Deene Hall

Deene Hall is a country house with 14th-century origins, developed through successive phases in the 15th century and with a Great Hall begun in 1571 for Sir Edmund Brudenell. Further work was carried out from the 16th to late 19th centuries for the Brudenell family, who became Earls of Cardigan. The house was modified in the late 20th century. It is built of limestone ashlar with Collyweston slate and lead roofs, and has a complex plan arranged around a courtyard. The main structure is of two storeys with attic accommodation.

Entrance Front (North)

The Entrance Front, probably dating from the early 1660s, is a five-window range to first floor level. The central gateway has a shallow two-centred arched head with a moulded stone surround and a pair of panelled doors. Tall two-light stone mullion windows with transoms at first floor level originally lit the long gallery. Corresponding ground floor windows are two-light with stone mullions, all with leaded lights. The façade features a chamfered plinth and moulded string courses at the head of the ground floor windows and at the cill and head of the first floor windows. Behind the castellated parapet is a flat roof, with two lateral ashlar stacks rising from the parapet. The bay to the far right has a hipped roof belonging to the west range of the courtyard, with two hipped dormers. Five lead rainwater pipes and hopper heads are positioned between bays, and an armorial device is placed above the gateway.

A five-window range set back to the right is probably 17th century with two-light stone mullion windows with transoms. It has a gabled roof behind a plain parapet. An early 17th-century tower of four stages is set back to the left of the Entrance Front and forms part of the East Front. Each stage is subdivided by a narrow band between string courses; the upper band displays armorial shields. This face has two-light stone mullion windows to the right of each stage. The tower has a flat roof behind a castellated parapet. The tower was originally part of the north wing, which was subsequently shortened.

East Front

The East Front, to the left of the Entrance Front, is irregular with the north-east tower at the far right. Each stage of the tower has central five-light stone mullion windows with transoms. Attached to the left of the tower is an irregular three-bay range which was the great hall of the 15th-century house; this is now subdivided. The flanking bays have three-light stone mullion windows with transoms and 17th-century attic gablets with two-light stone mullion windows. To the left of centre is a plain square stair turret with a small square window at attic level. Two armorial shields are positioned below and one similar shield at mid-point. This stair may have related to the chapel which projected to the left of it until the mid-18th century.

The centre of this range features a fine Renaissance bay window of two storeys, possibly reset. Each floor has an eight-light window with transom; the lights are arranged in pairs and the mullions are formed by alternate broad and narrow fluted Ionic columns. The Ionic capitals form part of the frieze, and the panels above and below the windows have strapwork cartouches. Above the window is a truncated ogee gable which abuts the attic storey of this range. Within the gable is a three-light stone mullion window and a rosette above. The decoration includes the initials of Sir Edmund Brudenell and Agnes his wife, who died in 1572. All the windows are blocked except for two lights at ground floor level, which were opened in the late 20th century. Above is a large ashlar stack. The gabled roof has ashlar parapets.

The two-storey one-window range attached to the left has a six-light stone mullion window with transom to each floor. The ground floor window has been modified in the 20th century. Behind the castellated parapet is a flat roof with the gable of the Great Hall behind. A 16th-century two-storey, two-window range breaks forward to the left of this range and forms part of the South Front range. It has four-light stone mullion windows with King mullions to ground and first floor right. Two small oval windows and an armorial shield are positioned centrally. The range features a chamfered plinth and moulded string courses between window heads, with a flat roof and castellated parapet. An octagonal turret to the left forms part of the South Front.

South Front

The South Front consists of two main ranges. To the right is a 16th-century eight-window range, probably incorporating part of the Solar of the original hall. Early 19th-century two-light wood mullion windows with arched-head lights are arranged in pairs, with two-stage buttresses between each pair. These windows replaced 18th-century sashes. The range has a chamfered plinth and moulded string courses between window heads, with a flat roof behind a castellated ashlar parapet. At the ends of this range are castellated octagonal turrets with windows in the south-east and south-west faces. The turret to the left is highest and forms part of the range to the left of the South Front.

This is an eight-window range dating from 1800 to 1810 in Neo-Tudor style. The windows are similar to the right range, with transoms. They are arranged from left to right as 3:3:2, with continuous four-stage gabled buttresses between each group. Some of the ground floor windows have French doors. The range has a flat roof behind a castellated parapet and castellated octagonal turrets at the ends. A ballroom range added by the Seventh Earl of Cardigan in 1865 to the west of the South Front was demolished in the late 20th century.

West Front and Other Elevations

The West Front, which now incorporates the service ranges, is irregular in similar style to the other facades. A laundry was demolished in 1968. The original entrance to the medieval house was from the west.

Main Courtyard

The north elevation of the main courtyard is of the 16th-century Great Hall. A two-storey porch to right of centre has an outer doorway with semi-circular head. Foliated spandrels are flanked by Ionic pilasters decorated with linked oblongs and ovals. The frieze above is decorated with scrolls and mermaids supporting the arms of Brudenell and Bussy. The upper storey has a three-light stone mullion window with arched-head lights, flanked by Corinthian pilasters. One set of pilasters repeats on the return walls. To the left of the porch, at the centre of the hall, is a four-light stone mullion window with arched-head lights and transom. A tall bay window in the corner to the left is similar, with six lights and two transoms. The gabled roof with ashlar parapets is set behind an eaves parapet with merlons. The bay to the right of the porch has a similar stone mullion window and parapet.

The west elevation of the main courtyard is of the original hall and has a large central canted bay window of six arched-head lights with stone mullions and three transoms. The window has been subdivided and the second stage is now blank. To the left is a two-window range, and to the right a one-window range, of similar two-light windows. Four eaves dormers have similar windows. The gabled roof has ashlar parapets. The east elevation of the main courtyard is a four-window range of stone mullion windows with a similar attic storey to that of the west elevation. The south elevation of the main courtyard is similar to the main Entrance Front with a large sundial at first floor centre. The courtyard elevations have the remains of lead rainwater pipes and hopper heads.

Interior

The Great Hall is entered at the west end from the porch in the main courtyard. The original panelling remains at the east end only and is divided into five sections by Doric pilasters. Above is an armorial plaque flanked by caryatids and volutes. A fine ashlar fireplace and overmantle with pairs of pilasters and armorial devices is dated 1571 and was reset from the billiards room in 1966. The roof structure is original and fine, with alternating double and single hammerbeams, pendants and ogee wind-braces, all in Sweet Chestnut. The windows have early 17th-century armorial glass, restored in 1959.

The Billiards Room, on the east side of the main courtyard, is the ground floor of the original hall. It has a reset 17th-century fireplace with chimney breast backing onto the Renaissance bay window on the East Front. Evidence of a 13th or 14th-century archway was discovered in this room. The ceiling has early 18th-century moulded beams. The principal stair to the east of the Great Hall has a simple geometrical openwork balustrade of the early 17th century; it is possible that this may be reset. The Chapel Parlour between the stair and the billiards room has reset 17th-century panelling. The Chapel to the east of the stair was created in 1971 from a room used as a loggia in the 17th century. The Garden Room to the south of the Chapel has some reset 17th-century panelling; other panelling is 20th century.

The Oak Parlour to the south of the Great Hall has reset 17th-century panelling with fluted pilasters and a frieze. The Bow Room, adjacent to the west, is in the early 19th-century south front and has a bowed east wall with built-in bookcases and a marble fireplace. The Drawing Room, adjacent to the west, is of the same period with double panelled doors at either end, a dado rail, moulded cornice and marble fireplace with Rococo style details. The Dining Room, adjacent to the west, is also similar with a laurel wreath frieze and reset 19th-century fireplace with attached veined marble columns. The Ante-Hall to the west of the Great Hall has a dentilled cornice, coved ceiling and reset marble fireplace. The White Hall to the west of the Ante Hall was created in the early 19th century as a staircase to the South Front and the rooms at a lower level to the north. It has a lattice ironwork balustrade with the Fifth Earl of Cardigan's arms around an open well, a moulded frieze and dentilled cornice.

The Tapestry Room at first floor over the Billiards Room has a 16th-century fireplace surround with a 17th-century bolection moulded inset. It has a fine Jacobean plaster ceiling with pendants. Above this room is the roof structure of the original hall, which is noted as having 15th-century collar beams on arched braces. The Tower Room, adjacent, in the north-west tower, has a 17th-century fireplace with a heraldic overmantle and a Jacobean plaster ceiling, also with heraldic emblems, restored in the 20th century. King Henry's Room at the first floor of the south-east corner has linenfold panelling with single and double folds, a fireplace with four-centred arched head and heraldic panel above. The name commemorates a supposed visit of Henry VII on the eve of Bosworth Field in 1485. The Long Gallery, now subdivided, is noted as having a large 17th-century fireplace.

History

Deene was acquired in 1514 by Sir Robert Brudenell, at which time the Great Hall was most likely in the east range. His grandson Edmund built the present Great Hall. In 1643 the house was plundered by Cromwell's troops, and in 1661 Charles II created Sir Thomas Brudenell First Earl of Cardigan. The house was further developed and remodelled internally by the Earls of Cardigan. Sometime after the mid-18th century a Service Wing to the south was removed. The Fifth Earl of Cardigan was responsible for remodelling and extending the present South Front. Deene Hall was also home to the Seventh Earl of Cardigan, hero of Balaclava. The gardens of Deene Hall are listed Grade II in the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.