Ashdown House

Ashdown House is a country house dating to approximately 1662, likely designed by Captain William Winde for William, 1st Earl of Craven. It is constructed of chalk ashlar with grey Bath stone dressings and stacks, and has a stone slate roof. The design reflects Carolean architecture, incorporating Dutch and French influences. The house has a square, double-depth plan (5x5 bays) and extends over three storeys, with an attic and basement, spanning a 5-window range.

The east front features stone steps with mid-20th century iron railings leading to a central 6-panelled door, framed by an eared architrave. Above the door is a balustraded apron supported by brackets, beneath a first-floor window, surmounted by a pediment on scrolled brackets. The windows are predominantly 6-light mullioned and transomed on the ground and first floors, with similar 4-light windows above. All windows contain 20th-century plate glass. A Bath stone base is visible, along with raised stone quoins, a moulded string at floor level, and a bold modillioned cornice. Pedimented dormers are present on both east and west sides. The roof has a square, flat top surrounded by balustrading, and a central octagonal lantern – illuminating the central staircase – with a domed roof and a large golden ball finial. The roof itself is hipped, with end stacks.

The west elevation is similar to the east, but the doorway is approached by steps with an original stone balustrade and ball finials to the newels.

The interior retains much of its original character. Numerous fireplaces were installed around 1960, with the exception of the original fireplace in the second-floor front left room. All rooms feature original shuttering with panelled reveals, plaster cornices, and original doors. A floor was laid in the entrance hall circa 1960. The open-well staircase has a closed string and moulded balusters, extending to the second floor, with a panelled dado and bolection-moulded panels to the ceiling. A shouldered architrave frames the rear doorway, incorporating carved consoles supporting a scrolled pediment and a central bust. A semi-circular arch with moulded imposts, a pulvinated frieze, and a moulded cornice is also present. Bolection-moulded panelling is found in the front left room. The rear left room features an elaborate acanthus leaf cornice, and an original plaster ceiling with a central wreath of leaf coving.