Gatehouse At Combe Florey House

The gatehouse at Combe Florey House is a Grade II* listed structure, dated 1591, which was reroofed after the upper two storeys were removed around 1840. It is constructed of red sandstone random rubble and features slate roofs. The design includes a gabled cruciform tower with steeply pitched wings and coped verges to the left of the tower. The layout consists of a two-storey central gatehouse flanked by single-storey wings, each with attics that are lit from the gable ends. The windows are irregularly placed; on the left side, there is a four-light ovolo moulded mullioned window under a hood mould with leaded panes. The first floor of the gatehouse has a ten-light mullioned and transomed window under a hood mould, also with leaded panes, and a moulded four-centred arch below it, which features shields that terminate the hood mould. The right-hand jamb of this arch is dated 1591. There is a projecting gabled latrine tower, which is lit on the left return, and the right-hand wing has three irregularly placed 20th-century glazed openings. Inside, there is a fine plaster overmantel with paired figures flanking a coat of arms, inscribed below with "John Frances 1593." The interior also features a moulded four-centred arch fireplace with decorative stops and flanking columns, as well as a plaster ceiling. It is believed that the gatehouse may have originally occupied a larger area to the northwest, adjacent to the church, although this is not confirmed.