Baylis House Including Forecourt Walls And Pavilions Adjoining To North East

Baylis House, Including Forecourt Walls and Pavilions

A house, forecourt walls, and pavilions, now used as a management centre, dating from circa 1695. The building was possibly designed by Dean Hascard, with substantial alterations and additions made in 1725-6 by Thomas Rowland (north-west wing and some internal alterations), in 1733-5 when the forecourt walls and pavilions are attributed to John James, and further alterations circa 1750 and in the early 19th century. Following a fire in 1954, the 1726 top storey was removed.

The main south-east block is constructed in red brick with a hipped slate roof and is 2 storeys high. The entrance front features gauged brick window heads and a giant order of pilaster strips at the ends and flanking a slightly projecting centre of 3 bays. Above the ground floor windows are sunken semi-circular panels. A plat band runs across the front, supporting a wooden dentil eaves cornice with a central 3-bay triangular pediment and coped parapet. Lead downpipes and 4 ridge stacks, positioned off-centre to left and right, complete the elevation. The front elevation comprises 7 bays with the centre 3 bays narrower than those flanking; glazing bar sashes with small panes are installed throughout, though 2 on the ground floor to the left are sealed and panelled over on the inside. The central entrance features paired half-glazed doors with rectangular overlights. The doorcase consists of brick pilasters with rendered blocked rustication, a blank panel in the architrave above, and console brackets supporting a dentil cornice that breaks forwards at the ends.

The garden front is similar in character but lacks the semi-circular panels above the ground floor windows. Two central half-glazed doors with rectangular overlights and an early 18th-century doorcase of plain architrave and console brackets supporting a triangular pediment provide access here. A Venetian window lighting a staircase is located in a light well to the north-west.

The north-west block is also of red brick with a hipped slate roof, 2 storeys high. The entrance front displays gauged brick window heads, a plat band, moulded brick cornice, coped parapet, and 3 stacks. This block comprises 4 bays with glazing bar sashes with small panes. The garden front has 3 bays with a first floor blind window to the left, whilst the north-west front extends to 6 bays.

The interior is largely of early 18th-century date, though with some later alterations. The entrance hall features a black and white flagged floor and fielded panelling. Doorcases throughout are fitted with lugged architraves, pulvinated friezes, dentil cornices, and panelled reveals. A fireplace with a shouldered architrave and panelled overmantel with dentil cornice occupies the entrance hall, and a large arch to the staircase hall has imposts and a keystone. A dog-leg staircase to the north-west displays a 19th-century wrought iron balustrade and fielded wainscot panelling.

The ground floor front room to the left contains re-ordered fielded panelling and a doorcase with a lugged architrave, pulvinated frieze decorated with bay leaf ornament, and a broken triangular pediment bearing a Cartouche and Godolphin shield in the tympanum. The fireplace in this room features carved shells and foliage with console brackets supporting a carved cornice. The present library contains a 3-bay Ionic colonnade with fluted columns; the soffits of the beams are decorated with quilloche ornament and the room is completed with a rich plaster frieze and cornice. Further panelling and fireplaces are present on both floors.

The forecourt walls and pavilions are attributed to John James and date from 1733-5. Two walls, approximately 2.5 metres high and projecting approximately 40 metres to the north-east of the house, break back with quadrant corners. Blind arcading comprising 6 bays adorns the south-west ends and 3 bays the north-east ends, executed in gauged brick with piers, arches, imposts, and keystones. A 6-panelled door is set in the arch of the north-west wall near the house, with a 20th-century wrought iron gate in the arch of the south-east wall near the house.

Two pavilions, constructed in red and grey brick with stone dressings and pyramidal slate roofs, occupy square plans at the north-east ends of the forecourt walls. Both are 2 storeys high, each featuring 3-bay blind arcading on their inner faces with gauged brick piers, arches, imposts, and keystones. The central arch of the north-west pavilion has been raised at a later date with an arched sash inserted. Each pavilion has a coped clasping buttress on its outer corner, a plat band, stone eaves cornice, and a globe finial to the roof. The south-west pavilion has a later stack to the north-east. Small first floor sashes are set on the inner faces and to the north-east.

The house was built for Dr. Henry Godolphin, Provost of Eton, in 1708. The First Lord Rosslyn, Lord Chancellor from 1793 to 1801, died here in 1805.