Description

869/0/10106 CLIFTON HILL
20-DEC-05 16
CLIFTON ROAD
3, 4, 5

II
Two linked pairs of large semi-detached villas. Probably built in the early 1840s. No 16 was extended on the S side in 1909. MATERIALS: The massive principal walls are built of rammed chalk with a painted render finish, incised to imitate ashlar masonry. Slate roofs; brick chimney stacks; tile hanging to 1909 extension.

PLAN: 5 storeys consisting of raised basement, 2 principal floors, and 2 attic floors within the steep pitched roofs. Principal façades of 2 bays; the pairs of houses are linked by a set-back 2-storey 2-bay block which contains the entrances to No 3 and 4 Clifton Road; the entrance to No 5 and No 16 Clifton Hill are in set back 2-storey wings. The internal plan is mirrored between each pair, and comprises a central stair compartment leading to large rooms at the front and rear.

EXTERIOR: Symmetrical gabled front elevations of 2 bays, with 2 windows to the lower attic storey and one to the higher. Square bay windows to basement and ground floors with moulded cornices and crenellated parapets. Square drip moulds to upper floor windows. Timber sash windows, those to ground and first floor with tripartite lights with 4-over-4 panes to central sash and 2-over-2 to margin lights; those above have 3-over-3 panes. Fenestration pattern similar on rear elevations but without bays or drip moulds; 6 over 6 sashes to ground and first floors. Round-headed windows and doors to entrance bays; timber panelled doors with plain fanlights. Steep pitched roofs with pierced bargeboards to gable eaves. Edwardian extension to No 16 is of 2 storeys above basement and has square bay windows with timber casements and glazing bars to upper lights.

INTERIOR: Internally the buildings retain their plan form, much Victorian joinery, and a number of original and later fittings. They have elegant stairs with square balusters and mahogany handrails; that to No 16 replaced after fire damage.

HISTORY: The houses are thought to have been built shortly after the arrival of the London and South Western Railway in 1839-40. They may have been built with chalk spoil from the nearby railway cutting.

SUMMARY OF IMPORTANCE: Of special architectural interest as well-preserved early-Victorian villas in a striking picturesque style, and for their construction. The use of rammed chalk on such a large scale is unusual; these are possibly the tallest examples of the use of this constructional technique in the country. They occupy a prominent hillside overlooking the city and are striking landmarks.

SOURCES: Conservation of Clay and Chalk Buildings, Gordon T Pearson, 1994, pp 22-25; Terra Britannica, ICOMOS UK/English Heritage, 2000, pp 29-33; Report on 3, 4 and 5 Clifton Road and 16 Clifton Hill, Forum Heritage Services, 2004

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26670821

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

• 
  Suffolk: West: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Period property manual, victorian house manual 2 books collection set by ian rock
• 
  Gwent/Monmouthshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Wales)
• 
  Sussex: West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair by Hunt. Roger ( 2008 ) Hardcover
• 
  Cumbria: Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)