house

Terraced two-bay four-storey over basement former townhouse, built c. 1810, with three-storey return to rear. Now in use as offices. M-profile roof, hipped to north, concealed by brick parapet with granite coping. Pair of shouldered brick chimneystacks to south party wall with lipped yellow clay pots. Parapet gutters. Red brick walling laid in Flemish bond over ruled-and-lined rendered walling to basement beneath painted granite plinth course. Square-headed window openings with brick voussoirs, patent reveals and masonry sills. Generally late-nineteenth century two-over-two sliding timber sash windows with ogee horns, three-over-three to third floor, six-over-six to second floor and ten-over-ten to basement, all without horns (possibly original). Decorative cast-iron balconettes to first floor openings and cast-iron grille to basement. Round-headed door opening with brick voussoirs, moulded rendered reveals and recessed rendered surround containing portico with fluted frieze and moulded cornice carried on Ionic columns over plinth stops, leaded cobwebbed fanlight and raised-and-field timber panelled door with brass furniture. Shared granite entrance platform with cast-iron boot scraper, approached by five granite steps flanked by iron railings with decorative cast-iron corner posts over granite plinth, enclosing basement to south-side. Coal-hole cover to pavement. Street fronted on Fitzwilliam Square West.

Built as a pair with No. 52 (50930263), this former townhouse forms part of a relatively intact imposing early-nineteenth century streetscape. Although largely homogenous in character and form, the subtle variations between terraces are indicative of the speculative nature of the square’s development. Almost all of the western side was completed between c. 1807-15. Laid out in 1791 by the surveyors J & P Roe, Fitzwilliam Square was the last of the city’s Georgian squares to be completed. Development was staggered, progressing slowly due to the French wars.