General Wade'S House

This is a three-story house with cellars and an attic, dating from approximately 1720. An early 19th-century shopfront was inserted, and the building was restored in 1976 by David Brain and Derek Stollar. The house is constructed of Bath limestone ashlar with a hidden roof. It is built on a single depth, with windows only on the south facade, and is situated back-to-back with No. 15 Cheap Street.

The ground floor now features a Regency-style shopfront, largely dating from the 1820s to 1830s. A panelled house door is located to the left of the shopfront, which is framed by pilasters under a continuous fascia. A giant fluted Ionic order extends through the first and second floors, supporting an entablature with a pulvinated frieze and a modillion cornice. The windows are late 18th-century sash windows, with nine/twelve panes on the first floor, six/nine on the second floor, and six/six in the attic. Some first and second-floor window sills have been lowered, and the windows are set within bolection-moulded architraves with floral garlands suspended at the second-floor level. The attic is characterized by a panelled pilaster cornice and a parapet surmounted by three vases. Ashlar end stacks with pots are also present.

According to previous reports, the interior contains some simple panelling on an upper storey, but little remains of original features after the recent conversion of the lower floors into a shop for the National Trust.

Historically, the house has been incorrectly associated with General (later Field-Marshal) George Wade, though recent research indicates this connection is inaccurate. It was previously wrongly attributed to Lord Burlington and Colen Campbell. The building represents a stylistically transitional local Baroque style with elements of classical architecture, marking the first appearance of the Palladian giant order in Bath. In the 19th century, it operated as the ‘Repository of works for Industry’ and later housed the Bible Society’s Depot. It is currently used as a National Trust shop. The building is a notable early Georgian townhouse and an outstanding example of its type.