History

Early C17 house enlarged in later C17. The oldest part is the E half, comprising a single ground floor room with chimney at the E end. Enlarged in the later C17 with big chimney between existing hall and new W parlour, and a new porch into a lobby entrance. A staircase block was added opposite the porch to make a cross plan. In the C18 a further range was added to the E, apparently a kitchen with loft, this loft said to have been used as a schoolroom. The house was the home of William Phillips, died 1721, Recorder of Brecon 1689-1707, and is illustrated in an early C18 drawing inscribed 'The house of William Phillips Esq. near the village of Lllanvrenach which his father bought of ?Eifon Thomas whose ancestors are said to have enjoyed it above 1000 years before'. The drawing shows roughly the same outline but there is an additional ridge chimney, all three stacks have diagonal shafts and the windows are mullion-and-transom, presumably in oak. The service range is shown as a smaller single-storey addition. Farmed by Jones family from mid C19.

Exterior

House, rubble stone, imitation-slate close-eaved steep roofs and massive stone right end stack. Small C20 brick left stack. Main house is two-storey and attic, cruciform plan with storeyed gabled porch to front and stair-gable to rear. Lower added C18 service range to right. Main house has broad square hornless 20-pane sash window each floor each side of porch gable, with timber lintels, some rendered over. The left pair are not precisely aligned, and the first floor right window is smaller than the others. The sash windows replace the mullion-and-transom windows of the early C18 drawing. First floor far right has a small blocked window with hoodmould over oak lintel. Porch gable has first floor C19 long 4-pane sash and ground floor small square 4-pane window, both with cemented lintels. Entry is on right side wall, arched doorway with stone voussoirs. Blocked small window above with hoodmould.
Service range to right is lower with centre outside stone stairs to loft door under gabled timber porch on two wooden posts. Door has three pointed panels and cover strips. Two small windows to left under eaves and one to right, single casements. Ground floor has door to extreme left, then small triple casement to left of steps. Square window to right of steps with oak lintel. Blocked loft opening in right end wall. Left end stone chimney is added to main house chimney.
Rear not inspected, shown in 1965 photograph with outshut each side of stair gable. Stair gable had small attic window offset to right, small landing window over ground floor, offset to left and plank door. Outshut to right had tall corner square chimney, first floor small-paned square 16-pane sash and ground floor small window. Outshut to left was obscured by corrugated-iron lean-to. Rear of service range had small paired window under eaves to right of centre.

Interior

Interior not inspected. Main house has hall to right, parlour to left and stairs to rear. The hall and parlour both had E side fireplaces, the chimney for the parlour fireplace removed. There were three beams in the hall, and two axial beams on corbels in the parlour. The staircase turned around a square centre pier. There were small dairy and cider rooms each side of the stair. The E kitchen range had two beams and another over the W fireplace.

Reasons for Listing

Included for its special architectural interest as a well-preserved C17 gentry house.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29485902

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

• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)
• 
  Lancashire: Manchester and the South-East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of Historic Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Kent: North East and East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  Somerset: North and Bristol: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)