The Dutch Cottage is an octagonal-shaped cottage located in Rayleigh, Essex, England. It is a Grade II listed building. [1] It is both the smallest and the oldest council house in the United Kingdom. [2]
The Dutch Cottage is an octagonal-shaped cottage located in Rayleigh, Essex, England. It is a Grade II listed building. [1] It is both the smallest and the oldest council house in the United Kingdom. [2]
The cottage's history is the subject of dispute. Above the front door is an inscription which reads "1621", suggesting its year of construction. Nevertheless, surveyors, architects and historians who have studied the cottage have opined that it was not built until the eighteenth century, more specifically around 1740. [3] [4] It takes its name from the association of this type of house with the seventeenth-century Dutch immigrants who constructed many of the sea walls of the south Essex coast. [5] The house is of similar construction to those at Castle Point nearby. [1]
The unusual octagonal structure is said to serve several functions. It is strong, relatively easy to thatch, and provides the occupants with a more panoramic view. Also, for the superstitious, the lack of right angles prevented evil spirits from lurking in wait around a corner. [3] The house was in private ownership until 1964. [6] It was purchased by the local council in 1965. [7]
Owners Rochford District Council opened the cottage to residential tenant applicants in 2008 for £75 per week in rent, on condition that they would make the property available for pre-arranged guided tours every Wednesday afternoon. [2] In 2017 a heritage plaque was installed. [8]
The octagonal building has a timber frame on a brick plinth. [1] It is approximately 20 feet (6.1 m) wide. [9] It has one storey, a bedroom in the attic which is beneath the thatched roof, and a circular brick chimney. [1]
Rochford is a town in Essex, England, 43 miles (69 km) from London and 21 miles (34 km) from Chelmsford, the county town. At the 2011 census, the civil parish, which includes the town and London Southend Airport, had a population of 8,471.
Rayleigh is a market town and civil parish in Essex, England, between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, 32 miles (51 km) east of central London. It had a population of 32,150 at the census in 2011.
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Hockley is a large village and civil parish in Essex in the East of England located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, or, more specifically, between Rayleigh and Rochford. It came to prominence during the coming of the railway in the 1890s and at the 2001 census had a population of 13,616 people, reducing to 9,616 at the 2011 Census, many of whom commute to London. The parish of Hockley itself has a population of 8,909, while the urban area runs into the neighbouring parish of Hawkwell. Hockley railway station serves the village.
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The River Roach is a river that flows entirely through the English county of Essex. It is one of four main streams that originate in the Rayleigh Hills to the west, and flow east. They then flow towards the centre of the Rochford Basin, a circular feature which may have been caused by an asteroid impact in the Late Oligocene or Early Miocene periods. To the east of Rochford, the river becomes tidal, and is governed by the Crouch Harbour Authority. It joins the River Crouch between Wallasea Island and Foulness Island. To the west of Rochford, there is some doubt as to which of the four streams is officially the Roach.
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