Numbers 1 To 12 And Attached Railings, Walls And Piers To Number 1

Terrace of 12 houses, now converted to flats at numbers 6, 11 and 12, located on the west side of Wellington Square in Cheltenham. The terrace includes attached walls, railings and piers at the left end.

Built in two phases: numbers 1 to 5 were constructed between 1845 and 1847, and numbers 6 to 12 between 1856 and 1859. The builders were William Williams, Elisha Williams and James Williams. The buildings are part of the Pittville Estate, whose layout was designed by architect John Forbes for Joseph Pitt, though this terrace was erected after Pitt's death. Numbers 1 to 5 were known as Eton Place in 1848. The actor William Charles Macready lived at number 6 from 1860 to 1873.

The terrace exemplifies 'Regency Gothic' architectural detail applied to an overall Classical composition. Construction is of ashlar over brick with slate roofs. The end and two centre houses rise to three storeys, while the remainder are two storeys, all set on basements. Tall left end and party-wall stuccoed chimney stacks, mostly with cornices, rise prominently.

The exterior displays a sophisticated fenestration scheme with 24 first-floor windows, two per house. The end houses feature outer 1/1 sashes flanking canted bays that extend through basement, ground and first floors, also with 1/1 sashes and crenellated parapets. The centre section similarly has two 1/1 sashes between comparable canted bays. The remaining first-floor windows are 2-light designs with mullions and transoms in stepped reveals and hoodmoulds with label stops. Ground-floor windows are 3-light with shield stops to their hoodmoulds. Second-floor windows are predominantly 1/1 sashes; those to the centre pair share a stepped hoodmould and frame a central statue in a niche. Basement windows comprise 1/1 and 2/2 sashes.

Five entrances are distributed along the façade: one to the left, five to the right, five to the left and one to the right. Access is via flights of steps leading to openings with four-centred arches and carved spandrel decoration. End entrance openings have hoodmoulds with shield stops. The two central entrances are separated by a pillar and share a latticework frieze above. The ranges between these central entrances feature off-set buttresses with pinnacles topped by finials and arcaded friezes. Doors are of 4 or 5-panel construction, some with upper panels featuring round arches, four-centred arches or cusped lights. Many are part-glazed with sidelights and overlights containing margin-lights and Gothic glazing bars. The crowning crenellation runs across the inner ranges, while the outer houses display gables over the bays with finials. Central gables rise between two smaller raised gables with shield decoration.

The plan has double depth with side hallways, and three-lower-storey service ranges extend to the rear. The rear elevation retains many original 6/6 and 2/2 horizontal-pane sashes.

The interior is reputed to retain original joinery including panelled shutters and plasterwork.

The subsidiary features consist of a wall extending approximately 2 metres along the left side, followed by a gabled pier with traceried panels. This is succeeded by a 3-metre stretch of alternating spearhead and paired round-arched railings, with a similar end pier. Embellished railings frame the sides of steps throughout the façade. At the central houses, low stucco walls with pierced arcades flank the entrances.

All listed buildings in Wellington Square form a cohesive group arranged around a central grassed area, with this terrace representing a particularly fine example of the estate's architectural character.