Georgian architecture

Very grand terrace houses atThe Circus, Bath(1754), with basement"areas"and a profusion of columns.

Georgian architectureis the name given in mostEnglish-speaking countriesto the set ofarchitectural stylescurrent between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first fourBritish monarchsof theHouse of Hanover,George I,George II,George III,andGeorge IV,who reigned in continuous succession from August 1714 to June 1830.

The Georgian cities of the British Isles wereEdinburgh,Bath,pre-independenceDublin,andLondon,and to a lesser extentYorkandBristol.^[1]The style was revived in the late 19th century in the United States asColonial Revival architectureand in the early 20th century in Great Britain asNeo-Georgian architecture;in both it is also calledGeorgian Revival architecture.

In the United States, the termGeorgianis generally used to describe all buildings from the period, regardless of style; in Britain it is generally restricted to buildings that are "architectural in intention",^[2]and have stylistic characteristics that are typical of the period, though that covers a wide range.

The Georgian style is highly variable, but marked by symmetry and proportion based on theclassical architectureofGreeceandRome,as revived inRenaissance architecture.Ornament is also normally in the classical tradition, but typically restrained, and sometimes almost completely absent on the exterior. The period brought the vocabulary of classical architecture to smaller and more modest buildings than had been the case before, replacing Englishvernacular architecture(or becoming the new vernacular style) for almost all new middle-class homes and public buildings by the end of the period.

Georgian architecture is characterized by its proportion and balance; simple mathematical ratios were used to determine the height of a window in relation to its width or the shape of a room as a double cube. Regularity, as withashlar(uniformly cut) stonework, was strongly approved, imbuing symmetry and adherence to classical rules: the lack of symmetry, where Georgian additions were added to earlier structures remaining visible, was deeply felt as a flaw, at least beforeJohn Nashbegan to introduce it in a variety of styles.^[3]Regularity of housefronts along a street was a desirable feature of Georgian town planning. Until the start of theGothic Revivalin the early 19th century, Georgian designs usually lay within theClassical orders of architectureand employed a decorative vocabulary derived from ancient Rome or Greece.

Characteristics

In towns, which expanded greatly during the period, landowners turned intoproperty developers,and rows of identicalterraced housesbecame the norm.^[4]Even the wealthy were persuaded to live in these in town, especially if provided with asquare of gardenin front of the house. There was an enormous amount of building in the period, all over the English-speaking world, and the standards of construction were generally high. Where they have not been demolished, large numbers of Georgian buildings have survived two centuries or more, and they still form large parts of the core of cities such asLondon,Edinburgh,Dublin,Newcastle upon TyneandBristol.

The period saw the growth of a distinct and trained architectural profession; before the mid-century "the high-sounding title, 'architect' was adopted by anyone who could get away with it".^[5]This contrasted with earlier styles, which were primarily disseminated among craftsmen through the direct experience of the apprenticeship system. But most buildings were still designed by builders and landlords together, and the wide spread of Georgian architecture, and the Georgian styles ofdesignmore generally, came from dissemination throughpattern booksand inexpensive suites ofengravings.Authors such as the prolificWilliam Halfpenny(active 1723–1755) had editions in America as well as Britain.

A similar phenomenon can be seen in the commonality of housing designs in Canada and the United States (though of a wider variety of styles) from the 19th century through the 1950s, using pattern books drawn up by professional architects that were distributed by lumber companies and hardware stores to contractors and homebuilders.^[6]

From the mid-18th century, Georgian styles were assimilated into anarchitectural vernacularthat became part and parcel of the training of everyarchitect,designer,builder,carpenter,masonandplasterer,from Edinburgh toMaryland.^[7]

Styles

Georgian succeeded theEnglish Baroqueof SirChristopher Wren,SirJohn Vanbrugh,Thomas Archer,William Talman,andNicholas Hawksmoor;this in fact continued into at least the 1720s, overlapping with a more restrained Georgian style. The architectJames Gibbswas a transitional figure, his earlier buildings are Baroque, reflecting the time he spent inRomein the early 18th century, but he adjusted his style after 1720.^[8]Majorarchitectsto promote the change in direction from Baroque wereColen Campbell,author of the influential bookVitruvius Britannicus(1715–1725);Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlingtonand his protégéWilliam Kent;Isaac Ware;Henry Flitcroftand theVenetian Giacomo Leoni,who spent most of his career in England.

Other prominent architects of the early Georgian period includeJames Paine,Robert Taylor,andJohn Wood, the Elder.The EuropeanGrand Tourbecame very common for wealthy patrons in the period, and Italian influence remained dominant,^[9]though at the start of the periodHanover Square, Westminster(1713 on), developed and occupied byWhigsupporters of the new dynasty, seems to have deliberately adopted German stylistic elements in their honour, especially vertical bands connecting the windows.^[10]

The styles that resulted fall within several categories. In the mainstream of Georgian style were bothPalladian architecture—and its whimsical alternatives,GothicandChinoiserie,which were theEnglish-speaking world's equivalent of EuropeanRococo.From the mid-1760s a range ofNeoclassicalmodes were fashionable, associated with the British architectsRobert Adam,James Gibbs, SirWilliam Chambers,James Wyatt,George Dance the Younger,Henry Hollandand SirJohn Soane.John Nashwas one of the most prolific architects of the late Georgian era known asRegency style,he was responsible for designing large areas of London.^[11]Greek Revival architecturewas added to the repertory, beginning around 1750, but increasing in popularity after 1800. Leading exponents wereWilliam WilkinsandRobert Smirke.

In Britain,brickorstoneare almost invariably used;^[12]brick is often disguised withstucco.The Georgian terraces of Dublin are noted for their almost uniform use of red brick, for example, whereas equivalent terraces in Edinburgh are constructed from stone.^[13]In America and other colonies wood remained very common, as its availability and cost-ratio with the other materials was more favourable. Raked roofs were mostly covered in earthenware tiles untilRichard Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhynled the development of theslate industry in Walesfrom the 1760s, which by the end of the century had become the usual material.^[14]

Types of buildings

Houses

Westover Plantation- Georgian country house on a James River plantation in Virginia

Versions of revivedPalladian architecturedominatedEnglish country housearchitecture. Houses were increasingly placed in grand landscaped settings, and large houses were generally made wide and relatively shallow, largely to look more impressive from a distance. The height was usually highest in the centre, and the Baroque emphasis on corner pavilions often found on the continent generally avoided. In grand houses, an entrance hall led to steps up to apiano nobileormezzaninefloor where the main reception rooms were. Typically the basement area or "rustic", with kitchens, offices and service areas, as well as male guests with muddy boots,^[15]came some way above ground, and was lit by windows that were high on the inside, but just above ground level outside. A single block was typical, with perhaps a small court for carriages at the front marked off by railings and a gate, but rarely a stonegatehouse,or side wings around the court.

Windows in all types of buildings were large and regularly placed on a grid; this was partly to minimizewindow tax,which was in force throughout the period in Great Britain. Some windows were subsequently bricked-in. Their height increasingly varied between the floors, and they increasingly began below waist-height in the main rooms, making a smallbalconydesirable. Before this the internal plan and function of the rooms can generally not be deduced from the outside. To open these large windows thesash window,already developed by the 1670s, became very widespread.^[16]Corridorplans became universal inside larger houses.^[17]

Internal courtyards became more rare, except beside the stables, and the functional parts of the building were placed at the sides, or in separate buildings nearby hidden by trees. The views to and from the front and rear of the main block were concentrated on, with the side approaches usually much less important. The roof was typically invisible from the ground, though domes were sometimes visible in grander buildings. Therooflinewas generally clear of ornament except for abalustradeor the top of apediment.^[18]Columns orpilasters,often topped by a pediment, were popular for ornament inside and out,^[19]and other ornament was generally geometrical or plant-based, rather than using the human figure.

Inside ornament was far more generous, and could sometimes be overwhelming.^[20]Thechimneypiececontinued to be the usual main focus of rooms, and was now given a classical treatment, and increasingly topped by a painting or a mirror.^[21]Plasterworkceilings,^[22]carved wood, and bold schemes of wallpaint formed a backdrop to increasingly rich collections of furniture, paintings,porcelain,mirrors, andobjets d'artof all kinds.^[23]Wood-panelling, very common since about 1500, fell from favour around the mid-century, andwallpaperincluded very expensive imports from China.^[24]

Smaller houses in the country, such as vicarages, were simple regular blocks with visible raked roofs, and a central doorway, often the only ornamented area. Similar houses, often referred to as "villas" became common around the fringes of the larger cities, especially London,^[25]and detached houses in towns remained common, though only the very rich could afford them in central London.

In towns even most better-off people lived in terraced houses, which typically opened straight onto the street, often with a few steps up to the door. There was often an open space, protected by iron railings, dropping down to the basement level, with a discreet entrance down steps off the street for servants and deliveries; this is known as the"area".^[26]This meant that the ground floor front was now removed and protected from the street and encouraged the main reception rooms to move there from the floor above. Often, when a new street or set of streets was developed, the road and pavements were raised up, and the gardens oryardsbehind the houses remained at a lower level, usually representing the original one.^[27]

Town terraced houses for all social classes remained resolutely tall and narrow, each dwelling occupying the whole height of the building. This contrasted with well-off continental dwellings, which had already begun to be formed of wide apartments occupying only one or two floors of a building; such arrangements were only typical in England when housing groups of batchelors, as inOxbridgecolleges, the lawyers in theInns of Courtor theAlbanyafter it was converted in 1802.^[28]In the period in question, only inEdinburghwere working-class purpose-builttenementscommon, though lodgers were common in other cities. A curvingcrescent,often looking out at gardens or a park, was popular for terraces where space allowed. In early and central schemes of development, plots were sold and built on individually, though there was often an attempt to enforce some uniformity,^[29]but as development reached further out schemes were increasingly built as a uniform scheme and then sold.^[30]

The late Georgian period saw the birth of thesemi-detachedhouse, planned systematically, as asuburbancompromise between the terraced houses of the city and the detached "villas" further out, where land was cheaper. There had been occasional examples in town centres going back to medieval times. Most early suburban examples are large, and in what are now the outer fringes of Central London, but were then in areas being built up for the first time.Blackheath,Chalk FarmandSt John's Woodare among the areas contesting being the original home of the semi.^[31]SirJohn Summersongave primacy to the Eyre Estate of St John's Wood. A plan for this exists dated 1794, where "the whole development consists ofpairs of semi-detached houses,So far as I know, this is the first recorded scheme of the kind ". In fact the French Wars put an end to this scheme, but when the development was finally built it retained the semi-detached form," a revolution of striking significance and far-reaching effect ".^[32]

Churches

Until theChurch Building Act 1818,the period saw relatively few churches built in Britain, which was already well-supplied,^[33]although in the later years of the period the demand forNon-conformistand Roman Catholic places of worship greatly increased.^[34]Anglican churches that were built were designed internally to allow maximum audibility, and visibility, forpreaching,so the mainnavewas generally wider and shorter than in medieval plans, and often there were no side-aisles. Galleries were common in new churches. Especially in country parishes, the external appearance generally retained the familiar signifiers of a Gothic church, with a tower or spire, a large west front with one or more doors, and very large windows along the nave, but all with any ornament drawn from the classical vocabulary. Where funds permitted, a classical temple portico with columns and a pediment might be used at the west front. Interior decoration was generally chaste; however, walls often became lined with plaques and monuments to the more prosperous members of the congregation.^[35]

In the colonies new churches were certainly required, and generally repeated similar formulae. British Non-conformist churches were often more classical in mood, and tended not to feel the need for a tower or steeple.

The archetypal Georgian church isSt Martin-in-the-Fieldsin London (1720), by Gibbs, who boldly added to the classical temple façade at the west end a large steeple on top of a tower, set back slightly from the main frontage. This formula shocked purists and foreigners, but became accepted and was very widely emulated, at home and in the colonies,^[36]for example atSt Andrew's Church, Chennaiin India. And in Dublin, the extremely similarSt. George's Church, Dublin.

The 1818 Act allocated some public money for new churches required to reflect changes in population, and a commission to allocate it. Building ofCommissioners' churchesgathered pace in the 1820s, and continued until the 1850s. The early churches, falling into the Georgian period, show a high proportion ofGothic Revivalbuildings, along with the classically inspired.^[37]

Public buildings

Public buildings generally varied between the extremes of plain boxes with grid windows and Italian Late Renaissance palaces, depending on budget.Somerset Housein London, designed bySir William Chambersin 1776 for government offices, was as magnificent as any country house, though never quite finished, as funds ran out.^[38]Barracks and other less prestigious buildings could be as functional as the mills and factories that were growing increasingly large by the end of the period. But as the period came to an end many commercial projects were becoming sufficiently large, and well-funded, to become "architectural in intention", rather than having their design left to the lesser class of "surveyors".^[39]

Colonial Georgian architecture

Georgian architecture was widely disseminated in the English colonies during theGeorgian era.American buildings of the Georgian period were very often constructed of wood with clapboards; even columns were made of timber, framed up, and turned on an oversized lathe. At the start of the period the difficulties of obtaining and transporting brick or stone made them a common alternative only in the larger cities, or where they were obtainable locally.Dartmouth College,Harvard Universityand theCollege of William and Maryoffer leading examples of Georgian architecture in the Americas.

Unlike theBaroquestyle that it replaced, which was mostly used for palaces and churches, and had little representation in the British colonies, simpler Georgian styles were widely used by the upper and middle classes. Perhaps the best remaining house is the pristineHammond-Harwood House(1774) inAnnapolis,Maryland,designed by the colonial architectWilliam Bucklandand modelled on theVilla PisaniatMontagnana,Italyas depicted inAndrea Palladio'sI quattro libri dell'architettura( "The Four Books of Architecture" ).

After independence, in the formerAmerican colonies,Federal-style architecturerepresented the equivalent of Regency architecture, with which it had much in common.

InCanada,theUnited Empire Loyalistsembraced Georgian architecture as a sign of their fealty to Britain, and the Georgian style was dominant in the country for most of the first half of the 19th century.The Grange,for example, is a Georgian manor built inTorontoin 1817. InMontreal,English-born architectJohn Ostellworked on a significant number of remarkable constructions in the Georgian style such as theOld Montreal Custom Houseand theGrand séminaire de Montréal.

InAustralia,theOld Colonial Georgian residentialandnon-residentialstyles were developed in the period fromc. 1810– c. 1840.

Post-Georgian developments

After about 1840, Georgian conventions were slowly abandoned as a number of revival styles, includingGothic Revival,that had originated in the Georgian period, developed and contested inVictorian architecture,and in the case of Gothic became better researched, and closer to their originals. Neoclassical architecture remained popular, and was the opponent of Gothic in theBattle of the Stylesof the early Victorian period. In the United States the Federalist Style contained many elements of Georgian style, but incorporated revolutionary symbols.

In the early decades of the twentieth century when there was a growing nostalgia for its sense of order, the style was revived and adapted and in the United States came to be known as theColonial Revival.The revived Georgian style that emerged in Britain during the same period is usually referred to asNeo-Georgian;the work ofEdwin Lutyens^[40]^[41]andVincent Harrisincludes some examples. The British town ofWelwyn Garden City,established in the 1920s, is an example ofpasticheor Neo-Georgian development of the early 20th century in Britain. Versions of the Neo-Georgian style were commonly used in Britain for certain types of urban architecture until the late 1950s,Bradshaw Gass & Hope's Police Headquarters inSalfordof 1958 being a good example. Architects such asRaymond Erith,andDonald McMorranwere among the few architects who continued the neo-Georgian style into the 1960s. Both in the United States and Britain, the Georgian style is still employed by architects likeQuinlan Terry,Julian Bicknell,Ben Pentreath,Robert Adam Architects,and Fairfax andSammonsfor private residences. A debased form in commercial housing developments, especially in thesuburbs,is known in the UK asmock-Georgian.

Gallery

Ditchley HouseinOxfordshire,a country house.James Gibbs,1722
Connecticut HallatYale University,a relatively unornamented iteration of the Georgian style (1750)
Sutton Lodge,Sutton, London,once used by the Prince Regent,George IV of the United Kingdom^[42]
Georgian period townhouses in Pery Square,Newtown Pery,Limerick,Ireland,after 1769
Kedleston HallbyMatthew BrettinghamandRobert Adam,begun 1769, a largeEnglish country house
One ofRobert Adam's masterpieces, in a largely Georgian setting:Pulteney Bridge,Bath,1774
Carpenters' HallinPhiladelphiabyRobert Smith,1775 example ofAmerican colonial architecture
Royal Exchange, Dublin,1779
A former guildhall inDunfermline,Scotlandbuilt between 1805 and 1811
University HallofHarvard UniversitybyCharles Bulfinch(1815), exemplary of Georgian ornamental restraint
Western side ofBryanston Square,London, with its gardens. 1810-15
Late GeorgianRegency;the west curve ofPark Crescent, London,byJohn Nash,1806–21
The Grange,a Georgian manor inTorontobuilt for D'Arcy Boulton in 1817
St James' Church, Sydneyin Colonial Georgian architecture, built in 1824
Neo-Georgian -Chesterfield Town Hall(1938),Derbyshire,byBradshaw Gass & Hope
Rose Terrace,Perth, Scotland

Notes

^St John Parker, Michael. (2013).Life in Georgian Britain.Gloucestershire: Pitkin Publishing.ISBN 9780752491622.Retrieved3 May2021.
^A phrase used byJohn Summerson,distinguishing among commercial buildings, Summerson, 252
^Musson, 33–34, 52–53
^Summerson, 26–28, 73–86
^Summerson, 47–49, 47 quoted
^Reiff, Daniel D. (2001).Houses from Books.University Park, Pa.: Penn State University Press.ISBN 9780271019437.Retrieved28 February2017.
^Summerson, 49–51;The Center for Palladian Studies in America, Inc.,"Palladio and Patternbooks in Colonial America."Archived2009-12-23 at theWayback Machine
^Summerson, 61–70, and see index
^Jenkins (2003), xiv; Musson, 31
^Summerson, 73–74
^Summerson, see index on all these; Jenkins (2003), xv–xiv; Musson, 28–35
^Summerson, 54–56
^"Bricks - their part in the rise of man".The Irish Times.
^Summerson, 55
^Musson, 31; Jenkins (2003), xiv
^Musson, 73-76; Summerson, 46
^Bannister Fletcher, 420
^Musson, 51; Bannister Fletcher, 420
^Bannister Fletcher, 420
^Jenkins (2003), xv; Musson, 31
^Musson, 84–87
^Musson, 113–116
^Jenkins (2003), xv
^Musson, 101–106
^Summerson, 266–269
^Summerson, 44–45
^Summerson, 44–45
^Summerson, 45
^Summerson, 73–86
^Summerson, 147–191
^correspondence in The Guardian
^Summerson, 159-160
^Summerson, 57–72, 206–224; Jenkins (1999), xxii
^Summerson, 222–224
^Jenkins (1999), xx–xxii
^Summerson, 64–70
^Summerson, 212-221
^Summerson, 115–120
^Summerson, 47, 252–262, 252 quoted
^Elizabeth McKellar, Professor of Architectural and Design History at the Open University (30 September 2016)."You Didn't Know it was Neo-Georgian".
^"New Book Neo-Georgian Architecture 1880-1970: A Reappraisal by Julian Holder and Elizabeth".lutyenstrust.
^"Sutton Lodge Day Centre website".Archivedfrom the original on 2014-10-16.Retrieved2015-08-12.

References

Fletcher, BanisterandFletcher, Banister,A History of Architecture,1901 edn., Batsford
Esher, Lionel,The Glory of the English House,1991, Barrie and Jenkins,ISBN 0712636137
Jenkins, Simon(1999),England's Thousand Best Churches,1999, Allen Lane,ISBN 0-7139-9281-6
Jenkins, Simon(2003),England's Thousand Best Houses,2003, Allen Lane,ISBN 0-7139-9596-3
Musson, Jeremy,How to Read a Country House,2005, Ebury Press,ISBN 009190076X
Pevsner, Nikolaus.The Englishness of English Art,Penguin, 1964 edn.
SirJohn Summerson,Georgian London(1945), 1988 revised edition, Barrie & Jenkins,ISBN 0712620958.(Also see revised edition, edited byHoward Colvin,2003)

v t e Architecture of England
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Category

v t e Architecture of the United States
Native and indigenous	Mound Builders Pueblo
Colonial and post-colonial	Creole First Period Colonial Georgian Dutch Colonial French Colonial German Colonial Spanish Colonial Territorial
Early Republic	Adam Federal Jeffersonian Neoclassical Antebellum
Mid-19th century	Greek Revival Italianate Gothic Revival
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Post–World War II	Blobitecture Brutalist Deconstructivism Dingbat Earthship High-tech Mid-century modern Modern Neo-eclectic Neo-futurism Neomodern New Classical architecture Postmodern Ranch Shed style Tiny-house Usonian
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