History

Originally built in 1834 for Edward and John Alfrey who owned the brewery housed in Newport Castle. House was substantially rebuilt in 1877 by Thomas Cordes MP for Newport and it remained in the family until 1890. Used as hospital during the 1914-18 First World War and purchased by Newport Council in 1922 for use as school. Still in Council ownership, it has been a Community Centre since 1974. Malpas Tithe Map of 1840 shows Bryn Glas as a large roughly rectangular house with a W rear range. The OS map surveyed 1881 shows it as roughly U-shaped with the E garden frontage as the central section, the grounds descending to the Great Western Region Railway, the Monmouthshire section of the Eastern Valleys Line running alongside the River Usk. The rear service wing including kitchen and servants quarters was demolished. Photograph of 1890 shows the central section originally had balustraded parapets at main roof level and to the canted bays, with pediment heads over the 2nd and 5th upper floor windows, and further stacks.

Exterior

Classical mansion. Two storeys. Originally of stucco with ashlar dressings, now wholly painted. Very shallow pitched hipped roof of Welsh slate with central narrow rectangular stack, only readily visible above E elevation. Entrance frontage to S: a central canted bay with windows to each face, flanked on each side by a single window range. Raised end pilasters, corniced parapet and platband separating the storeys. Central flat-roofed portico in front of a round-arched moulded doorway, with entablature, slender Ionic columns and rear pilasters. Wide single storey ground floor bay projects to left. Original glazing was 12 pane-sashes with slender glazing bars, narrow sills; some glazing altered.

Extensive E-facing garden frontage. Central projecting 6-window range - three 12-pane windows each above two wide canted ground floor bays with large sash windows, tripartite to centre, some glazing bars lost. The bays are separated by a narrow round-arched niche. At each end are bowed 3-window ranges of large first floor 12-pane sashes and long full-height ground floor 15-pane sashes. End pilasters, platband and shallow roof cornice and parapet. N-facing elevation has a similar 3-window range of large sashes.

Interior

In spite of later institutional use, interior contains a range of C19 fittings and furnishings, including shutters to almost all the windows, panelled reveals, door surrounds with paterae, decorative plasterwork, marble fireplaces. The 5-sided porch has an encaustic tiled floor and the glazed lobby entrance has decorative plasterwork of side pilasters with egg and dart cornice and narrow Ionic scrolls, acanthus leaf coving and anthemion cornice to the ceiling. The main hall has a wider coloured range of decorative floor tiles, similar plasterwork, piers with similar narrow capitals. Corridor with a series of heavy moulded bracketed plaster arches gives access to the main reception rooms of the garden frontage; panelled cupboards on the inner rear wall. Room 1(former library) with front and garden elevations has decorative plasterwork cornice, panelled reveals and shutters to the long windows of the bowed garden wall. Room 1A on the other side of the hall (former morning room) has bay window to front and door to former conservatory to side; some modest decorative plasterwork. Room 2 (former music room) has an elaborate and delicate gilded and painted wooden chimney-piece incorporating mirrors resting on a white heavily carved marble fireplace; the painted decoration here and on the ceiling is derived from Roman classical motifs popular in the late C18-early C19 Pompeian style, also a 3-banded ceiling cornice of classical motifs. The window bay recess is framed by fluted columns with Ionic capitals and pilasters against the wall; low panelled dado and entablature over door. Coffee bar (former dining room) has an elaborate heavily carved brown/grey marble fireplace incorporating pre-Raphaelite style tiles, heavy billet-moulded cornice and heavy brackets to the bay window recess. Room 3 to rear was butler's pantry. Room 4 at end (former billiard room) has two frontages and is at a lower level; former dressing room off.

Open well staircase of dark wood with twisted balusters and decorative treads ends rises to a landing newel under an arcade of 3 round-headed arches and round columns with shallow capitals and similar cornice. Tall round-arched staircase window with fluted surround and brackets and millennium glazing. Main first floor rooms lead off the L-shaped landing/corridor. These have less elaborately moulded plasterwork and mainly plain pale marble classical style fireplaces; smaller former service rooms off rear passage.

Reasons for Listing

Listed as an early Victorian mansion with added historical interest for its connections with the Allfrey and Cordes families. Group value with Brynglas Gardens adjacent.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29482942

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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