MEM22344 - Retaining wall to southwest of Royal Castle Hotel, Castle Hill, Lynton (Building)

Gate piers and retaining walls. Early and later C19. Granite piers, rubble or rendered rubble walls. The main retaining wall, in rubble, runs up Castle Hill, across the full width of the site, with a section setting-in at an angle towards the top, and dying out to one of the set-back gate piers at the left-hand. The upper part of the wall, above a bold roll-mould, is smooth rendered, and capped with very large crenellations, with horizontal tops, but a series of breaks stepping down with the hill slope. To the left is an octagonal pier with oversailing crenellated crown, and with a small blind lancet on the shaft; this rises to approx 2.5m height. A similar pier, with its crown at the same level, and much shorter shaft because of the rise in the levels, lies to the left, and is free-standing, approx 1.5m from a further small section of retaining wall, partly on the street, and partly returning behind the pier; this is in rubble with crenellation similar to the main section of wall. There is a third, free-standing granite gate pier near the right-hand end of the site, but set well back from the road, at the terrace level. This has a heavy pyramid capping to the octagonal shaft. The piers are in material and detail similar to the porch to the hotel (qv). [1] Granite entrance piers and boundary wall of rubble-stone, part rendered, and ranging in date from early to late 19th century. The former are octagonal with over-sailing crenellated crowns with a further one set back from the road to the right at terrace level and with pyramid cap to the octagonal shaft. The major part of the wall is retaining with a shorter free standing section and is capped with very large crenellations throughout most of its length. [2] The walls were visited in April 2012 as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor's Listed Buildings 2012-13. It received a BAR score of 5A. [3] The walls are mentioned in the 2019 Conservation Area Appraisal for Lynton. [4]