Grotto at Base of South Side of Castle Mound is a Grade II listed building in the Wiltshire local planning authority area, England. First listed on 21 October 1974. Grotto.
Grotto at Base of South Side of Castle Mound
- WRENN ID
- standing-facade-holly
- Grade
- II
- Local Planning Authority
- Wiltshire
- Constituency
- East Wiltshire MP: Danny Kruger (RUK)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 21 October 1974
- Type
- Grotto
- Address
- Grotto at Base of South Side of Castle Mound, Marlborough
- OS grid reference
- SU 183 686
- Coordinates
- 51.41633, -1.73693
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The grotto at the base of the south side of Castle Mound, built not long before 1735, is a notable structure located at Marlborough College. Frances, Countess of Hertford, remarked that it is "much prettier than that at Twickenham." The grotto is constructed of flint with a stone band and features a domical vaulted roof and a round-headed niche. It is part of a picturesque garden created by the Countess, who was the daughter-in-law of the 6th Duke, which included a canal and a cascade; the grotto is the only remaining element of this garden.
Local climate
Grotto at Base of South Side of Castle Mound receives an average of 790 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 58% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 51% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 40 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 77% of listed buildings. Of these, 18 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- No related consent applications matched
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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