The Duke of Sussex, Acton Green is a public house, opened in 1898, in the northern

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...

district of Acton Green. It is prominently situated on a corner facing the common. The

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

building is "elaborately decorated" to a design by the pub architects Shoebridge & Rising.

Architecture

Exterior

The current Duke of Sussex public house was built in 1897 by the Cannon Brewery,

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The well after which it was named was redisco ...

, and opened in 1898. On the corner of Beaconsfield Road and Acton Lane, it faces the north of Acton Green common; it replaced an earlier beerhouse, in existence by 1842. The "elaborately decorated" building was designed by the pub architects Shoebridge & Rising, and is

. It has two storeys, with dormer windows for the attic and cellars below. The main front faces east on to Beaconsfield Road, with three bays, two of them with dormers, separated by a small half-round Diocletian window, and the third an extension to house the kitchens and staircase. The walls are covered in white

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

, with the first storey hung with flat red tiles. The first storey and attic windows below the dormers are projecting "Ipswich oriels" in the style of Norman Shaw under ornamental cornices. The ground floor bar area has big arched windows, and an elaborate corner doorway; the doorway to the north is adorned with ornamental ironwork. File:Duke of Sussex Corner Doorway.jpg, Ornamented corner doorway File:Duke of Sussex AD 1898 brick cartouche.jpg, 'AD 1898' brick cartouche File:Duke of Sussex decorative pediment.jpg, Decorative pediment File:Duke of Sussex ornamental glass.jpg, Ornamental glass File:Duke of Sussex ornamental ironwork.jpg, Ornamental ironwork

Interior

The interior, formerly four bar rooms, is now open-plan with a central bar. Parts of the original interior partitioning survive, providing "an unusually rich, turn-of-the-century pub interior". From the north doorway the floor is paved with mosaic, forming a path that leads to the former billiard room. The room, now used as the restaurant, has a large skylight with arched cast-iron brackets and a panelled wooden border decorated with painted swags and cherubs.

Public house

The pub is named for Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773–1843), son of King George III and uncle of Queen Victoria. The business describes itself as a "pub and dining room" with a beer garden. Its menu includes tapas and other Spanish dishes. The Good Pub Guide calls it an "attractive Victorian local with unexpectedly large back garden", noting the horseshoe-shaped central counter, the chandeliers and the "splendid skylight". It mentions the "interesting modern food including shared platters". The Harden's restaurant guide calls the Duke of Sussex "a very traditional pub" with a "lovely patio garden, ideal for the summer".

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found the pub "lively" with good beer, but especially admired the "beautiful restaurant room" with its skylight and "cherubs to acknowledge its loftiness". It liked the range of tapas and Spanish main dishes, as well as the cheeseboard with both familiar and less usual Spanish varieties.

References

External links

* {{Coord, 51.4963, N, 0.2641, W, display=title Pubs in the London Borough of Ealing Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Ealing Grade II listed pubs in London Buildings and structures in Chiswick Buildings and structures completed in 1897