Description

ST MICHAEL CAERHAYS
SW 94 SE
3/131 Caerhays Castle

GV I

Country house. 1808, by John Nash, for J.B. Trevanion. Slatestone rubble with
granite and Pentewan stone dressings. Lead roofs behind parapets.
Plan: A large castellated mansion, of asymmetrical plan; the entrance front is to
north west and the garden front is to south east. The entrance front has a large
porte cochere, and the garden front has a 2-bay wing projecting to left. There are
towers of circular and polygonal plan, asymmetrically placed. The main apartment is
a long, wide gallery, with a stair at one end, with library, drawing-room etc.
leading off. The service quarters are attached to south west, and are described
separately. A picturesque Gothic composition.
Exterior: 2 storeys. The entrance front is nearly symmetrical. The 2 storey porch
is central, embattled, with open ground floor with ribbed plaster vault. There are
chamfered granite arches to the front and sides, and inner doorway with double 3-
panelled doors. To left, there is a 2-light casement at ground and first floor, with
hood moulds. Some casements are original, and some have glazing replaced in the
later C19, without the small panes. To left, a polygonal tower with embattled
parapet and casement and loops; buttress to left and smaller casement at ground and
first floor. To the right of the porch, there is a 4-light casement at ground floor
and 2-light casement at first floor, both with hood moulds. To right a square plan
towel with angle buttresses and 2-centred arched chamfered doorway with hood mould.
At first floor the tower has single light casement and lancets with ventilation
louvres; embattled parapet. There is an inner panelled and glazed door with 2-
centred arched Gothic fanlight. To right there is a single casement at first floor
and polygonal stacks. Lead rainwater heads.
The garden front is 2-storey. The centrepiece is formed by two polygonal embattled
3-storey towers with casements at ground and first floor and blind windows at second
floor. The ground floor has an asymmetrical arrangement of casements with hood
moulds; the windows are smaller at first floor, with embattled parapet overall. To
right there is a large circular plan embattled tower of 3 storeys, forming the corner
of the house, with casements at all floors. To left there is a 2-bay wing, of 3-
storeys, with casements at each floor, terminating in a square plan tower with
corbelled embattled parapet. There is a small circular single storey tower set in
the corner between the main front and the wing. The overall effect is asymmetrical,
with details such as a slender polygonal tower with ogee stone roof and cross finial
set to the right of the centrepiece.
The north east side of the house has 3 bays to centre, with tower to right and left
at the corners, each with corbelled embattled parapet. At ground floor there are 4-
light mullion and transom windows at ground floor with hood moulds and two doors to
right. At first and second floors there are casements; the windows diminish in size
in the upper storeys. The windows at upper level retain the original small panes.
Facing the service courtyard, the house has random fenestration.
Interior: Not accessible. See Summerson for some information about the interior.
Sources: Pevsner, N.: Buildings of England: Cornwall 1970. Summerson, J.: The Life
and Work of John Nash, Architect. 1980.

Listing NGR: SW9712441638

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Caerhays Castle at Wikipedia
• Caerhays Castle official website
• Wikidata Q5016894

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of Historic Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  A Buying and Owning a Listed Building: A Brief Guide
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)
• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)