Georgian Reading – ’s Bath Spa “I never knew it (Reading) had so many good buildings”

Leading Classical Architect Quinlan Terry on reviewing this presentation 2018

John Missenden July 2017 Reading was originally a Saxon town, at the confluence of the Thames and Kennet.

It possessed a mitred abbey. Its abbot (one of only 24 in ) had similar precedence to a bishop, with a seat in the House of Lords. Parliament met in the abbey in 1453 and King Henry I (Beauclerc) was buried in its choir in 1136.

It is usually known for its Victorian industry – Simonds (brewers), Huntley and Palmers (biscuit makers) and Suttons (seed merchants) – as well as its railway junction.

It does however have over 800 listed buildings and groups, in the top 8% of towns, above some cathedral cities.

Most are from around the Georgian period, 1714 – 1830. In Queen Anne’s day (1702 onwards), Reading had prospered from its county market town role and its specialist trades.

Many medieval buildings, with timber frames or of brick/flint were rebuilt in Thames Valley orange and silver grey brick with sash windows. Bath stone was used as the advanced. Reading was always conservative so classical styles, with some C18 details persisted until c1860 (such as the Italianate station and hotel) and so are included in this presentation.

Reading had its own “John Wood” dynasty in the Billing family, six of whom were architects and builders.

Like Bath and Edinburgh, it outgrew its medieval boundaries and established a Georgian new town, mostly to the West but also in the East.

Many parallels with Bath will be noted, such as the nearby Palladian mansion and the building materials and styles adopted. There are however few formal spaces. Reading was an important staging post on the Bath Road with many coaching inns, receiving both internees and refugees during the Napoleonic wars. The following presentation shows a selection of Reading’s buildings of the period and shortly after of a similar, Classical style. Reading was known to be conservative in these matters, changing gradually. The buildings shown therefore actually date from 1688 to 1865.

It is divided into the following sections:

Principal residences (3 slides) The earliest surviving buildings up to the early 1700s (7 slides) Institutional buildings (9 slides) Town centre buildings (14 slides) The Bath Road (11 slides) The Georgian new town to the East, South and West (24 slides)

Many of the pictures show the intrusion of the motor car, excessive street furniture, unsympathetic alterations, untended foliage and trees, poor settings and repair. Reading’s “”

Basildon Park, 1776, John Carr, west view, a few miles to the West of the town. Basildon Park – East View

Late Palladian, with some Adam style interiors and an Italianate salon behind the Venetian window. Prospect Park, Reading

Prospect House, late C18, Prospect Park. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 1

19 Castle Street, early C18. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 2

6 Church Street, Reading, early C18. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 3

86 Street, early C18, compare Marshall Wade’s house, Bath. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 4

No 50 Mount Pleasant, 1727. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 5

Watlington House, 44 Watlington Street, pre-1763 Eastern facade. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 6

Watlington House, 1688 Western facade. Queen Anne and Early Georgian - 7

Watlington House, the 1740s interior, looking west from the entrance. Institutional Buildings - 1

Royal Berkshire Hospital Portico, 1836, Ionic, Briant Brothers, Bath stone. The Arms are of Hanover, King William IV. Institutional Buildings - 2

Chapel for Countess of Huntingdon congregation, 1798, Billing. Portico added 1836, Corinthian, Briant brothers. Institutional Buildings - 3

Interior of chapel, box pews and still open for worship. Institutional Buildings - 4

Mechanics’ Institute, 1843, Brown, London Street. InstitutionalBuildings - 5

Reading Cemetery Gateway, 1842, Brown. The two Classical chapels were demolished. 2016 view, courtesy Tom Bastin CC BY 2.0 Institutional Buildings - 6

The only publicly visible window of the five-bay Assembly Rooms, 1785, incorporated and restored in the Victorian Town Hall buildings, Italianate interior. Institutional Buildings - 7

The Assembly Rooms, 1785, Italianate interior, 1864, Woodman. Institutional Buildings - 8

Reading General Station, 1865, Lane, GWR, Coalbrookdale brick and Bath stone. Institutional Buildings – 9

Great Western Hotel, 1844, said to be the first of its kind in the world. The Georgian Town Centre - 1

73, 75 London Street, 1748. House and hospital of Dr Addington, Physician to King George III and father of Viscount Sidmouth, PM. The Georgian Town Centre - 2

54, 56, 58 London Street, 1753, shop front removed from 56. The Georgian Town Centre - 3

62 London Street, early C19, Bath stone. The Georgian Town Centre - 4

76 London Street, mid C18. The Georgian Town Centre - 5

1–9 Castle Street, early C19 and mid C18, shop fronts removed. The Georgian Town Centre - 6

10, 12 Castle Street, c1800, one house, later divided, with later shop fronts. The Georgian Town Centre - 7

47, 49 Castle Street, early C19, Bath stone. The Georgian Town Centre - 8

39 Castle Street, late C18, red and silver grey brick, Victorian shop front removed! The Georgian Town Centre - 9

63 Castle Street, 1750, Holybrook House, contains a Rococo music room. The Georgian Town Centre - 10

19 Bridge Street, early C19, Seven Bridges House. The Georgian Town Centre - 11

Church House, St Mary’s Churchyard, early/mid C18, fine staircase. The Georgian Town Centre - 12

High Bridge Wharf, early C19. The Georgian Town Centre - 13

10 High Street, c1800. The Georgian Town Centre - 14

11, 12 Abbot’s Walk, early C19, Bath stone, c.i. fleur-de-lys railings. Backing onto the Abbey cloister. The Bath Road – 1

97–105 Castle Hill, Blenheim Terrace, early C19, Bath stone. The Bath Road – 2

107 Castle Hill, pre 1802, 3-bay Palladian stucco house. The Bath Road – 3

122 Castle Hill, 1840, Culham House. The Bath Road – 4

126–132 Castle Hill, early C19. The Bath Road – 5

134-144 Castle Hill, early C19, symmetrical terrace of six houses, two with pediments. The Bath Road - 6

144a–152 Castle Hill, early C19, symmetrical terrace, with carriage sweep. The Bath road - 7

154–160 Castle Hill, C18 fronts on three sides of a court, existing in 1734, former Kings Arms coaching inn on Bath Road. The Bath Road – 8

Yeomanry House, or Castle Hill House, Bath Road, early C19, extended. The Bath Road - 9

2 Bath Road, c1780. The Bath Road - 10

2 Tilehurst Road, pre-1839, “Belle Vue”, Coade stone urns. The Bath Road - 11

42 Bath Road, late C18, formerly Bluecoat School, with niches for statues. The Georgian New Town - 1

Southampton Place, 72–84 Southampton Street, 1810, Richard Billing the elder. Originally 13 houses, two being lost when Pell Street was driven through, now poorly maintained HMO’s. The Georgian New Town – 2

39 London Road, mid/late C18, “Kendrick View”. Home of Mary Mitford. The Georgian New Town - 3

71,73 London Road, early C19. The Georgian New Town - 4

45–65 London Road, Albion Place, Richard Billing, 1825. Opposite is another noble Billing group, Portland Place, also hidden by trees. The Georgian New Town - 5

24-30 London Road, Portland Place, c1830, Billing, Bath stone, 2011 view, courtesy Tom Bastin CC BY 2.0. The Georgian New Town - 6

24-32 Queen’s Road, 1832/3, J J Cooper, Queen’s Crescent. The Georgian New Town – 7

Eldon Square (North), 1835, Briant brothers, Bath stone, Italianate. The Georgian New Town - 8

165– 89 Kings Road, Waterloo Place, 1832, continuation of Eldon Square development. The Georgian New Town - 9

Eldon Road, c1835, Bath stone Italianate, with Edwardian infill. The Georgian New Town - 10

8, 10 Eldon Road, c1835. The Georgian New Town - 11

28, 30 Eldon Road, c1835. The Georgian New Town - 12

48, 50 Russell Street, Bath Villas, c1835, Briant. West of the town centre in the largest group of C18, early C19 streets, between Castle Hill and Oxford Road. The Georgian New Town - 13

44, 46 Russell Street, c1840, unusual arrangement of window openings. The Georgian New Town - 14

40, 42 Russell Street, c1840, shallow raised pediment and iron balconies, “honeysuckle” pattern. The Georgian New Town - 15

38, 38a Russell Street, c1840. The Georgian New Town - 16

41 Russell Street, c1840. The Georgian New Town - 17

6–34 Russell Street, c1840, in two phases, changing after 22. The Georgian New Town – 18

Two of the earlier phase (6-22), showing bad window replacements through unenforced listed building rules. The Georgian New Town - 19

61–79 Baker Street, early C19, an east – west street parallel to Oxford Road. The Georgian New Town - 20

31–53 Baker Street, c1840, stucco. Includes the home of Fox-Talbot, developer of photography. The Georgian New Town - 21

Elm Lodge, Wilton Road, early C19, Greek details. The Georgian New Town - 22

163 Oxford Road onwards, early C19, a long group of terraces processing 500m westwards from the town centre. The Georgian New Town – 23

187–191 Oxford Road, early C19. The Georgian New Town -24

Prospect Terrace, 237–247 Oxford Road, early C19, Greek details. The westernmost development. A fine terrace of 6 houses, woefully abused. “I never knew it (Reading) had so many good buildings”

Leading Classical Architect Quinlan Terry on reviewing this presentation 2018

Thank you for watching

John Missenden July 2017