Hawkstone Hall

Hawkstone Hall is a country house, now used as a pastoral and study centre, with a complex architectural history spanning over two centuries. Built around 1700, it was altered between 1719 and 1725 for Richard Hill, then remodelled and enlarged around 1750 for Sir Rowland Hill. Further alterations and enlargement took place in 1832–34 by Lewis Wyatt for Sir Rowland Hill, with minor alterations including the reduction of the wings soon after 1900 for Lord Marchamley. A chapel was added in 1934 by G.B. Cox of Birmingham.

The house is constructed of red brick with painted sandstone dressings and has hipped slate roofs. It comprises a central nine-bay block with extruded corner towers, flanked by three-bay quadrant link walls connecting to projecting five-bay wings that form an entrance courtyard to the west. Service blocks lie to the north-east and the chapel adjoins to the south-east. The central block has two storeys and an attic over a basement, while the wings are two storeys.

West (Entrance) Front

The central block features a chamfered-rusticated plinth, chamfered quoins to the end bays, a plat band between ground and first-floor windows, an enriched modillion cornice, and a dentil cornice to the attic that continues across the end bays as a band, topped by a parapet with a moulded cornice. Each corner tower has a moulded dentil eaves cornice and a pyramidal cap with an urn finial. Six brick stacks are each decorated with a stone frieze and moulded cornice. The fenestration follows a 1:2:3:2:1 bay rhythm, with the centre and end bays projecting. Windows are glazing bar sashes with moulded cills, moulded lugged architraves, and raised triple keystones. Basement windows, some painted, have chamfered-rusticated voussoirs. The end bays feature triangular-pedimented attic windows.

The projecting central frontispiece is a tetrastyle Corinthian portico with cable-fluted three-quarter columns, an entablature with modillion cornice, plain dies to the attic, and a triangular pediment breaking forward over the dies, with acroteria at the feet and apex topped by urn finials. A carved coat of arms sits in the tympanum, flanked by swags. The central attic window is surmounted by crossed palms with flanking carved drops. A pair of early 20th-century half-glazed doors with half-H panels sits within a doorcase dating from around 1900, consisting of a moulded architrave, raised triple keystone with monogram, and an open and broken triangular pediment containing a shield, flanking husk drops and palm fronds, and a half-H panel with guttae in the tympanum. Husk drops appear between the doorcase and inner columns. Seven stone steps lead up to the entrance, flanked by a pair of sphinxes. Lead downpipes are decorated with foliage ornament where they pass through the cornice, with simple rainwater heads. The returns of the corner towers have blind round-arched attic panels.

The flanking quadrant walls were raised in 1832–34. Each has three bays with a stone plinth, plat band, influted Doric pilaster strips supporting sections of triglyph frieze, a moulded cornice, and a parapet with dies and moulded coping. Each features a central first-floor round-arched niche with a pilastered surround and flanking lugged square panels. Ground-floor windows are glazing bar sashes with moulded cills and gauged-brick heads with raised triple keystones.

The wings originally had a symmetrical design but their end bays were demolished around 1900 and apses rebuilt. Each has 2:3 bays (originally more) with a moulded plinth, plat band, unfluted Doric pilaster strips supporting sections of triglyph frieze, a moulded cornice, and a parapet with dies and moulded coping. Windows are glazing bar sashes with moulded cills and gauged heads with raised triple keystones. Doorways on the second bays from the west feature three stone steps leading to pairs of doors with five raised and fielded panels, moulded lugged architraves, raised faceted keystones, and doorcases consisting of panelled pilaster strips, large console brackets, and segmental pediments. Lead downpipes between the first and second bays from the east have moulded semi-circular rainwater heads. The apsidal west ends each have Doric pilaster strips and a full entablature with wreaths. First-floor round-arched windows have moulded architraves, raised triple keystones, and bracketed cills. Central ground-floor glazing bar sashes have moulded cills and gauged heads with raised triple keystones, flanked by lugged square panels. The rear of the right-hand wing also has a doorway and an additional bay to the east. The remaining arched stacks to each wing have been demolished since Oswald's Country Life article of 1958.

East (Garden) Front

The garden front features a central projecting three-bay frontispiece with a giant Doric order. Pilasters support an architrave with buchrania in the frieze, dies to the attic, and a triangular pediment breaking forward over the dies with acroteria at the feet and apex topped by urn finials. A circular window with moulded architrave sits in the tympanum. The ground and first floors have chamfered rustication. The first floor has blind square windows with scrolled keystones, while the ground floor has round-arched windows with grotesque masks in the keystones and impost mouldings with shells beneath. Blind windows appear in the reveals. The ground floor of the flanking bays was extended flush with the frontispiece around 1832–34. Two-storey three-bay end pavilions, also dating from around 1832–34, each have Doric corner pilasters, cornice, and parapet. The central break features a first-floor square panel, with the left-hand pavilion also having a ground-floor round-arched niche and angled corner. The glazed rear of the southern quadrant link has Doric pilasters and entablature.

Chapel and Ancillary Buildings

The chapel, adjoining to the south-east, is built of red brick with grey sandstone dressings in a free Romanesque style. It has a cruciform plan with a tower in the north-east angle and is connected to the house by a short arcaded link. Mid-20th-century additions in a neo-Georgian style lie to the north-east of the house, replacing Lewis Wyatt's 1832–34 service wing. A small octagonal brick building to the north may formerly have been a dairy.

Interior

The interior contains rooms and fittings from the major building periods at Hawkstone.

The entrance hall, dating from around 1900, is in an early 18th-century style. A screen at the entrance features unfluted Doric columns and balustrades flanking steps. Lugged panels are used throughout, with a wooden fireplace and overmantel in a neo-Palladian style.

The right-hand ground-floor front room, also from around 1900, is in an early 18th-century style with Ionic screens, lugged panels, and a plaster ceiling. The chimneypiece, dating from 1958, has a bolection-moulded surround, Ionic pilasters, an open segmental pediment, and carved drops.

The staircase hall contains an early 18th-century three-light rectangular-well cantilevered staircase with landings. It has an open string with carved brackets and tread ends, barleysugar balusters (two per tread), four balusters grouped to form newels, and a ramped moulded handrail. Raised and fielded dado panelling lines the walls. A reset 18th-century doorcase to the second landing has a lugged architrave and open segmental pediment. The coved ceiling features around 1900 neo-Caroline plasterwork and a central oval toplight.

The saloon, dating from around 1740, is richly decorated with lugged plaster wall panels and overdoors, some containing paintings including a large painting of the siege of Namur. Arched windows have panelled reveals and surrounds with egg and dart enrichment, rocaille crestings, and drops. Brackets between windows carry busts. Four side doorways have lugged architraves and bracketed cornices, while an end doorcase has a lugged architrave and bracketed triangular pediment. A rich modillion cornice and frieze feature relief heads of Roman emperors. The cove contains grisaille paintings against a gold leaf ground. The central three-part ceiling has cornucopia surrounds, putti end panels, and a central circular panel. A marble chimneypiece consists of bracketed supports with putti, a heavy cornice, and a wooden overmantel with term supports, a broken triangular pediment with bust, and a central panel with carved scrolled surround and painting.

The present library contains a late 18th-century marble fireplace. A ground-floor room to the south-east has a plaster ceiling and neo-Rococo fireplace surround, probably by Lewis Wyatt. The drawing room to the south-east, dating from 1832–34 by Lewis Wyatt, is in a Louis XIV style with rich plasterwork including wall panels and ceiling with cartouches and panels of various shapes. Doorcases have lugged architraves and cornices, with a large doorcase featuring a triangular pediment on heavy consoles. Pelmets are present throughout.

The southern quadrant link has a coved ceiling with circular panels at each end and a circular staircase to the first floor of the south-west wing, consisting of four curved lower steps and two sweeping upper flights with a cast-iron balustrade.

The former library in the first floor of the south-west wing, dating from around 1900, features fluted Corinthian pilasters and a ceiling with Rococo decoration in the coves and a central panel with guilloche-type ornament. A marble fireplace has a pedimented wooden overmantel, possibly reset from around 1700. A three-bay antal screen is present. A marble-clad apse consists of Ionic columns in antis with floral-carved spiral banding, a banded dome, and arched reveals to the windows. The right-hand wing formerly contained the chapel, which was replaced on the ground floor with a swimming pool after the around 1900 alterations.

Historical Context

For more detailed accounts of the complex architectural history of the house, see the articles by Oswald and Gomme. Hawkstone Hall was the family home of the Hill family. The house stands within an important and spectacular late 18th-century park. Much of the park, which includes a number of ornamental buildings and other structures, lies in the adjoining parish (see under Weston-under-Redcastle C.P.).