History

Late C18 Georgian country house built by Lord Chief Baron Richards of the exchequer who married the heiress of the nearby Old Caerynwch. Altered and extended c.1860, and c.1901 by the Richards family; modern additions.

Exterior

Of large, rough-dressed stone blocks with shallow-pitched hipped slate roofs and deep oversailing eaves. Amorphous plan, mainly of 2 storeys. The primary block is to the S and is essentially square. 4-bay S (entrance) front with off-centre entrance to bay 3. This has a C19 single-storey portico with plain paired pillars and plain entablature with part-dentillated cornice. Part-glazed C19 double entrance doors and C20 multi-pane glazed sides. Tall C19 6-pane windows to the ground floor (C19 and elegant, slightly recessed original 12-pane sashes to the first floor. Adjoining to the R and slightly advanced, a single-storey 2-bay addition with shallow hipped roof as before; long 12-pane sash windows. Symmetrical W (garden) front with 2 wide, shallow storeyed bow windows flanking a slightly recessed central bay. C19 glazing: French windows to the latter with wooden C19 canted bays attached to the bows on the ground floor; these with plain-sash windows. Tripartite sash windows to the upper bows with a further plain sash to the first floor centre.

Adjoining to the N a storeyed 3-bay extension of c.1860; construction as before. Plain sashes to both floors with central storeyed bay window. Further, single-storey extension beyond with similar bay; built as a billiard room c.1901. Part-rendered E (service) side with modern additions.

The house stands on a raised terrace which steps-down to the W.

Interior

This was not inspected during the survey (February 1995). However, panelled doors, contemporary plaster cornices and a fine central stair well with swept-rail stairs and iron balusters are known to survive.

Reasons for Listing

A large, restrained late C18 house with additions and alterations but retaining much of its elegance and character.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29493738

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.

Recommended Books

• 
  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability
• 
  For the Record
• 
  London 1: The City of London: City of London v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Gloucestershire 1: The Cotswolds: Cotswolds Pt. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings