The Fleece Public House

The Fleece Public House, West Street, Coggeshall

A house now in use as a public house, of 15th-century and early 17th-century origin, with alterations made in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. The building is timber-framed and plastered, roofed with handmade red plain tiles.

The structure comprises a 4-bay main range facing north, with an external stack to the rear of the left bay, built in the early 17th century. To its right stands a 15th-century 2-bay crosswing, which survives from a former hall house that occupied the site of the present main range. A 17th-century full-length 2-storey lean-to extends to the rear of both the main range and crosswing. Later additions include an 18th-century 2-storey extension to the rear of the left end, roofed as a parallel range; a 20th-century single-storey wing to its rear; an early 19th-century single-storey lean-to extension to the right, roofed with red clay pantiles; an early 19th-century single-storey wing to the rear of the crosswing, extended further to the right in the 20th century. The building is two storeys throughout.

The north-facing front features a full-length jetty. Below this is one 18th-century square bay with casements and a pulvinated frieze, with brickwork beneath; the casements have been altered. Two early 19th-century splayed bays contain sash windows of 4-20-20-4 and 4-20-4 lights respectively, separated by five simple pilasters, with a continuous plain fascia and shallow moulded canopy. On the first floor are three early 19th-century tripartite sashes of 4-12-4 lights. Much of the glazing is crown glass. A mid-18th-century half-glazed door with 9 lights includes 8 of original bullseye glass; one light is inscribed 'G. 1752'. This door has been relocated from an internal position. Double vehicle doors provide passage through to the left of the crosswing.

Pargetting on the first floor includes a 17th or 18th-century vine-leaf frieze with roll-moulding below the eaves. Panels contain modern designs or restored designs, including a date of 1505 which has no historical basis and appears to derive from Paycockes, the adjacent listed building. A scrolled wrought iron bracket supports the inn sign.

Within the vehicle entry passage, at the rear right, is a mid-18th-century window of 12 fixed lights, one of which is original bullseye glass. The left elevation of the rear left wing contains one mid-18th-century 12-light sash, reset, and one early 19th-century 16-light sash. To the rear of the rear lean-to is an early 19th-century 10+10-light sash.

Internally, the upper right wall of the crosswing exposes timber framing with wide curved tension bracing trenched into the studs. The walls of the crosswing were raised approximately one metre during the early 17th-century rebuild, with the floor and jetty rebuilt at this time. The framing includes chamfered transverse and axial beams with lamb's tongue stops. The main range is built with jowled posts; the front left post bears a carved and ovolo-moulded step supporting the girt. It has chamfered binding and bridging beams with lamb's tongue stops, with joists plastered to the soffits. A ground-floor studded partition has been removed. The upper storey is of unusual height and contains similar beams and joists. In its front wall is one blocked original window in the main range with one ovolo mullion, the saddle bars missing, and a similar inserted window in the crosswing. Each floor contains an original wood-burning hearth with ovolo-moulded jambs, depressed arch and rear splays.

The building is listed at Grade II* for its exceptionally complete details of the early 17th-century phase and its later exterior features.