Bishop Lloyd's House facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bishop Lloyd's House
Bishop Lloyd's House in 2009
Location	41 Watergate Street, and 51/53 Watergate Row, Chester, Cheshire, England
OS grid reference	SJ 404 662
Built	13th–14th century
Rebuilt	17th century
Restored	1890s, 1973–77
Restored by	Thomas Lockwood (1890s)
Governing body	Chester Civic Trust
Listed Building – Grade I
Official name: No.41 Street and Nos.51 & 53 Row (Bishop Lloyd's House)
Designated	28 August 1955
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Bishop Lloyd's House (also called Bishop Lloyd's Palace) is a very old and special building in Chester, Cheshire, England. You can find it at 41 Watergate Street and 51/53 Watergate Row. It's so important that it's officially listed as a Grade I historic building. An expert named Nikolaus Pevsner even said it might be "perhaps the best" house in Chester.

This amazing house is built on two old stone cellars, called undercrofts, with wooden parts above them. A section of the famous Chester Rows is part of its first floor. Today, Bishop Lloyd's House is used for shops and meeting rooms. It's also the main office for the Chester Civic Trust.

History of Bishop Lloyd's House

This building started as two separate town houses. They were built on top of medieval undercrofts, which are like old basements. In the 17th century, these two buildings were joined together to make one big house.

The new house was different from older medieval homes. Instead of having the main living area on the Row level, the best rooms were on the floor above. The house is connected to George Lloyd. He was the Bishop of Chester from 1605 to 1615.

By the 1800s, the house had become quite old and worn out. Its beautiful carvings were covered with plaster. The house was even split into smaller apartments. It was almost falling apart.

In the 1890s, a man named Thomas Lockwood carefully restored the house. He made the left side of the house look more like the right side. He also added steps from the street up to the Row level. Another restoration project happened between 1973 and 1977 to keep the house in good shape.

What Bishop Lloyd's House Looks Like

Outside the House

The building looks like two separate houses, each with a pointed roof section called a gable. It has three main floors and an attic in each gable.

On the street level, the left side has a stone staircase with a fancy iron railing. At the Row level, there's a wooden handrail with decorative posts called balusters. Behind this is a shop front.

Look closely at the supports under the floor above. These are called brackets. They are carved with bearded giants, animals, and an owl! There are also lighter brackets shaped like figures.

Between the beam over the Row and the windows above, you'll see ten square panels. The windows are divided into three sections by tall, flat columns called pilasters. These are carved in a style from the Jacobean period. The windows are further divided by vertical wooden bars called mullions and horizontal bars called transoms. This creates a total of 27 small windowpanes.

Above the windows is a plaster band. In the attic, there's a three-part window surrounded by more square panels. The decorative boards along the edge of the roof, called bargeboards, are also carved.

The ground floor of the right side of the house has a shop with a central entrance. On each side are two strong supports called piers and a large, curved window with 18 panes.

At the Row level, there's a wooden railing and brackets with carvings similar to the left side. Above this, there are eight carved panels. The two middle panels show the coat of arms of King James I and the coat of arms of Sodor and Man. George Lloyd was a bishop there before coming to Chester. The date 1615 is also carved here.

To the left of these, three panels show carvings of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, and Abraham and Isaac from the Bible. To the right, another three panels show more biblical scenes.

On the floor above, four oak pilasters divide the windows into three sections. These windows have two mullions and one transom, making 18 panes in total. Above the windows is a carved beam. Over this beam are ten arched panels with carvings of heraldic beasts. In the attic, there's a three-part window. On each side of it are three carved panels, and above it are three plain panels. The bargeboards here are also carved, just like on the left side.

Inside the House

The two old cellars, or undercrofts, have walls made of red sandstone rocks. Their curved brick ceilings, called barrel vaults, were probably added in the 1700s.

From the Row level up to the third floor, there's a special staircase in a style called Chinese Chippendale. On the third floor, you'll find two rooms.

The larger room has a very fancy plaster ceiling from the 17th century and a huge fireplace. People think these might have been moved from the Bishop's Palace in Abbey Square after it was damaged during the Civil War.

The smaller room also has a plaster ceiling, but it's less ornate. It has designs like Tudor roses, horses, and starfish. Around the room, there's a decorative band called a frieze with carvings of sea-monsters. This room also has a smaller fireplace. Above the fireplace, in the overmantel, there's a carving of Cupid riding on a lion.

Bishop Lloyd's House Today

Today, you can find shops on the ground floor and at the Row level of Bishop Lloyd's House. The upper parts of the house are open to visitors for free at certain times. It also has two large meeting rooms that people can rent. The building is home to the Chester Civic Trust, an organization that helps protect Chester's historic buildings.

Images for kids

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  Bishop Lloyd's House before
  Lockwood's restoration

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  Row in front of Bishop Lloyd's House in 2008 showing the walkway and stallboard