Listed Building: THE ROYAL NAVAL CLUB (1103858)

2 houses, now Royal Naval club. C18 with major alterations 1871-1875 by Thomas Hellyer. Grey header bricks with red brick dressings and stucco. Roof of Welsh slate; brick stack on left and right. Italianate style. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys with central 4-storey tower. 7 bays, central tower recessed. Projecting wings stuccoed on ground floor and with rusticated rendered quoins to all storeys. Tower section stuccoed to full height. 6-panelled double door at centre, upper 4 panels glazed, semicircular fixed panel over, set within moulded stuccoed surround having keystone decorated with Royal Naval insignia, rope moulded arris to corners. To each wing on left and right 2 paired sashes, set under segmental stuccoed arches with dividing colonnettes rendered keystones and raised rendered surrounds; single segmental arched sash, between the paired windows. Bracketed sillband. On first floor, bracketed balcony with patterned iron balustrade; to each wing a central French casement set under gauged brick segmental arch with stone imposts and keystone; flanking tripartite canted bay windows having central sashes and narrow side sashes, segmental arched overlights, pilasters dividing lights, rectangular plan cornices and metal tented roofs. Second floor has 2 paired round-headed sashes to each wing, set under gauged brick round arches with stone dividing colonnettes, imposts and keystones; and single round-headed sash between. Bracketed stone sillband. Moulded stone band below bracketed cornice broken back over tower section with a lunette plaque over containing relief of crown and anchor, flanked by Dolphins, ship of the line behind. Central tower section has on first floor bracketed rendered balcony with rounded quoins and central iron grille; French casement set under segmental arch with raised rendered surround and imposts. Shallow bracketed band over. Round-arched sash on second floor. The top stage of the tower has three sash windows on each side, flanking pilasters, arch-volts with blind tympanum; impost and sill mouldings carried all the way round; console bracketed moulded cornice over with arcaded balustrade to parapet. INTERIOR not inspected. HISTORY: this is the only Royal Naval Club in existence and it was founded in 1867. The tower was used to signal to ships at Spithead. (Balfour A: Portsmouth: London: 1970-: 56; Lloyd DW: Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs: Portsmouth: 1974-: 47). Listing NGR: SZ6339399274 Selected Sources Book Reference - Author: A Balfour - Title: Portsmouth - Date: 1970 - Page References: 56 Book Reference - Author: Lloyd, DW - Title: Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs - Date: 1974 - Page References: 47