Details
YORK
SE6051SE CITY WALLS
1112-1/22/5 City Wall from the Red Tower to
14/06/54 Fishergate Postern Tower
(Formerly Listed as:
The City Walls and Walmgate Bar)
(Formerly Listed as:
Fishergate Tower and Postern/
Fishergate Bar)
GV I
Includes: Fishergate Postern Tower PICCADILLY.
Includes: The Red Tower FOSS ISLANDS ROAD.
Includes: Fishergate Bar PARAGON STREET.
Includes: Walmgate Bar WALMGATE.
Defensive walls, gates, gatehouses and towers between The Red
Tower and Fishergate Postern Tower, including 5 intermediate
towers in addition to the 3 main towers.
Walls mid C14, restored 1857-58, 1864 and later. The Red Tower
built c1490, heavily restored and re-roofed 1857-8, restored
1958. Walmgate Bar and barbican C14 incorporating mid C12
gate, house added c1585, repaired 1645-48, restorations 1840
and later. Fishergate Bar incorporating earlier gate c1440,
blocked 1489-1827, restored 1961. Fishergate Postern c1440,
Tower c1505, re-roofed C17, restored 1838 and 1960.
All structures except The Red Tower of magnesian limestone
ashlar; The Red Tower of red-brown brick in random bond with
limestone dressings. House on Walmgate Bar timber-framed with
plastered infill: Bar has lead roof. The Red Tower and
Fishergate Postern Tower have hipped roofs of tile with
gablets and overhanging eaves.
EXTERIOR: walls carried on foundation arches, embedded in
rampart, and stepped with the slope, has chamfered plinth
where visible; short buttresses have offsets. Parapet is plain
or crenellated with sloped copings, and pierced with musket
loops or arrow slits, some canopied. On inner side, stone
paved walkway edged with moulded coping, carried on segmental
arches in places. Towers are rectangular with chamfered
plinths; some have cruciform arrow slits with oillets; all are
crenellated, one with merlons pierced with canopied arrow
slits. Inner side of tower at south angle has doorway with
chamfer-stopped jambs and segment-arched lintel.
The Red Tower: 2 storeys and attic. Entrance on inner side is
quoined and chamfered doorway with 4-centred head. Generally
ground floor openings are plain slits with ashlar sills and
lintels; first floor openings either segment-headed of brick
blocked by board shutters or cruciform slits with oillets cut
from ashlar blocks. One side has dummy garderobe projecting on
corbels. Attic windows are gabled dormers closed with board
shutters.
Walmgate Bar: 3-storey gate and gatehouse with 1-storey
barbican. Barbican has moulded plinth, weathered angle
buttresses, moulded corbel course to embattled parapet and
corbelled-out bartizans. Archway is chamfered and 2-centred
with moulded imposts. Parapet has central painted and carved
City of York arms in moulded and pedimented surround, over
defaced datestone originally dated AD.1684. Returns have
embattled parapets over hollow chamfered corbel courses.
Gatehouse front within barbican has chamfered round arch with
inscribed slate panel recording 1840 restoration above. Upper
storey between embattled bartizans joined by plain parapet has
reset painted and carved Royal Arms in moulded surround
flanked by 1-light windows. Square-headed doorways open to
barbican walkways. Moulded strings beneath upper storey and
parapet.
Gatehouse front to Walmgate: chamfered round arch on imposts
closed by massive wooden gates with wicket. Upper storeys
obscured by extension raised on Doric columns on tall
pedestals, carrying entablature with moulded cornice. First
and second floors flanked by tiered columns, Doric on first
floor with triglyph frieze blocks and moulded cornice, Ionic
on second floor beneath entablature with enriched cornice.
First floor window of 6 mullioned and transomed lights with
triglyph keyblock on first floor, on second floor similar
5-light window. Balustraded parapet with turned balusters and
square newels surmounted by obelisk finials. Access to
gatehouse through shouldered doorway on first floor of right
return.
Fishergate Bar: 1-storey gateway. Truncated wall finished with
plain parapet with sloped coping has round carriage arch of 2
chamfered orders with portcullis slot: on each side are
weathered block buttresses pierced by foot passages with
corbelled lintels. Parapet incorporates through datestone
recording construction of 60 yards of the city wall in 1487 by
Lord Mayor Sir William Todd, carved with the City of York
arms.
Fishergate Postern and Tower: 4-storey tower with postern
attached. Postern is pointed arch of 4 chamfered orders
incorporating portcullis slot. Tower, originally embattled,
part on moulded plinth, has clasping buttresses at two angles,
one incorporating projecting garderobe on first floor. Doorway
on inner side is chamfered with 4-centred head and C20
nail-studded door. Windows are slits in chamfered openings or
of 2 segment-arched lights in square-headed surround. Original
embrasures converted to unglazed windows by roof construction.
(An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in the City of York:
The Defences: HMSO: 1972-: 139-157).
Listing NGR: SE6069451256
