Curtain Walls, Snape, Wadhurst

Garden walls, in the form of defensive curtain walls, to the east and south of Snape and its former stable block (now the Clock House, unlisted). Built at some time between 1893 and 1897, with an additional section at the south-east end of the Clock House garden built some time after 1908 and probably before 1913. The main part of the walling, and probably the later section, was designed by RP Whellock, and erected for George (later Sir George) Barham.

MATERIALS: local sandstone rubblestone, squared and coursed.

PLAN: the northern section, enclosing the terraced gardens to the east of the house, forms a right angle, with a large semi-circular bastion to the north-eastern corner. A wall belonging to the same phase, running in a north-west/south-east direction, with a round tower at the south-east end, separates the terraced gardens and the land to the east from the garden laid out to the south-east of the former stable block. A further stretch of wall encloses the end of the garden to the south-east of the former stable block, with a round tower to the south-west.

DESCRIPTION: part of the walling is crenellated, the merlons having capping, triangular in section. The earlier, northern, section includes a wall running to the north of the house, terminated to the west by a pier of rock-faced blocks with drafted margins, and to the east, where the ground falls away to north and east, by the large bastion. The bastion is crenellated. The revetment wall continues southwards, broken by a flight of steps leading downwards from the terraced lawns to an area now occupied by a swimming pool (the swimming pool and associated walling linking the pool area with the curtain wall are excluded from the listing). This wall meets the wall running along the north-east side of the garden to the south-east of the stable block, which is crenellated. In this wall, to the south-east of the junction, is an arched opening with wide double gates with applied fillets, strap hinges and a wooden latch; there is a raised crenellated section above the gateway, with a square pier to either end. The battlements have been removed from the later section of wall enclosing the south-east end of the garden to the rear of the former stable block, and from the north-eastern tower. This tower has an entrance to the east, in the angle of the walls, with a timber lintel; there is evidence of some rebuilding above this, and it is possible the entrance may have been moved. The structure also has a row of small openings to the east. The south-western bastion, which retains its battlements, is open to the north-west, and because of the higher ground-level to the south-west, is a lower structure.