King Street is a 17th-century street in the historic city centre of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England. The street lies just south of the old town wall and was laid out in 1650 to develop the Town Marsh, the area then lying between the south or Marsh Wall and the Avon. The north side was developed first and the south side in 1663, when the street was named after Charles II. The section of the city wall is a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

Historic buildings

Among the historic buildings in the street are: * The

Llandoger Trow The Llandoger Trow is a historic public house in Bristol, south-west England. Dating from 1664, it is on King Street, between Welsh Back and Queen Charlotte Street, near the old city centre docks. Named by a sailor who owned the pub after Llando ...

, originally merchants' houses, now a historic public house (1664) *

The Old Duke The Old Duke is a jazz and blues venue and pub in the England, English city of Bristol. Live music is played every night of the week, admission is free and it hosts an annual Jazz Festival. The pub's name is a reference to the classic American ja ...

, a public house (1780s) *

St Nicholas' Almshouses St Nicholas' Almshouses () is a historic building on King Street, Bristol, England. It was built in 1652 to 1656, extended in the 19th century and restored 1961 by Donald Insall. The foundations of a bastion of the City Wall were revealed durin ...

(1652) * Theatre Royal (1766) and Coopers' Hall (1743), both now part of the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

. * Number 6 an example of an early Georgian frontage. It dates from c. 1665, but the present early Georgian frontage dates from about 1720. It is thought that the original roof had

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

s, like those seen on the neighbouring 7 and 8, which were cut back to form the

hip In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint. The hip region is ...

s seen today. The interior retains many eighteenth century features. It has been designated by a grade II*

listed building 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 ...

. * Numbers 7–8 date from 1665. During restoration in 1976 it was found that recycled ships timbers had been used for much of the

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

studding and bracing in the buildings, and barrel staves had been used as lathes. The

oriel window An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supported by corbels, bracket (architecture), brackets, or similar cantilevers, an oriel window is most commonly found pro ...

of number 7 is an original feature, whilst the windows of number 8 were replaced during the eighteenth century. 7 and 8 King Street have been designated a grade II*

. * Numbers 14–15 were built around 1860 as a warehouse and are now occupied by a restaurant and offices. The contemporary number 32 is of similar design. It has been designated a grade II

. * Number 16 is a historic house, which now serves as an office. It dates from around 1665 and was designated a Grade II* listed building by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

on 8 January 1959. The house is a timber-framed four storey building with a basement, and features an 18th-century timber parapet in front of the gable on the roof. The ground floor front dates to the 19th century. The inner staircase, to the right of the centre features "turned

baluster A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its cons ...

s and square

newel A newel, also called a central pole or support column, is the central supporting pillar of a staircase. It can also refer to an upright post that supports and/or terminates the handrail of a stair banister (the "newel post"). In stairs having str ...

s with ball

finial A finial (from '' la, finis'', end) or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature. In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a d ...

s and roll-topped rail, door frames with

ovolo The ovolo or echinus is a convex decorative molding profile used in architectural ornamentation. Its profile is a quarter to a half of a more or less flattened circle. The 1911 edition of ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' says:adapted from Ital. ''u ...

mouldings and

cyma Cyma may refer to either: * An S-shaped decorative molding, used in the cymatium of Greek architecture * CYMA – Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia, a Canadian-run humanitarian program * CYMA (software), accounting packages * Cyma Watches, a Swiss ...

stops". * Number 17 dates from 1665 and has been designated a grade II*

. Together with number 18 it is operated as The Famous Royal Navy Volunteer

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

. * Numbers 19 and 20 are now partly occupied by the

King William Ale House The King William Ale House is a historic public house situated on King Street in Bristol, England. It dates from 1670 and was originally part of a row of three houses. The three have been designated by English Heritage as a grade II* listed b ...

. * Number 32 is a former warehouse building. It was built around 1860, and is now occupied by a restaurant. The contemporary 14 and 15 King Street are of similar design. It has been designated a grade II

. * Numbers 33–34 (1653) the only surviving buildings of the original development, including parts of the old town wall * Number 35 was built around 1870 and is an example of the

Bristol Byzantine Bristol Byzantine is a variety of Byzantine Revival architecture that was popular in the city of Bristol from about 1850 to 1880. Many buildings in the style have been destroyed or demolished, but notable surviving examples include the Colston ...

style. A former cork warehouse, it is now an office/studio space. It has been designated a grade II

. * Old Library (1738–40) probably by

James Paty the Elder James Paty the Elder (sometimes spelled Patty) (died 1748) was an English mason, builder and architect. He was the first in a succession of members of the Paty family prominent in the building of 18th century Bristol Bristol () is a ...

, now a Chinese restaurant *

Merchant Venturers Almshouses Merchant Venturers Almshouses () is a historic building on King Street, Bristol, King Street, Bristol, England. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building. History It was built around 1696 by the Society of Merchant Venturers for con ...

(1696–9)

Queen Square

Queen Square lies just to the south of King Street, and a small 21st century open space connects the west end of King Street to the north-west corner of Queen Square.

References

Bibliography

* Andrew Foyle, ''Bristol'', Pevsner Architectural Guides (2004)

External links

{{commons category, King Street, Bristol Buildings and structures in Bristol Streets in Bristol Scheduled monuments in Bristol