The Rochester Castle Public House

The Rochester Castle Public House stands on Stoke Newington High Street. It was built in 1892-93 by the architectural firm of Crickmay and Sons. The building is three storeys tall with an attic. The ground floor features a projecting central bay framed by red granite Doric columns; the glazing is modern. Red granite pilasters flank the central bay. Renewed doors are set on either side, with mosaic thresholds displaying the pub's name. The interior walls of the entrances are decorated with decorative moulded tiles, those on the south wall featuring a panel depicting a grape-cutting maiden. A grey granite fascia tops the ground floor, and a projecting segmental bay rises to an elaborate stepped gable. Twelve-light mullioned windows are present on the first and second floors, flanked by decorative cartouches at the second floor level. These cartouches depict putti frolicking with garlands and acanthus leaves, with a central cartouche. The side bays are plainer, featuring tall windows to the first floor within moulded, pediment-topped surrounds, and framed windows with aprons to the second floor. The windows are of plate glass with moulded mullions to the upper lights. The roof is a Mansard style with pediment-topped dormers.

The interior has lost its original partitions, and the bar counter has been repositioned against the north flank wall. A compartmented ceiling is supported by slender cast iron columns. Glazed tiling with arabesque-enriched pilasters and mirrors remains on the front part of the side walls. Figurative panels depicting the Seasons are still in place along the north wall, set within borders. A top-lit extension to the rear is in a Jacobethan style, with a frieze beneath a renewed lantern.

This pub is a characteristic and richly decorated example from the late 19th century “Gin Palace” era of pub design, drawing inspiration from the early 17th century. It has been altered considerably, but it remains a good example of the type, notably for its unusual tiled decoration. The architects, Crickmay and Sons, were specialists in pub design. Permission to build the pub for a Mr Heaven was sought from the London County Council in November 1892.