Porch House, Nantwich
Encyclopedia
The Porch House, formerly sometimes the Porche House, is a large Georgian
house, dating from the late 18th century, in Nantwich
, Cheshire
, England. It is listed at grade II. Located at numbers 64A and 64B on the north side of Welsh Row (at ), it is entered via its former stable entrance, The Gateway
. Currently divided into two houses, the Porch House has previously served as a day and boarding school, and as a house for Belgian refugees. The existing building stands on the site of a 15th-century mansion of the same name.
Nikolaus Pevsner
considers Welsh Row to be "the best street of Nantwich". The street has many listed buildings and is known for its mixture of architectural styles, including timber-framed
black-and-white cottages such as the Wilbraham's
and Widows' Almshouses
, Georgian town houses such as Townwell House
and number 83
, and Victorian
buildings such as the former Grammar School, Savings Bank
and Primitive Methodist Chapel
.
, Kingsley fought against Henry IV
at the Battle of Shrewsbury
of 1403, but later obtained the king's pardon and became squire and later sergeant to Henry V
, fighting for the king in Normandy in 1415
and subsequently.
Henry Wettenhall of Dorfold
, a member of one of the town's most important families, inherited the Porch House mansion in 1470. In the early and mid 17th century, it was the home of the Masseys and Wrights, also among the principal families of Nantwich.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the present building was used as a private girls' boarding and day school, which later moved to Hospital Street. During the First World War
it housed refugees from Belgium, leading to the house being popularly called "Belgium House".
, formerly its stable entrance, through which it is accessed. The Porch House is currently divided into two houses. The original entrance is to the left-hand wing, and has an arched fanlight
with a pediment
above. The right-hand wing is a single bay wide and projects forwards; it has a modern entrance matching the original one.
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
house, dating from the late 18th century, in Nantwich
Nantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England. It is listed at grade II. Located at numbers 64A and 64B on the north side of Welsh Row (at ), it is entered via its former stable entrance, The Gateway
The Gateway, Nantwich
The Gateway, or 60–62 Welsh Row, is a Late Georgian former stable entrance in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, dating from the early 19th century. It is located at on the north side of Welsh Row , on the junction with Red Lion Lane. It is listed at grade II. Nikolaus Pevsner describes The Gateway as...
. Currently divided into two houses, the Porch House has previously served as a day and boarding school, and as a house for Belgian refugees. The existing building stands on the site of a 15th-century mansion of the same name.
Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
considers Welsh Row to be "the best street of Nantwich". The street has many listed buildings and is known for its mixture of architectural styles, including timber-framed
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
black-and-white cottages such as the Wilbraham's
Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich
The Wilbraham's Almshouses, also known as the Wilbraham Almshouses, are six former almshouses in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, located on the north side of Welsh Row at numbers 112–116 . Founded by Sir Roger Wilbraham in 1613, they were the town's earliest almshouses. They remained in use as...
and Widows' Almshouses
Widows' Almshouses, Nantwich
The Widows' Almshouses, also known as the Wilbraham or Wilbraham's Almshouses and as the Widows' Hospital, are former almshouses for six widows in Nantwich, Cheshire, England. They are located at numbers 26–30 on the north side of Welsh Row, on the junction with Second Wood Street...
, Georgian town houses such as Townwell House
Townwell House, Nantwich
Townwell House is an Early Georgian town house in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, located at number 52 on the north side of Welsh Row . It dates from 1740, and is listed at grade II*; in the listing, English Heritage describes the building as "important" and highlights its "good central...
and number 83
83 Welsh Row, Nantwich
83 Welsh Row is a Georgian town house in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, dating from the late 18th century, located on the south side of Welsh Row . It is currently used as offices...
, and Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
buildings such as the former Grammar School, Savings Bank
39 Welsh Row, Nantwich
39 Welsh Row is a Victorian former savings bank, in Jacobean Revival style, in Nantwich, Cheshire, England. It stands on the south side of Welsh Row at the junction with St Anne's Lane . Dating from 1846, it is listed at grade II. Nikolaus Pevsner describes number 39 as "the first noteworthy...
and Primitive Methodist Chapel
Primitive Methodist Chapel, Nantwich
The Primitive Methodist Chapel is a former Primitive Methodist church on Welsh Row in Nantwich, Cheshire, England . Built in 1840, it is listed at grade II. The chapel closed in 2001, and the building has been partially converted to residential use....
.
History
The existing Porch House was built on the site of a 15th-century mansion, also known as the Porch or Porche House. Until the early 21st century, Kingsley Fields (now a housing development) lay behind Porch House, and local historian James Hall considers that the original building might have been occupied in around 1400 by John Kingsley, a turbulent character who was a prominent Nantwich resident, holding part of the Barony of Nantwich between 1405 and 1431. A follower of Thomas Mowbray, Duke of NorfolkThomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk
Thomas de Mowbray, 1st Duke of Norfolk, KG, Lord Marshal and Earl Marshal was an English nobleman.-Life:...
, Kingsley fought against Henry IV
Henry IV of England
Henry IV was King of England and Lord of Ireland . He was the ninth King of England of the House of Plantagenet and also asserted his grandfather's claim to the title King of France. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence his other name, Henry Bolingbroke...
at the Battle of Shrewsbury
Battle of Shrewsbury
The Battle of Shrewsbury was a battle fought on 21 July 1403, waged between an army led by the Lancastrian King, Henry IV, and a rebel army led by Henry "Hotspur" Percy from Northumberland....
of 1403, but later obtained the king's pardon and became squire and later sergeant to Henry V
Henry V of England
Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of 35 in 1422. He was the second monarch belonging to the House of Lancaster....
, fighting for the king in Normandy in 1415
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
and subsequently.
Henry Wettenhall of Dorfold
Acton, Cheshire
Acton is a small village and civil parish lying immediately west of the town of Nantwich in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of...
, a member of one of the town's most important families, inherited the Porch House mansion in 1470. In the early and mid 17th century, it was the home of the Masseys and Wrights, also among the principal families of Nantwich.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the present building was used as a private girls' boarding and day school, which later moved to Hospital Street. During the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
it housed refugees from Belgium, leading to the house being popularly called "Belgium House".
Description
The Porch House is a large, L-shaped house of three storeys in red brick under a slate roof, which is built around a courtyard. It is set well back from the street behind The GatewayThe Gateway, Nantwich
The Gateway, or 60–62 Welsh Row, is a Late Georgian former stable entrance in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, dating from the early 19th century. It is located at on the north side of Welsh Row , on the junction with Red Lion Lane. It is listed at grade II. Nikolaus Pevsner describes The Gateway as...
, formerly its stable entrance, through which it is accessed. The Porch House is currently divided into two houses. The original entrance is to the left-hand wing, and has an arched fanlight
Fanlight
A fanlight is a window, semicircular or semi-elliptical in shape, with glazing bars or tracery sets radiating out like an open fan, It is placed over another window or a doorway. and is sometimes hinged to a transom. The bars in the fixed glazed window spread out in the manner a sunburst...
with a pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
above. The right-hand wing is a single bay wide and projects forwards; it has a modern entrance matching the original one.
Sources
- Bavington G et al. Nantwich, Worleston & Wybunbury: A Portrait in Old Picture Postcards (Brampton Publications; 1987) (ISBN 0 9511469 6 3)
- Garton E. Nantwich, Saxon to Puritan: A History of the Hundred of Nantwich, c 1050 to c 1642 (Johnson & Son Nantwich; 1972) (ISBN 0950273805)
- Hall J. A History of the Town and Parish of Nantwich, or Wich Malbank, in the County Palatine of Chester (2nd edn) (E. J. Morten; 1972) (ISBN 0-901598-24-0)
- Lamberton A, Gray R. Lost Houses in Nantwich (Landmark Publishing; 2005) (ISBN 1 84306 202 X)
- Pevsner N, Hubbard E. The Buildings of England: Cheshire (Penguin Books; 1971) (ISBN 0 14 071042 6)
- Vaughan D. Nantwich: It Was Like This (Nantwich Museum; 1987)