Claremont House

TQ 16SW 5/l16

BOROUGH OF ELMBRIDGE, Esher, CLAREMONT PARK Claremont House

(Formerly listed as Claremont)

14.8.53

GV I

Country house, now the Claremont-Fancourt school. 1770 by Henry Holland, Lancelot (Capability) Brown and John Soane for Lord Clive. Yellow brick, stone plinth and dressings with hipped slate roofs. End stacks. 2 storeys over basement with attic under flat roofed dormers. Rectangular, 9 bays by 7 around central,top-lit staircase. Main front: 9 bays with ashlar string course over basement, modillion cornice with stone balustrade to roof. Glazing bar sash windows in stone surrounds projecting hoods and cills on scroll brackets to first floor, alternating triangular and segmental pediments over ground floor windows, all with balconies below. Central doorcase under segmental pediment, double(half-glazed) doors with oval tracery to transome light above. Centre three bays behind giant portico of 4 Corinthian columns on plinth with arched passage under, approached up a flight of 22 steps. Dentilled pediment with coat of arms in tympaneum and paterae in freize. Return fronts: 7 bays with central 3 bay brick dormers to roof on stone brackets across centre three windows of first floor, central window in pedimented surround. Ground floor centre window in balconied, half Ionic columned surround with segmental pediment over. Rear: 4 fluted giant pilasters to centre 3 bays, triangular pediment above. Rusticated triple arched terrace to centre of ground floor with curved flights of stairs to ends and wrought iron balustrade. Interior: Entrance Hall- rectangular with inset oval ceiling and triglyph freize on 8 red scagliola Doric columns, oval patterned stone floor. Square, oblong and oval relief panels over doors and niches, oval relief of the "Forge of Vulcan" in the marble fire- place surround. Anthemion freize to main, pedimented, doorcase. Staircase hall- square with double arched screen to left. 2 storys, arched niches to first floor. 6 panelled doors in moulded surrounds, geometric freize to first floor. Drawing room- Gilt palmette door surrounds to panelled doors, niches on left hand wall. Dado panelling with white and green stone fireplace, Ionic ¾ columns flanking with freize over. The White Room- Dado panelling, plasterwork panels to walls and delicate low relief ceiling plasterwork with central rose and garlanded urns. The Gold Room (Library)- Gilt anthemion freize to bookcases and ceiling. Fine scroll plasterwork in panelled ceiling, white marble fireplace. Blue Room- coved ceiling with fan and foliage plasterwork, carved and moulded door surrour Assembly Room (The Great Drawing Room):Deep coved ceiling with scroll freize, divided into three with central oval, fielded panels to walls. Original fireplace with two end caryatids. PEVSNER: BUILDINGS OF ENGLAND, SURREY (1971) ppl6O-1. SUMMERSON. J. :ARCHITIIITURE IN BRITAIN 1530-1830. p457. DOWNES J.K. : ENGLISH BAROQUE ARCHITECTURE (1966) p84.

Listing NGR: TQ1342863328