No2 Royal Cresent

During the 18th Century Bath was an extremely fashionable place and many well known people would take a house for The Season. In those days it took two days to get to the city by coach from London, as the railway did not arrive until 1840. It is understood that the Crescent did not achieve its “Royal” status until the end of the 18th Century, when it was named after the Duke of York who resided at numbers 1 and 16.
The Crescent was particularly popular with politicians, artists, novelists and poets and also with members of the Royal family who included Queen Anne and George II's children. Of the 30 houses in the Royal Crescent, around half a dozen remain as complete private houses.

Bath is also an important cultural centre with first class theatre, international music and literature festivals, two universities and an enviable selection of fashionable shops and restaurants.

The Royal Crescent at Bath commands magnificent views overlooking the Royal Victoria Park and the city beyond. It was built to a master plan devised by John Wood the Elder (1704 — 1754). He died before work started, and his son John Wood the Younger (1727 — 1781) who had worked alongside his father, completed the grand design which took eight years to build from 1767 — 1775.

The Crescent comprises 30 houses all of similar design externally. However, each house was individually built which meant that all the interiors were quite different. On its completion the 500 foot curve of the Crescent was considered one of Europe's greatest architectural masterpieces.

Number 2 Royal Crescent was one of the many buildings to suffer damage in the second world war. During the blitz in 1942, the house took a direct hit from a fire bomb and the entire building caught alight. The interior did not survive. The rebuilding in 1950 allowed an unsympathetic, utilitarian interior to replace the fine Georgian original.
The Shepperton Group — realising the importance of the building and the unfortunate legacy of the 50's rebuild have brought together a visionary team including Architect Simon Moray-Jones whose best known work is the wonderful transformation of Babington House.
The unusual provenance of the house has led to a totally new approach — in some respects the interior space is a clean slate, influenced only by proportion and position, whilst the facade is a part of one of the most important Georgian terraces in the Country.

The contemporary restoration of Number 2 Royal Crescent will provide five individual two-bedroom apartments in one of the finest addresses in Europe. The elegance and comfort of the original home will be reinstated, and whilst common themes run through the refurbishment, each apartment will have an individual character. Bathroom and kitchen styles and fittings have been selected with care; special consideration has been given to the communal areas in terms of materials and design, and the highest standard of workmanship will prevail throughout. Number 2 Royal Crescent will once again provide desirable, quality homes worthy of the legacy left by the original architect, John Wood.

A Very Gracious Address