Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

Grade II listed building. Main construction periods 1533 to 1799. 16thC Dovecote consisting of two sections: a small building to the south and a larger rectangular building to the north. The two buildings are of the same width at previously adjoined each other.

Monument Types

• DOVECOTE (Medieval to Modern - 1533 AD to 2050 AD)

Full description

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Additional bibliography. (2)

Description from record TQ 85 SW 77:
At [TQ 8222 5291] is the building known as the "Chapel". See also TQ 85 SW 78. It is a late 16th century domestic building of two storeys, now used as a store. (1) Larger Dovecote at TQ 822 529 in grounds of former Leeds Priory, Grade II. Dovecote. Mid to late 16th century, altered late 18th century. Roughly one yard north of, and aligned with, smaller dovecote. Scheduled as an Ancient Monument. (2) The pigeon house (or houses) is at present still standing though in urgent need of repair. Originally a single building on a rubble plinth with diaper brickwork and a crowster gable it has at some point been divided in two to provide part pigeon house and part accommodation. All roof timbers and floor timbers have collapsed into the building. It would be worthwhile to recover and replace them as the roof is of interest. (3) Additional bibliography. (4) The dovecot is in a poor state; the four walls survive intact - but only just - and the timbers of the collapsed roof and floor lie rotting in the interior. Many of the nesting boxes survive. (5) Additional bibliography. (6)(7)

The dovecote was re-surveyed by the OAU in 2001. The dovecote consists of two sections: a small building to the south and a larger rectangular one to the north. The two buildings are of the same width and previously adjoined each other. The smaller building is constructed in red brick (English bond with rough diaper work) set on an uncoursed stone plinth. There is a dressed stone quoin at the s-w corner and the s-e corner has been rebuilt in brick to suggest that the south wall may originally have continued further to the east. The three external elevations are all plain while the inner faces of each of these walls is lined with nesting boxes and alighting ledges. The red brick north wall does not contain nesting boxes and is a secondary (19thC) insertion.

The larger dovecote is of similar construction to that of the smaller one. The east elevation is articulated by three partially collapsed brick buttresses, two at each end of the larger building and one towards the centre and it is ornamented by fragmentary diaper brickwork. The interior of the larger building has been substanially altered due to early 19thC conversion involiving the insertion of conventional ground and first floors.

Neither building has a surviving insitu roof.(10)

Additional bibliography. (11)

The following text is from the original listed building designation:
LEEDS LOWER STREET TQ 822 529 (east side)
9/99 Larger Dovecote at TQ 822 529 in grounds of former 20.10.52. Leeds Priory GV II Dovecote. Mid to late C16 altered late C18. Red and vitreous brick in English bond with diaper work. Ashlared stone quoins to north-west corner. Rectangular lying north-south, approximately 20' board and 45' long externally, standing to height of approx 10', with walls approx. 3'6" thick. 1 1/2 storeys, with very low undercroft to east side (where land slopes away). Galletted stone plinth with chamfered stone coping. 3 large integral plinthed red-brick buttresses to east side. North gable without diaper work, but with remains of crow-stepped gable with moulded brick kneeler. Roof missing, but photograph in National Monuments Record shows arch-braced clasped-purlin roof with wind braces. East wall has regular fenestration of 2 double-chamfered rectangular brick windows to ground floor still partly rendered to ressemble stone. Beneath each window plinth. interrupted by small round-arched opening with brick voussoirs reaching almost to top of plinth and giving access to undercroft. Double-chamfered 2-light rendered rectangular brick mullion window to north gable with plain-chamfered mullion. Broad three-centred arched doorway beneath it with chamfered ashlared stone head, jambs missing. Interior: At least 2 broadly chamfered cross-beams below wall-plate and further cross-beams to undercroft, joists missing. Walls partly plastered, with brick nesting boxes throughout on both floors, ledges in front broken away. Roughly 1 yard north of, and aligned with, smaller dovecote. Scheduled as an Ancient Monument. See smaller Dovecot for references.
Listing NGR: TQ8220052900 (12)

<1> F1 ASP 15-DEC-61 (OS Card Reference). SKE42117.

<2> DOE (HHR) Boro of Maidstone Kent 14 Dec 1984 50 (OS Card Reference). SKE39868.

<2> English Heritage, 1995, Monuments Protection Programme, Step 1 Report - Dovecotes (Unpublished document). SKE16578.

<3> DOE (IAM) Record Form dated 16.12.76 (OS Card Reference). SKE40755.

<4> Arch Cant 89 1974 36-41 plan (JEL Caiger) (OS Card Reference). SKE35991.

<5> F2 MJF 13-Mar-86 (OS Card Reference). SKE43344.

<6> Bldgs of Eng-West Kent & the Weald 1980 370 (J Newman) (OS Card Reference). SKE38148.

<7> Post Med Arch 9 1975 254 (J Cherry) (OS Card Reference). SKE48545.

<8> Field report for monument TQ 85 SW 43 - December, 1961 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4514.

<9> Field report for monument TQ 85 SW 43 - March, 1986 (Bibliographic reference). SKE4515.

<10> Oxford Archaeological Unit, 2001, ARCHAEOLOGICAL BUILDING RECORDING AND WATCHING BRIEF DURING CLEARANCE WORKS (Unpublished document). SKE7416.

<11> English Heritage, 1995, Monuments Protection Programme, Step 1 Report - Dovecotes (Unpublished document). SKE16578.

<12> English Heritage, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest (Map). SKE16160.

Sources and further reading

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