1936

 

II*  

Designated  

09/01/1956  

29/01/1998  

Little Llwygy Farmhouse  

 

Monmouthshire  

Crucorney  

Abergavenny  

Llwygy  

331723  

222091  

 

At the south end of Lower Cwmyoy overlooking the Vale of Ewyas and reached off the minor road from Trewyn to Cwmyoy.  

Domestic  

 

The building is in two sections, the older being late medieval, claimed by Fox and Raglan to be "The only example of a mediaeval one-roomed house open to the roof in Monmouthshire" (Part I, p.90). This house may date from the early C16, but it was extended in c1610 by a taller and larger block when the older part was demoted to being a service wing. This section has now been abandoned other than for storage. The medieval house appears to have been open to the roof, and to have had a floor inserted in the C17.  

This house is in two quite distinct parts, one being lower and older than the other; only the taller part is now lived in, and the doorway between the two is now closed up. Both are built of roughly coursed red sandstone rubble, mostly painted. This part has a concrete tile roof reproducing stone tiles, the lower section is roofed in corrugated steel sheeting. The original section is a tiny single cell block (The building measures 19'9" x 25'3" externally) with a plank door in a plain frame and a 6-light oak mullioned window to the left, both with oak lintels. Mullions with hollow chamfers, two are modern reproduction. Small lean-to shed with stone tile roof to right. End gable stack weathered for thatch. The gable end has an unglazed oak framed window of 3-lights under a timber lintel and with a dripmould over. This lights the stair and is an alteration. There is also a small drip to the left but it is unclear from the stonework whether there was a window below it. The rear wall has a long timber lintel with dripmould over an uncertain opening and a smaller one to the right with a small casement window. The c1610 section has two storeys and attic and seems originally to have been a single cell cross-gable block but the roof has been partially reconstructed so that it now has three gables rather than four. The entrance elevation abuts the old house with the door set at right angles to the front wall of this. The doorway has an old dripmould over it, but it has been partly reconstructed and the door is modern. Small 2-light casement on the floor above. The left gable has a 4-light oak mullioned window on each floor with a plain single light one in the attic. The windows are mainly reproduction with chamfered mullions. Dripmoulds over all. Diamond set stack on the gable. The next gable has a projection for the stair against the main stack; a 2-light window with dripmould on each flight. Beyond the stack there is a modern timber casement window on each floor but again with dripmoulds. The stack is topped by a large diamond set shaft with weathered cap. The garden elevation has modern patio doors under a long stone drip. This unusually large opening suggests a 6-light window originally and demonstrates the grandeur of the ground floor room. Above is a modern casement under a drip in what would have been a 3-light window.  

The original house appears to have been an open hall into which a fireplace, an upper floor and a doorway through to the new part of the house was inserted. The floor slopes sharply and is paved over the natural rock outcrop. The single room was apparently open to the roof and without a fireplace since the original roof timbers are all heavily smoke blackened. This smoke blackening is evenly spread and there is little indication of whether there was a crog-loft, but presumably there was (see Fox and Raglan). The roof has two raised cruck trusses, halved and pegged, with two tiers of trenched purlins and a ridge piece, many of the secondary rafters are also blackened. The ties have been removed, presumably when the floor was inserted. Introduced features are the fireplace with monolithic jambs and lintel (but see Fox and Raglan who point out that the fireplace has been made narrower to permit the stair; they say that it is original, but that would mean that the whole roof is reused); the hearth-stair which is not bonded into the wall, and the upper floor which can clearly be seen to have been inserted, particularly at the house end where brackets to carry a beam have been introduced into the wall. The floor joists are chamfered and have lamb's tongue stops, none of these timbers are blackened. Most of this introduced floor has since been removed. The early C17 extension is a square block with one room on the ground floor, two above and an attic. The ground floor room must have been quite grand with its 6-light window, but all features except the stair door are now modern. The ceiling in on RSJ's and the floor above has been renewed. The staircase is particularly good with stone treads on the lower flight and solid oak ones to the attic, the soffits of these have been carefully shaped to give headroom. The doors at the bottom of each flight are plank with canted heads, the doorhead of the lower flight is carefully shaped in oak.The first floor ceiling beams are chamfered with pyramid (broach) stops, the attic floor may have the original boards but is covered over. The roof has principal rafters with trenched purlins, originally to give a cross-gabled roof, but this has been altered as above.  

Graded II* for the rarity of the original house and the good quality of the addition of c1610.