Ham Court

Ham Court is a late 14th-century gatehouse and part of a curtain wall, originally constructed for Ayrner de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, who received permission to crenellate the site in 1315. The complex was adapted into a dwelling in the 17th century, with a mid-to-late 19th-century extension added later. The building is constructed of coursed limestone rubble, with ashlar detailing, and has stone slate roofs and ashlar chimneys.

The gatehouse, aligned on an east-west axis, is joined by a contemporary lodging bay to the north and a 19th-to-20th century extension in the northwest angle. A short length of curtain wall runs south from the gatehouse, concealing a larger 19th-century extension on the east side. The building now functions as a two-story house with an attic.

The gatehouse features large archways with moulded labels, later infilled with rubble and ashlar in the late 17th century. These infill sections are pierced by stone mullion windows, the first-floor windows dating to the late 17th century and featuring ovolo mouldings. A similar four-light window with a Tudor hoodmould is on the east side of the ground floor, while a matching 3-light window with hollow chamfers is on the west. The west side of the gatehouse projects and has a chamfered plinth, 14th-century set-back buttresses, and a 17th-century gable with a three-light leaded casement. A horizontal slit with sloping ducts is located above the arch on the west side, possibly for drawbridge cables. An octagonal stair turret projecting to the left on the east side has a battlemented parapet, trefoil-headed slit windows, and an octagonal pyramid roof with a weathervane. To the right is a 14th-century bay with a contemporary two-light traceried window to the first floor, featuring arched head, cusped ogee tracery, and hollow mouldings. Below this is a 19th-century three-light stone mullion window and a half-glazed door. Two gabled roof dormers are present, each with a two-light casement.

The curtain wall has a chamfered plinth, wide battlements with slated coping, and two bays of cross slits. The upper right part of the wall was reconstructed in the 19th century. Behind it is a 19th-century extension with a first floor band course, coped gables, and stone mullion windows with Tudor hoodmoulds. The south side has a large canted bay window to the left, and the north side features a porch with a Caernarvon arch doorway. Smaller 19th- and 20th-century lean-to extensions are located at the north end of the house and have tiled roofs.

Inside the gatehouse, the arches are moulded, with the east arch consisting of two orders and the west arch having a single moulded order with rebates for gates. The side walls of the east bay of the gatehouse contain small arched doorways with similar mouldings. The gatehouse also retains a fine two-bay vault with chamfered ribs and carved bosses, along with a stone spiral staircase leading to the attic. The first floor of the 14th-century lodging bay has an original fireplace with moulded stone jambs and a stone hood on moulded brackets, and features heavy stop-chamfered ceiling beams. A 17th-century fireplace is inserted into the first floor of the gatehouse, with a chamfered stone arch.