Listed Building: FORMER CLOCK TOWER AND OFFICES, MARINE GATE THE ARMOURY, THE DRILL HOUSE AND THE CLOCKTOWER THE COLONNADES (1387048)

Includes: The Colonnades ROYAL GATE. Includes: The Armoury, The Drill House and the Clocktower CLOCK TOWER DRIVE. Also known as: The Water Tower CROMWELL ROAD Eastney. Offices and water tower with clock, at RM Eastney Barracks, now flats. 1862-7, probably designed by William Scamp, for the Admiralty Works Department, with tower 1870-71; converted 1995. Red brick, clock tower in English bond, otherwise in Flemish bond. Brighter-red-brick arches and ashlar dressings. Slate roofs with tall, corniced, brick stacks. PLAN: main L-shaped range: east-west range (The Clock Tower and The Drill House) has clock tower near west end. North-south range (The Colonnade) has colonnade along east side. A parallel west-east range (now The Armoury) is situated to its north side. EXTERIOR: The clock tower: water tower is in castle style having lower 3 storeys battered; ashlar band below 1st floor, string below 3rd floor, mock-machicolation below 5th floor and eaves cornice; corbelled turret rising above eaves with conical stone cap. Pyramidal roof with iron balustraded flat top, pedimented dormers (one to each side) and cross-corner chimney each with coupled flues framing on arch. Round-arched door, now a window, up flight of stone steps on west side. Round-arched windows, closely set and narrower on 3rd floor; small circular windows set in a recessed panel on 4th floor; on 5th floor, blind roundels and a central clock to each side. On east side a narrow lower bay, on south side having a blind ground-floor opening and a narrow round-arched window to 1st and 2nd floors. Former offices (The Armoury, The Drill House & The Colonnades): have rusticated quoins; plat bands; 1st floor lintel bands to 2 east-west ranges; eaves bands; stepped eaves. Openings have segmental arches, except north-south range which has round arches on ground floor and flat arches above. Windows have small-paned sashes or fixed lights. Panelled doors, some double, below overlights with glazing bars. The Armoury (north range) has 11-bay north elevation arranged 3:5:3 with end sections projecting and 2-bay return elevation. The Drill House (parallel range to south) has 2-bay end (east) elevation with gable treated as pediment, stone kneelers and cornice. The south elevation of this range is stuccoed, scored as ashlar, with 7 windows on 2nd floor. The Colonnade (east elevation of the north-south range) is set back slightly, 5 + 5 bays, the left section projecting slightly. The colonnade has wider arches to left-hand section, rusticated brick quoins, piers and arches, and ashlar cornice below coped parapet. INTERIOR not inspected. HISTORY: a striking tower, necessitated by the low-lying position of the barracks. William Scamp was assistant director of the Admiralty Works Department and associated with the Royal Dockyards at this time. The carefully laid out site beside the seashore reflects its use by Marines; it is also probably the last large defensible barracks in the country. Part of the most complete English barracks of the post-Crimean War period. (The Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Lloyd D: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight: Harmondsworth: 1985-: 430). Selected Sources Books and journals Pevsner, N, Lloyd, D, The Buildings of England: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, (1985), 430