History in Structure

Tower House

A Grade II* Listed Building in Malmesbury, Wiltshire

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Coordinates

Latitude: 51.5841 / 51°35'2"N

Longitude: -2.0963 / 2°5'46"W

OS Eastings: 393426

OS Northings: 187256

OS Grid: ST934872

Mapcode National: GBR 2QZ.QTH

Mapcode Global: VH95S.MF4Y

Plus Code: 9C3VHWM3+MF

Entry Name: Tower House

Listing Date: 18 January 1949

Grade: II*

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1269271

English Heritage Legacy ID: 460935

ID on this website: 101269271

Location: Malmesbury, Wiltshire, SN16

County: Wiltshire

Civil Parish: Malmesbury

Built-Up Area: Malmesbury

Traditional County: Wiltshire

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Wiltshire

Church of England Parish: Malmesbury and Brokenborough

Church of England Diocese: Bristol

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Description



MALMESBURY

ST9387 OXFORD STREET
758-1/4/276 (East side)
18/01/49 Tower House

GV II*

Medieval hall with later rear wing, attached to terrace of 4
houses, with inserted tower; one house since early C19, when
refronted. Late C15 hall, with a mid C16 rear wing, terrace of
four C18 houses; refronted and tower added 1834.
MATERIALS: hall of limestone rubble, rear wing of re-used
ashlar and carved work (a feature of post-Dissolution
Malmesbury) and coursed, squared limestone; tower of rubble
with dressings, rubble houses; all rendered to street
elevations, with a stone slate roof and 3 ridge stacks.
PLAN: open hall parallel to street with an E range at S end,
square tower attached within S end of terrace of single-depth
houses, with a rear wing to the N end.
EXTERIOR: 2 storeys; 7-window range, includes 5-storey;
1-window range tower. The hall has C19 openings with a
cambered arch to left-hand C19 carriage arch, 2 ground and
first-floor windows, that on the first-floor to the S a
trefoil in a square head; the E range to the rear has
ground-floor lunettes and stable doors, the E section largely
original with a blocked 4-light hollow-moulded window and E
doorway with chamfered head, and C19 9-pane windows beneath
the eaves.
The 3 N houses have a middle 1-window range and outer 2-window
ranges, that to the right with 6/6-pane sashes and a
right-hand 6/9-pane sash in the former doorway, the middle one
with a left-hand round-arched doorway and 8/8-pane sashes, and
the N one a left-hand doorway, 8/8-pane ground-floor sash and
two first-floor sashes with 6/6-panes to left and 8/8-panes to
right; three gables to rear elevation.
The S house was converted to a tower has a doorway and small
window above; the tower has quoins and dressings to
round-arched windows to the lower floors, flat-headed to the
top storey, with an ashlar parapet.
INTERIOR: details include a 3- former 4-bay roof to the hall
with collar trusses and chamfered arch braces forming
continuous arches, wind braces to the lower 2 registers, and a
diagonal through ridge beam; possible former screened passage
beneath the tower; the E range has collared trusses with wind
braces to the middle register; houses have C19 reeded
architraves with plain stops.
HISTORICAL NOTE: possibly part of an extensive courtyard


complex with the S range originally stables (Stirling).
Town work house from C18 to 1834, when converted to stables.
The N house formerly the Salutation Inn before 1803. The tower
was built for an astronomical observatory by Richard Pryor.
(Stirling D: Secular medieval buildings in Malmesbury, Wilts,
1150-1547: 1986-: 8; The Buildings of England: Pevsner N:
Wiltshire: London: 1963-: 328).

Listing NGR: ST9344587258

External Links

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