. The rear elevations are largely hidden from view by adjoining and neighbouring buildings.

18 King Edward Street (known as King Edward House) is slightly differently styled to the rest of the block with a greater use of Burmantofts terracotta on its principal north elevation and a different ground-floor treatment due to its original use as a restaurant known as the King Edward Restaurant. The terracotta ground floor has four large arched glazed openings facing north onto King Edward Street and a corner tower to the right at the junction with Fish Street. The openings each incorporate fluted decoration, carved spandrels and a keyed intrados and have been enlarged through the removal of original terracotta plinths at the bottom of the windows. All have replaced late-C20 plain glazing; the window to the third bay originally formed the building's main entrance, but this has since been replaced by a late-C20 entrance created on the north-west corner. To the centre of the first floor is a shallow segmental, balustraded balcony, and to the second floor is an elaborate window with an open pediment. At the top of the building and forming part of a large shaped gable containing a keyed oculus (round window) is a band with lettering that reads 'KING EDWARD HOUSE'. The north-west corner turret at the junction with Fish Street mirrors the design of a turret on the opposite side of the alley and incorporates three elliptical roundels containing coloured and gilded mosaics depicting the Roman god Bacchus flanked by a fish and a rabbit (representing the King Edward restaurant). The rear elevation is much plainer and has possibly been rebuilt.

The block has a mixture of pitched and hipped roofs, and King Edward House incorporates sections of flat roof that flank a central pitched section running the length of the building from north to south.

INTERIOR: the shop interiors are largely plain, although it is possible that features survive behind later stud walls and above suspended ceilings. King Edward House is now in banking use and has been generally modernised and suspended ceilings inserted, but decorative moulded plasterwork in the form of wall friezes and ceiling work survives in at least part to the ground floor. The upper floors of 18-26 King Edward Street and 49-51 Vicar Lane were not inspected.

History

18-26 King Edward Street, and 49-51 Vicar Lane were constructed in 1898-1904 as part of the County Arcade development designed by the theatre architect Frank Matcham for the Leeds Estates Company. The development, which swept away old buildings and yards around the Smithfield Meat Market and Shambles area (rows of butchers' shops), saw part of the oldest district in the city transformed with flamboyantly designed buildings containing shop premises, cafes, offices, and two arcades.

Blocks were constructed in and around the newly laid-out streets of Queen Victoria Street and King Edward Street, including County Arcade and Cross Arcade, and two blocks on the south side of King Edward Street (a western block comprised of 115-120 Briggate and 2-16 King Edward Street, and an eastern block comprised of 18-26 King Edward Street and 49-51 Vicar Lane) separated by a narrow alley/lane called Fish Street (in the early C19 the area around Fish Street had been established as a fish and vegetable market).

The eastern block originally incorporated a restaurant known as the King Edward Restaurant (later a public house named the King Edward Hotel) at the corner of King Edward Street and Fish Street, which remained in use until the late C20 when it was converted for banking use. The rest of the block was comprised of smaller retail units continuing around onto Vicar Lane. 51 Vicar Lane was occupied for much of the C20 by Siller Ltd, a children's pram business.

Reasons for Listing

18-26 King Edward Street and 49-51 Vicar Lane, constructed in 1898-1904 to designs by Frank Matcham for the Leeds Estates Company as part of the County Arcade development, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* it has striking principal elevations combining flamboyant Free Baroque architectural styling that display strong levels of architectural flair and distinction;
* the principal elevations incorporate high-quality decorative terracotta work by the renowned local firm of Burmantofts and gilded mosaicwork;
* the exterior is little altered overall and retains its late-C19/early-C20 retail character, whilst the interior of King Edward House at 18 King Edward Street incorporates decorative moulded plasterwork;
* the block was designed by the renowned theatre architect Frank Matcham, who has many listed buildings to his name, and is an excellent example of his work;

Historic interest:

* the block forms part of an ambitious late-C19/early-C20 town planning and redevelopment scheme.

Group value:

* it has strong group value with 115-120 Briggate and 2-16 King Edward Street and 121-126 Briggate, and the various listings covering the Victoria Quarter, as well as other listed commercial buildings on Vicar Lane.

External Links

Historic England Listing

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