Description

CHARLTON KINGS

SO9621SE ASHLEY ROAD
630-1/30/3 (West side (off))
08/02/83 South-west Regency (Administration)
Block to St Edward's Middle School
(Formerly Listed as:
LONDON ROAD
(North East side)
South-west Regency (Administration)
Block to Whitefriars School)

GV II*

Formerly known as: Ashley Villa ASHLEY ROAD.
Villa, now school. c1832, extended to front and remodelled for
Nathaniel Hartland, banker; architect: C Baker of Cheltenham;
builders include Robert Williams and Edward Billings. Ashlar
with hipped slate roofs.
PLAN: double-depth main range with lateral hall and stairwell
to rear; with service wing to rear extending to a 3-storey
service block with lower single-storey wings.
EXTERIOR: entrance (west) facade of 2 storeys, 4 first-floor
windows arranged 2:1:1, the 3rd (entrance) bay breaks forward.
Corner giant Tuscan pilasters and to breakforward. Moulded
first-floor band. First floor has 6/6 sashes with tooled,
eared architraves. Ground floor: off-centre right entrance,
Corinthian portico has 2 pairs of columns, frieze and dentil
cornice; within are double 2-fielded-panel doors with
side-lights and pilasters between with Greek key pattern,
dentil frieze, divided overlight. Windows to ground floor are
2/2 sashes with frieze and cornice on corbels; all windows in
plain reveals.
Garden facade: 2 storeys, 3 bays, the centre a full-height
bow, with windows arranged 1:3:1. Plinth, corner giant Tuscan
pilasters and to outer bow, with giant Corinthian columns to
either side of central window, continuous dentil cornice and
blocking course. First floor: 6/6 sashes, the outer have
tooled, eared architraves. Ground floor: outer 2/2 sashes,
6-pane French windows to bow; all have frieze and cornice on
consoles. Windows to bow have blind boxes and louvred
shutters.
East facade has Gothic bay window to ground floor with
perpendicular-type tracery to head; to first floor an oriel
window between 6/6 sashes. To north: staircase window a 9/9
elliptically-arched sash with margin-lights.
INTERIOR: retains many original features. Wide entrance hall
in 3 parts; outer part has doorways on either side with

6-panel doors and eared architraves; inner 2 with saucer domes
decorated with Greek key pattern and cornucopia with doves and
floral bosses to centre; recess with arched wall panels and
coffered segmental vault. Enriched cornices with egg-and-dart,
dentils and modillions.
Principal room on ground floor (now chapel) has scagliola
columns leading into bow; marble fireplaces, frieze and
cornice. Further room to south-east with 2-colour marble
fireplace with original grate and sideboard break flanked by
Corinthian columns, deep frieze with anthemion motifs.
Open-well stone staircase with scroll-motif to ends of treads,
iron balusters; to upper part are blind-arched wall panels
opposite arched openings with similar balustrade; coffered
segmental vault.
Upper hallway has enriched frieze with egg-and-dart and
anthemion corbels and fleurons to frieze. First floor has
several marble fireplaces, including to service rooms. Main
rooms (some divided) have enriched cornices. Service staircase
has stick balusters.
HISTORICAL NOTE: incorporates in north wing part of an earlier
house called The Woodlands. Formerly known as Ashley Manor,
the villa was built for Nathaniel Hartland (the single most
important lender of money to builders in the Pittville
development in Cheltenham) at a cost of over »6,000.
Also formerly known as The Oaklands.
One of the finest villas in the Cheltenham area, its internal
plasterwork is a particular feature for its diversity, depth
and quality of composition.
Forms a group with Summerhouse and drive piers to carriage
sweep, London Road (off) (qqv).

Listing NGR: SO9653621465

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17535505

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

• 
  Pevsner's Architectural Glossary (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Sussex: West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  London 6: Westminster (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England): Westminster v. 6
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990