page_title: Architecture of Wales
section_title: Sir Richard Clough and Flemish influence on houses in north-east Wales
hierarchical_section_title: Architecture of Wales / Renaissance houses / Sir Richard Clough and Flemish influence on houses in north-east Wales
caption_attribution_description: English: Plas Clough, Denbigh, by Moses Griffith c.1775. Plas Clough, near Denbigh, was built by Sir Richard Clough, partner of Sir Thomas Gresham. Clough, son of a Denbigh glover, was based in Antwerp from 1552 until 1567. He made the acquaintance of Cartographer Abraham Ortelius, whom he put in contact with the Humphrey Llwyd. Clough married Katherine of Berain, known as 'Mam Cymru' when he built Plas Clough as his primary residence immediately afterwards. He also built Bach-y-Graig, as a lodge-cum-office, with associated warehouse ranges. This is a photo of listed building number 1064.
context_page_description: Architecture of Wales is an overview of architecture in Wales from the Medieval period to the present day, excluding castles and fortifications, ecclesiastical architecture and industrial architecture. It covers the history of domestic, commercial, and administrative architecture.
context_section_description: The Renaissance comes to north-east Wales rather earlier with the building of Bach-y-Graig, at Tremeirchion  near Mold by Sir Richard Clough, an extremely wealthy merchant, who established the Royal Exchange in the City of London with his business partner Sir Thomas Gresham.  Clough had lived in Antwerp, and upon his return to Denbighshire in 1567 he built  Bach-y-graig and Plas Clough. Bach-y-Graig appears to have served as a lodge-cum-office, with large associated warehouse ranges set around a courtyard, the while the more traditional Plas Clough was clearly intended from the outset as his main house. The houses were built in the Antwerp style by Flemish craftsmen and were the first brick houses in Wales.
   
  On the evidence of the similarities of these houses with the Renaissance buildings Antwerp and also the Royal Exchange in London,  a strong case has been made out that their design should be attributed to the Flemish architect Henrick van Passe. The Crow stepping on the gable, at Plas Clough near Denbigh, is typical of Flemish architecture and was widely copied on the grander houses that were being built in north Wales at this time, such as Plas Mawr(1576–85) in Conwy and Faenol Fawr (1597), near St Asaph. Peter Smith maps the distribution of houses with stepped gables which are concentrated around Denbigh and Ruthin, Conwy, the Menai Straits and the southern part of Merionethshire. He lists a total of 48 examples.  Another feature seen at Bach-y- Graig was the arrangement of multiple dormer windows on the roof.  Another property with three tiers of dormer windows that belonged to Clough was the Myddelton Arms in the market place at Ruthin. Tiered dormer window were also copied on the roof of the older portion of the Manor House in Llanfyllin in Montgomeryshire.
caption: Plas Clough, Denbigh, by Moses Griffith c. 1775
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