Nailsea Court

Nailsea Court is a house built in four distinct periods: the 15th century, 16th century (possibly in two phases), late 17th century or around 1700, and the early 20th century when Arthur Stratton reconstructed the west wing and made other alterations from 1910 onwards.

The building is constructed of rubble with roughcast rendering and limestone dressings. The roofs are pantiled to the east and stone tiled to the west, with raised coped verges and ball finials to the gables. Stone stacks with caps rise throughout. The main range is supplemented by a wing to the northeast and a wing to the southwest, with early 20th-century kitchens and domestic offices ranged along the west elevation.

The house is three storeys high. The south front comprises four bays, all gabled. The second bay from the left features a projecting three-storey gabled porch. The two bays to the right have four-light windows with four-centred heads, moulded mullions and hood moulds; leaded lights feature in most windows at ground and first floor. Similar three-light windows appear in each gable. Lead rainwater heads punctuate the elevation. The bay to the left contains two wooden mullion-and-transom windows at ground floor, two 32-pane sashes of early 18th-century date at first floor in exposed boxes, and a two-light stone casement with ovolo mullion and hood mould. A lintel string runs at ground and first floor levels. The porch itself has a four-centred arched door opening with a studded door featuring raised fillets and strap hinges. A frieze with Greek fret carving and a dentilled cornice adorn the porch. Above is an oriel with a two-light ovolo mullion casement to the front and single lights to each side, followed by a two-light ovolo-moulded casement above and a breather in the gable end.

The east side of the south wing shows three gabled bays. The rightmost bay is set forward slightly and has a diagonal buttress. The left bay contains a four-light window at ground and first floor and a three-light at second floor, with a single round-headed light with hood mould at ground and first floor to the right. The central bay features a pointed arched stone doorway with moulded surround and a studded door with raised fillets and strap hinges; a single light stands to the right, with a four-light window at first floor and three-light at second floor, topped by a trefoil in the gable. The right bay has three-light windows at first and second floor, and a three-light casement with ovolo mullions at ground floor.

The south elevation of the south wing displays two gabled bays to the right of Stratton's work. The rightmost bay is canted through two storeys and contains a five-light ground floor window with transom and single lights to each side; a similar window above lacks the transom. A stone stepped roof surmounts this, followed by a similar three-light window at second floor and a trefoil. The left gable has a four-light window at ground and first floor and a three-light at second floor, with a trefoil above. A re-set bronze sundial dated 1663 inscribed "vivat Carolus Secundus" stands to the left.

The west elevation includes a blocked four-centred arched opening with a two-light ovolo casement inset and a two-light roll-moulded casement at first floor, surmounted by a parapet, coping and small hipped two-light dormer. To the left, the kitchen wings feature a hipped roof over a two-storey block on the right side, with a stone two-light cusped window set into the wall at ground floor, a two-light window above, and a single light to the side. The front gable has a four-light window at ground and first floor, a three-light at second floor, and a two-light window under the eaves to the right. A single-storey block sits in the angle to the left, with two gable ends. The left central gable contains two-light windows with ogee lights, flat head and hood mould at first and second floor. The left gable, set back, has a three-light roll-moulded window at first floor and a three-light window at second floor, with a small addition set in the angle between. An ashlar stack stands to the left, with an external stack at the central gable end.

The east elevation comprises three unevenly spaced gabled bays. The left bay has a four-light window at ground and first floor and a three-light at second floor, with a small oval bull's eye at ground floor right and a single light above. The central bay features a four-centred arched blocked door, with main windows matching those of the left bay. The right bay is similar. At the rear, a gable end to the left has an attic lancet. The inner side of the northeast wing contains a two-storey addition with an eight-pane sash to the outer side. The inner side has two stone cross windows at ground floor with ovolo mullion and transom and relieving arch, and a four-centred arched door between with raised fillets and strap hinges. First floor windows comprise a two-light roll-moulded casement and a two-light wooden casement, with two two-light dormers with hipped roofs above.

The rear of the main range has four bays. The narrow gabled bay to the left contains a door and sidelight with a small opening above; first floor has a three-light window and second floor a two-light. The two central bays have two wooden mullion-and-transom windows at ground floor and two 32-pane sashes in exposed boxes under the eaves (lighting the upper floor of the hall), with two buttresses and a stack to the left. The right bay contains a two-light cellar opening, a five-light window with relieving arch at ground floor, a four-light at first floor and a three-light at second floor, with a straight joint to the left. Attached to the right, the rear of the kitchen wing has a three-light window and three-light casement with ovolo mullions at ground floor, a single light and three-light casement under the eaves, a lead rainwater head dated 1669 (re-set), and a stack.

Internally, the Langford Room in the south wing contains many brought-in features, including panelling from 18 Fore Street, Taunton, an over-mantel from Upper Langford Court, a fine plaster ceiling from Ashley Manor, Bristol, and a carved frieze. Stained glass is incorporated, including a sundial design. A window to the west of the main range contains mediaeval stained glass, including a picture of a swan ringing a bell, matching an example at the Bishop's Palace, Wells. The dining room door, dating to around 1590 and known as the "Nailsea door", features a large arcaded upper panel with elaborate carving on both sides. The hall has a framed ceiling in six bays with chamfered and stopped beams and a stone fireplace. Many other internal features include a late 17th-century staircase with moulded strings, handrail and twisted balusters, stone doorways and fireplaces, and panelling of late 16th-century character.

Nailsea Court was the birthplace in 1551 of Richard Perceval, who is said to have translated captured Spanish documents that gave warning of the preparation of the Armada. In 1698 the Court passed to Major Nathaniel Wade, who is reported to have been involved in the Rye House Plot and who participated in the Monmouth Rebellion.