Himley Hall

HIMLEY C.P. DUDLEY ROAD (north) SO 89 SE 5/59 Himley Hall 16.6.53 II* Country house. Early C18, enlarged 1824-7 by William Atkinson. Ashlar; hipped slate roofs, rendered stacks. Principal range aligned north-south; Atkinson added flanking wings on an east-west alignment, attached to the main house by short links; the resulting structure encloses 3 sides of an eastern entrance courtyard. West front. Early C18 central block: 3 storeys with balustraded parapet and giant pilasters at the corners and to each side of a central pedimented projection; 2:3:2 bays, glazing bar sashes with aprons, bracketed sills, and raised architraves and keystones. Flanking 2-storey, 3-bay links, and single-bay wing ends framed by paired Doric pilasters; glazing bar sashes with bracketed sills and raised architraves; eaves cornice and plain parapets. South front. 2 storeys with eaves cornice and plain parapet; 9 bays defined by giant Doric pilasters, central 3-bay Ionic portico with unfluted columns, glazing bar sashes with bracketed sills and raised architraves. East front. Deeply recessed 3-storey central block with giant corner pilasters, eaves cornice and balustraded parapet. Boldly projecting 2-storey flanking wings with plain parapets stepped up in the centre. 5:7:5 windows, glazing bar sashes with raised architraves and bracketed sills, second floor windows have a sill band. Central C19 eight-panel door with rectangular overlight and pedimented architrave with flanking columns. Interior. Entrance Hall. Early C18 fireplace with eared wooden surround. Central boxed beam on paired Ionic pilasters. Plaster cornice with egg and dart mouldings and dentils. Early C18 dog-leg staircase immediately north of entrance hall, with closed string, turned balusters, ramped handrail and dado with bolection moulded panels. Large room to west of entrance hall has pilasters with acanthus leaf and palmette capitals and arabesque frieze. On the first floor are several bedrooms with large painted wooden wall panels and egg and dart and dentilled cornice; early C18 fireplace one with bolection moulded surround. The other has an egg and dart moulded surround, console brackets and an overmantle with volutes. Early C19 fireplace with reeded surround and corner blocks with roundels. In the south wing at ground floor level is a room with oak wall panelling approximately 6 feet in height incorporating an oak fireplace surround flanked by 2 pairs of Ionic columns with console brackets above each supporting a bold cornice. 6-panel doors with egg and dart moulded panels, and overmantel with egg and dart moulded cornice. Charles Cope Tubshaw is recorded as having made chimney pieces for Himley Hall. Colvin, p.838; B.o.E. p. 147.

Listing NGR: SO8882491561