Lansdown (Terrace) and Attached Area Railings with Wall at Left

LANSDOWN PLACE, CHELTENHAM

A terrace of 15 houses, now containing houses, flats and offices, with attached area railings and wall. Built between 1825 and 1835, the terrace was begun by architect JB Papworth for developer Pearson Thompson and completed by the brothers RW and C Jearrad after they acquired the development in 1830. Building commenced in 1825 with 14 houses completed by 1828, and a further 5 houses likely finished before the Jearrads took over. The Jearrads completed the remaining work with minor alterations to Papworth's original design.

The terrace is constructed in ashlar over brick with slate mansard roofs and brick and stucco party-wall stacks. It comprises three storeys above basements, with attics. The architectural detailing includes a moulded band over the basement, horizontal rustication to the ground floor, and a crowning string, frieze and cornice with low parapet. The main 6-window ranges have breakforwards on their end bays (except for two to the left), and string course, frieze and cornice over the first floor.

The houses are designed in pairs with recessed paired entrances and service ranges to the rear. The five houses to the left have two sets of central entrances followed by an entrance to the right, with stepped breakforwards to their 6-window ranges. The remaining houses follow a more regular paired arrangement. Windows are 6/6 sashes where original, with 3/3 sashes to the attics.

Entrances to the left houses feature paired central doors with roll-edged steps, 4-panel doors, sidelights and overlights with glazing bars within shared porches. These porches have round arches on imposts with tooled heads and keystones, cornices and blocking courses. Entrances to the right houses are similar but positioned behind straight-headed and round-arched loggias. First-floor verandahs display Carron Company double-heart-and-honeysuckle motif ironwork, except those to numbers 19–22 which have bowed fronts, pierced friezes and embellished uprights. Area railings feature embellished X-motif designs.

Interiors retain many original features including window shutters, open-well staircases with alternate embellished and stick balusters with wreathed handrails, service stairs with stick balusters, and embellished plasterwork. A left end wall completes the composition.

This terrace represents the only substantial part of Papworth's original Lansdown design to have been completed largely as intended. It consists of 15 pairs of semi-detached houses shown on Papworth's plan as a 'streight' plot. Papworth's original drawings for Lansdown Place are held in the RIBA library. The terrace forms a continuous architectural design with numbers 4–14 Lansdown Place on Lansdown Road.