Old Palace Croydon: west range of the south court

Old Palace Croydon: West Range of the South Court

This range of private apartments was built around 1400 under Archbishop Arundel, incorporating fragmentary remains of 12th-century walling. It was extensively remodelled in the 1490s under Morton and then again after 1660 by Juxon. The building was heavily altered during industrial use from the 1780s onwards, and was subsequently remodelled and restored in the 20th century by the school.

The structure combines fragments of early stone and rubble walling with red brick from the 1490s and later 17th-century sections, supplemented by 20th-century patching. Internal timber-framing survives in sections, likely dating to the 1490s remodelling.

The plan comprises a covered passage and small room to the north-west, latterly used as an office. Distinct from the rest of the range is a store at the south-east corner, created to accommodate machinery associated with the former industrial use. To the south-west are the remnants of a spiral staircase, which has a blocked door to the passage and can only be accessed from the western room of the south range.

The covered passage, restored in the 1960s, has brick flanks and is ceiled with massive beams featuring void mortices for former joists. Above it, the west elevation has been significantly rebuilt in 1965, removing a previous jettied upper floor. The west-facing wall to the north of the passage, now enclosed within a stairwell block added in 1987, connects to the west range and contains a restored window dating to around 1400. This features a heavily weathered stone architrave and reset mullion, with brick cheeks and a pointed-arched head to a lower light, set in a wall of early narrow bricks and flint rubble with tile fragments above. A stack base appears to cross behind it.

The east elevation is in soft red-brown brick with later patching, on two storeys with inserted attic dormers. Above the passage is a two-light mullion window with four-centre arched heads and casements with diamond leaded glazing, set beneath a moulded hood. To the south is a narrow two-light window with 19th-century sashes.

Internally, notable features include the base of a stone newel stair with, above it, a blocked square-headed two-light window with chamfered architrave, its blocked openings buried within later fabric and 20th-century refacing. At first floor, the passage curvature to the north of the gallery reflects the newel stair form below, and an apparent blocked opening remains visible to the east. The passage is lined in 20th-century tongue-and-groove dado panelling. The adjacent room to the east has boxed-in transverse beams, with roof structure dating entirely to the 19th century. The ceiling above the ground-floor room at the north-west corner retains the only early timber in the range, a bridging joist dendrochronologically dated to 1485-1521.

A connecting glazed stair block was added to the west of the range in 1987 as part of the enlargement of the southern school buildings. This element has been specifically excluded from the listing.