Stanmer House

Stanmer House is a country house now in the care of the local authority. The principal structure dates from 1722–1727, designed by architect Nicholas Dubois for Henry Pelham and later his brother Thomas Pelham, at a cost of approximately £14,000. The house incorporates part of an earlier house and received additions in the early 19th century and in 1860. It is constructed of brick with cream-coloured sandstone ashlar facing to the principal (north-east and south-east) fronts and the immediate north-west return; the remainder is mostly rendered. The roof is of slate.

The exterior comprises two storeys with an attic. The entrance front faces north-east and originally presented a seven-window range with a three-window centrepiece. An eighth bay was added to the north probably in 1860. An early 19th-century enclosed porch is decorated with banded rustication and Tuscan pilasters supporting an entablature and blocking course, with the blocking course raised at the centre. The entrance is a flat-arched opening with overlight and double panelled doors of original design. All windows are flat-arched. The centrepiece projects slightly and is topped with a pediment containing an oculus in the tympanum. Modillion eaves cornice is present. The additional northern bay matches the rest of the front. A single-storey canted bay window on the return has a pierced parapet and hipped roof with corniced stacks. The south-east or garden front displays a nine-window range, with the central five-window section featuring an additional attic storey; the cornice over this part was missing at the time of inspection. A courtyard plan that formerly incorporated parts of the earlier house has been demolished, leaving two wings at right angles to each other.

The entrance hall, of the 1720s and in 'Board of Works' style, is plastered from floor to ceiling in imitation of wooden fielded panelling. Two flat-arched doorways to either side have architraves with pulvinated frieze and dentil cornice to overdoors, and six-panelled doors with fielded panels. Between these on the left side is a round-arched niche; on the right is a massive fireplace and bust (recorded in 1986 but boarded up at inspection in 1991). In the wall facing the entrance are round-arched niches on either side of a simpler flat-arched doorway leading to the staircase hall. The staircase hall is plastered more simply, with plaster removed from the south-west wall at the time of inspection. An open well stair by Nicholas Dubois features a curtail step, square newels with Corinthian detailing, turned balusters, a moulded, wreathed and ramped handrail, an open string carved with foliage, and a wooden panelled dado.

To the right of the entrance hall is the library, also by Dubois, with a boarded-up fireplace and egg-and-dart mouldings to bookcases and architraves. Double doors lead to a library extension in the northernmost room, dating to circa 1860, which features egg-and-dart mouldings to bookcases, cornice and paterae to ceiling moulding, and a now-boarded fireplace. A business room to the rear, now divided into two, retains panelling of the 1720s.

Left of the entrance hall is the Little Drawing Room, panelled in wood with fielded panels and coved cornice. The south doorway has panelled reveals with pulvinated bayleaf frieze and dentil cornice to overdoor. The fireplace is now boarded up. The Drawing Room beyond belongs to James Wyatt's work for Thomas Pelham II in 1775. It features a dado rail of acanthus ornament, elaborate neo-Classical frieze and ceiling decoration, architraves to doorways carved with guilloche ornament, overdoors with rosettes in wreaths of husks, and door panels carved with flutes. The fireplace is now boarded up. The Dining Room, of circa 1735, has a wooden dado, ornate frieze of festoons, modillion cornice and ceiling decorated with arabesques and fruit. The chimneypiece is flanked by bay-leaf ornament; the fireplace is now boarded up. At the south-east end is a screen of coupled Corinthian columns distyle in antis. Door architraves and panels are carved with egg-and-dart mouldings; the overdoor is decorated with festoons and dentil cornice.

The first-floor landing has fielded panelling (some removed from the north-west wall at inspection) with Vitruvian scroll to dado rail and coved cornice. Ionic pilasters flank windows and passage. The fireplace is now partly removed, leaving a cast-iron early 19th-century grate. A fielded dado runs along the passage. The State Bedroom on the north-east side is panelled with coved cornice and elaborate rocaille fireplace. North of this, a room of similar size has a plainer panelled dado, coved cornice, doorways with egg-and-dart mouldings to architraves and overdoors with pulvinated frieze of bayleaf ornament and dentil cornice. The fireplace has been removed. At the north corner is a smaller room with cornice and a 19th-century fireplace. A dressing room south of the State Bedroom has plain dado, coved cornice, and a fireplace surround with shouldered architrave and rocaille frieze. The south-east bedroom, now subdivided, has panelled dado with Vitruvian scroll, coved cornice, two doorways with egg-and-dart mouldings to architraves, and pulvinated bayleaf frieze and dentil cornice to overdoor. The fireplace surround features neo-Classical ornament of urns and festoons with a 19th-century cast-iron grate.

A rear staircase at the south-west corner is an open well to two storeys with a turned newel at the bottom and square newels at angles, turned balusters, moulded and ramped handrail and open string. A central first-floor room to the south has panelled dado with Vitruvian scroll, coved cornice, and a now-boarded fireplace. An adjacent dressing room has panelled dado with Vitruvian scroll, coved cornice and an early 19th-century cast-iron grate. A bedroom to the south-west corner has moulded cornice and a fireplace surround of late 18th or 19th-century date. A dogleg stair in the north-west wing rises two storeys with curtail step, stick balusters and ramped handrail as far as the landing between first and second floor, then square newels, turned balusters and moulded handrail for one flight.