Bretby Hall

Bretby Hall is a country house, now functioning as a hospital. It comprises an early 17th-century north-west range that was extensively restored in the 19th century, combined with major reconstruction carried out between 1813 and 1815. James Wyatt undertook work at Bretby before 1813, but the extensive rebuilding in castellated Gothic Revival style was designed by Sir Jeffery Wyatville for the 5th Earl of Chesterfield.

The building is constructed of coursed squared sandstone and sandstone ashlar with pitted tooling, combined with red brick. Plain tile roofs with various stacks are mostly hidden behind castellated parapets. The structure features a chamfered plinth and moulded cornice, rising to between one and four storeys. It is arranged around a rectangular courtyard in four ranges.

Wyatville designed the south and west fronts. The south front is symmetrical and three storeys tall, organised as 3-1-3 bays and flanked by four-storey circular towers with castellated parapets. An advanced centre bay rises as a square tower above with flanking bays. Circular angle turrets feature four tiers of blind decorative openings. A broad four-centred arched entrance with 20th-century doors is flanked by side lights and a traceried overlight. On either side are three windows with 20th-century glazing; the middle windows on each side have been altered into doorways. Seven glazing bar sashes appear above these, with seven similar but smaller sashes above again. The circular towers contain four tiers of glazing bar sashes, diminishing in size towards the top, with some partly altered in the 20th century. Horizontal hoodmoulds run across the elevation.

The west elevation represents just over half of a symmetrical composition that remained incomplete in 1815. A central tower with polygonal angle turrets features a four-centred archway opening into the courtyard. Above this is a canted oriel and a small glazing bar sash. To the right lie four bays with two tiers of Gothic windows with Y-tracery, the upper ones smaller with margin lights, and moulded hoodmoulds. A taller bay to the right has polygonal angle turrets and three tiers of similar windows. A 20th-century single-storey brick range to the left is not of special interest. To the left again, the three-bay return range of the 17th-century north-west range features an advanced centre bay with a three-light recessed and cavetto-moulded window, flanked by similar two-light windows, with one smaller two-light above.

The north elevation contains nine bays with projecting gabled end bays. It is two storeys with a parapet and displays irregular fenestration of two, three and four-light recessed and chamfered mullioned windows, mostly enlarged in the 19th century. Four-centred arched doorways are present. The last two bays before the projecting end bay show disturbed masonry, possibly indicating an external stack, and a gabled dormer.

The east elevation is three storeys tall, organised as 1-4-1-4-1-4 bays plus the return elevation of the north-west range. It features glazing bar sashes, with the ground floor partly destroyed by 20th-century alterations and additions of no special interest. The single bays are square projecting towers.

Within the courtyard, three sides display glazing bar sashes, extruded angle bays and square projecting tower bays on two sides. The entrance side echoes the outer elevation with a set-back first floor. An extruded angle bay to the left features a Venetian window.

The interior is predominantly Classical in character and reuses late 17th and 18th-century materials. The staircase hall contains Corinthian pilasters and an impressive cantilevered stone staircase with a central flight that divides and returns in two directions. An ornate gilded wrought-iron balustrade with wooden handrail features lower newels modelled as winged cherubs. The ceiling is panelled plaster. The main former reception rooms retain fine mahogany panel doors. The state dining room features a three-bay Corinthian arcade at one end and ornate carved wooden door and window surrounds, probably part of the original late 17th-century decoration. The entrance hall displays thin Gothick decoration and a fine white marble fireplace. The drawing room has an ornate moulded cornice, fine moulded doorcases, shutters and dado rail. A circular music room contains a good-quality inlaid wooden floor, a reflected delicate plaster ceiling, fine plaster door surrounds, curved doors and a carved white marble fireplace. A room to the west, now used as a theatre, has a panelled ceiling, panelled dado rail and shutters. The upper landing features four-centred arches and doorways, some with Gothic overlights. All upper-floor rooms retain their original skirting, coving, doors, door surrounds and marble fireplaces. The north range was originally built as a range of outbuildings at the same time as the earlier house and retains much of its original late 17th-century roof structure.

Nothing now survives of the magnificent country house built for the Second Earl of Chesterfield.