Old Palace Croydon: great chamber and undercroft range

Old Palace Croydon: Great Chamber and Undercroft Range

This is a great chamber built for the archiepiscopal palace, constructed above an undercroft that retains some fabric from the 12th century but principally dates to the 14th century. The earliest phase was built in the second quarter of the 14th century under Archbishop Stratford. The building was then remodelled and completed around 1400 under Archbishop Arundel. Substantial work was carried out from the 1660s under Archbishop Juxon, during which the fenestration was altered and high-level rebuilding in brick was undertaken. Restoration work principally dates to the early 1900s.

The range is constructed principally of flint rubble and brick with stone dressings and quoins, partially rendered.

The range consists of a three-bay chamber aligned with the great hall, set above an undercroft. The great chamber, or 'guard room', is reached from ground-floor level stairs to the east and adjoins Morton's apartments of the 1490s to the west. It forms the central spine between the north and south courts, linked to the chapel through the west range and at undercroft level to the eastern range of the north court.

The north elevation is of flint rubble with later brick patching and inserted and blocked openings to the undercroft level, with rendering above. The height of the range in its earliest form when built between 1331 and 1355 can be determined from a brick line roughly half the height of the chamber window, which would have coincided with second-floor level in the block built under Morton to the west, suggesting that the predecessor inner chamber was of similar height to the new chamber. A distinct full-height break in the fabric between the guard chamber range and the later apartments of the 1490s is marked by stone quoins at the west end. The principal feature is a large twelve-light casement window inserted after 1660, with chamfered mullions and transoms and leaded lights, set on a chamfered brick cill. The western bay has a narrow external stack in stock brick and, at the level of the first-floor fireplace, a shallow pentice with a pantiled roof. There is an inserted doorway and a window opening to the undercroft. An internal stack is positioned at the angle of the chamber and west range, with a square brick base and tall red brick shaft with tall pots.

Forming the north range of the south court, the south elevation is dominated by the south-facing oriel window to the great chamber, which originally overlooked the gardens. This elevation is principally in red, brown and buff brick in English bond, with some flint, and features a buttress with stone dressings. The oriel window at first-floor level is in stone, heavily restored in 1910, above a canted flint, brick and stone base with flint rubble and stone above. In two tiers of four lights, it has moulded stone mullions and transoms with moulded spandrels to each light. At ground-floor level, a pair of openings into the undercroft have chamfered brick reveals and pointed arched brick heads. At first-floor level to the east is a tall, timber mullion and transom window with rectangular leaded lights beneath a segmental brick arch, also lighting the great chamber.

The undercroft is formed of two mid-14th century chambers with walls in ashlar and stone rubble, mostly exposed. The intervening wall incorporates reused fragments of worked stone in a chevron pattern typical of the 12th century. The chambers are linked by a pointed arched stone doorway with a chamfered doorcase. This opening is marked by a massive spine beam in the eastern room, roughly square in section, supported on bulky arch-braced Samson posts on later masonry piers. The diagonal alignment of the spine beam appears to be positioned to accommodate the large northern hearth, which survived complete until at least 1880. The main beam is partially chamfered with simple stepped stops, creating an arched profile above the central post which has stepped chamfers at the angles. This is of higher quality than the remainder of the props, except for that against the hearth to the north wall, which is contemporary with it. Some braces are also chamfered, indicating they are contemporary. The rough-hewn wall posts which are set forward from the outer stone walls are later additions; the associated wall plates and transverse ceiling joists, some with chamfers, are all exposed. Early exposed ceiling joists have been reused in the structure, one giving a felling date of 1134 to 1174, which may indicate the approximate date of the predecessor structure. The western bay has a reused spine beam which, like the outer props for the joist ends in the adjacent room, belongs to a secondary phase. The end wall in the west bay is thinner than the other perimeter walls because this was originally built as an internal wall connecting to the earlier inner chamber, which survived until the work of the 1490s.

The great chamber is entered from the eastern end by the open-well stair, part of the eastern range of the south court. The chamber is of three bays defined by a four-centre arched roof, the principals supported on large, carved stone corbels in the form of angels, four bearing shields depicting the arms of Archbishop Arundel. The timber roof is constructed with closely-spaced square oak rafters, which are tied with collars, under which are struts forming four-centre arches. There were no purlins in this roof, consistent with its probable construction around 1400. All of the roof joinery is of the same massive construction and is carefully jointed and pegged. The roof was probably originally open, but lathe and plaster vault has been applied to the soffits of the arches, with roll moulded oak braces exposed. The internal walls of the guard chamber are principally of brick, now painted, with a moulded timber wall plate to the longitudinal walls. The embrasure of the oriel window, beneath a shallow rear arch, has stone quoins and hollow chamfered stone arched lights with moulded spandrels, mullions and transoms. The armorial glass is a later 20th century replacement for bomb-damaged windows. The glazing panels feature the arms of former archbishops. The adjacent window has timber ovolo moulded mullions and transoms, with a small central opening light, and is set in a reveal with plain panelled linings.

Central to the north wall is a pedimented timber chimneypiece with a damaged bolection moulded fire surround, and above, an overmantel containing a raised and fielded panel, beneath an open segmental pediment with a pronounced oversailing cornice. Adjacent to this is a further, timber, ovolo moulded mullion and transom window in a painted brick reveal, with a plain panelled lining below the window. At the north-east corner of the room is a raised panel in a rectangular architrave, added after 1887 by the school.