Regency Household: Gate Lodge

By | |



GATE LODGE DESIGNED FOR HENRY HORDERN ESQ DEMSTALL HALL STAFFORDSHIRE DESIGN No 6 PERSPECTIVE VIEW TWO PLANS PLATE VII TWO ELEVATIONS PLATE VIII SIMILARLY to the foregoing this Design belongs to a class where the pencil has as much to do as the compasses and where effect is sought to be produced rather by significancy of outline and relief in the masses than by beauties derived from established rule With very little that amounts to positive decoration or appears in any degree to exceed what utility demands a building of this kind may nevertheless be rendered a highly pleasing addition to the surrounding scenery provided it be conspicuously yet not ostentatiously placed and that the immediate landscape be of a quiet humble kind It should be recollected also that in structures where the design materials and workmanship are all of a homely species and consequently little other than picturesque beauty is to be elicited too much must not at first be expected from the architect's work He does little more than furnish the draught of the subject it remains for time to finish up the colouring and to mellow the picture Some allowance must therefore be made for the crudity and harshness which before this last mentioned operation shall have taken place will inevitably more or less offend the eye Still because wea ther stains and other causes of picturesque tinting will render a mere brick wall so far a pleasing object to a painter's eye it does not follow that merit of design is absolutely a matter of indifference and that accident may be depended upon altogether In the present design although the dwelling itself is tolerably roomy its author cannot be accused of extravagance in ornament the whole being sufficiently economic although by no means partaking of stingy penuriousness The form of the roof alone which is easy yet bold and whose different parts are united into a common apex sur mounted by a group of chimney shafts constitute the leading feature
After this the gables partly faced with plain timbering and one of them sparingly embellished with rustic tracery beneath its verge boards are made to contribute towards picturesque effect and architec tural character With this view their outlines have been varied the truncated shape being made to contrast with the triangular The extension of the gables too beyond the walls their extremities being brought to rest upon simple pillars adds considerably to vigorous expression and relief in consequence of the deep shadows thus produced while this projection being continuous yet greater in some parts than in others the external walls are protected from the weather Neither is the sheltered space thus formed and which also serves to keep the foundations dry obtained by the abridgment of internal convenience the windows on the ground floor being placed so low that the light is not obstructed by the overhanging roof while those above are either placed in the gables or in the roof itself This design has been executed with some variations under the archi tect's directions for HENRY HORDERN Esq at the approach to Demstall Hall from the Stafford Road The walls are of brick covered with stucco and the roof of thatch It was built by contract for 140 but in consequence of the workmen having accidently set fire to the building before it was completed Mr Hordern made a present to the contractor of 50 so that the total cost of the Lodge exclusive however of the gates bricks and thatch was when entirely finished about 250 The greater part of Demstall Hall which was a structure surrounded by a moat has been rebuilt and the whole materially altered and improved by the present proprietor Among the parts preserved is the ancient tower or keep and the edifice as now restored exhibits the character of an ancient manorial residence of the time of Elizabeth The interior presents many striking parts some of which together with details of the finishings will be given in the Supplementary Volume mentioned in the Introduction Estimated cost in brick and stucco 440 3 6 The chamber floor has been omitted in the Lodge erected by Mr HORDERN from this Design

The design and description appeared in Domestic Architecture: Being a Series of Designs for Mansions, Villas, Rectory Houses, Parsonage Houses, Bailiffs’ Lodge, Gardener’s Lodge, Game-keeper’s Lodge, Park Gate Lodges, Etc. in the Grecian, Italian, and Old English Styles of Architecture. With Observations on the Appropriate Choice of Site; the Whole Designed with Strict Reference to the Practicability of Erection, and with Due Attention to the Important Consideration of Uniting Elegance, Convenience and Domestic Comfort with Economy … With Accurate Estimates Appended to Each Design (1833).

Discover more from Regency Reader

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.