Kentchurch Court

Kentchurch Court is a country house with origins as a castle, dating back to the 14th century. A tower and gateway survive from this earlier structure, while the main body of the house was largely rebuilt in the late 18th and early 19th centuries (between 1795 and 1807) by the architect John Nash for the Scudamore family. Later alterations occurred in the 20th century. The house is constructed from sandstone rubble, with sandstone ashlar facing the central part of the front, and roofs covered with stone slate and Welsh slate, largely concealed behind crenellated parapets.

The building has an irregular plan, oriented generally north-east to south-west, with an early tower projecting at the north-east corner. A section of the front juts out towards the south-east, where the main entrance is located. The chimneys are varied, being rectangular or grouped in polygonal forms. The house is two or three stories high.

The south-east front is characterized by a left-hand two-bay, two-story block with a hipped roof and glazing bar sash windows. To the right of this is a seven-bay two-story block with similar sash windows, the central three bays projecting slightly and topped by a crenellated parapet. The facade is asymmetrical, emphasized by a two-story porch with a crenellated parapet above a corbel table. The porch has a tall Tudor arched entrance surround, incorporating a secondary arch and paired glazed doors. A recessed single bay with triple rounded arches on three floors is located further to the right. A projecting wing is situated to the right, featuring three square-headed mullioned windows with decorative glazing bars on the ground floor, and a single, similar two-light window above. The south-east end of this wing has a Perpendicular style oriel window on the first floor, and a Tudor arched door surround with a fanlight and glazed double doors.

On the north-east side, a tower likely originally stood free-standing, projecting slightly at the far right end. The tower comprises three stages, with a chimney breast rising from the second stage to the right of a garderobe on corbels. A very tall window of around 1800, designed in Gothick Perpendicular style with a slightly gabled crenellated parapet, is present. A block to the left exhibits two windows on the first floor and a doorway below, all crafted in a similar “Perpendicular” style.

The interior of the tower includes a room with mid-17th century panelling and a 16th century fireplace featuring moulded jambs and a square head. Within the main house, several pieces of fine late 17th century woodwork have been incorporated, originating from Holme Lacy and attributed to Grinling Gibbons. These include garlands depicting birds, fruit, vegetables, and fish, taken from overmantels and a section from a pediment. A series of Swiss stained glass panels dating from 1521, along with four 16th century roundels displaying shields of arms, were re-set within a window dating to around 1800 – the window actually illuminates a landing above the first flight of stairs. Other rooms contain late 18th or early 19th century fireplaces, mahogany doors, and dado rails.