The life and works of Sir Charles Barry — Context and Discussion

Plan of the Chapter. (A.) ORIGINAL BUILDINGS--Varieties of his Italian style--First manner--Reform Club--Manchester Athenæum--New wing at Trentham--Second manner--Bridgewater House--Third manner--Halifax Town Hall. (B.) CONVERSIONS AND ALTERATIONS--College of Surgeons--Walton House--Highclere House--Board of Trade--Architectural gardening--Trentham Hall--Duncombe Park--Harewood House--Shrubland Park--Cliefden House--Laying out of Trafalgar Square. (C.) DESIGNS CARRIED OUT BY OTHERS--Keyham Factory--Ambassador’s Palace at Constantinople--General remarks on his Italian architecture 89

Progress of the Gothic revival--Birmingham Grammar School--First acquaintance with Mr. Pugin and Mr. Thomas--Alterations at Dulwich College--Unitarian chapel at Manchester--Additions to University College, Oxford--Hurstpierpoint Church--Canford Manor--Gawthorpe Hall--Designs for Dunrobin Castle 128

THE NEW PALACE AT WESTMINSTER.

Plan of the Chapter. Section I. HISTORY OF THE COMPETITION--Burning of the old Houses of Parliament--Opening of the Competition for the New Building--Award of the Commissioners--Approved by the Select Committee of the Houses--Protest of the advocates of Classical Architecture--Critical controversy--Personal attacks on Mr. Barry--Meeting of unsuccessful Competitors--Presentation of Petition by Mr. Hume--Opposition quashed by Sir Robert Peel--Protest against it by Professor Donaldson and others. Section II. PROGRESS OF THE BUILDING--Difficulties as to the Foundation--Commission of Inquiry as to the Stone to be used--First Stone laid--Unavoidable delays--Committee of the Peers--Generous support of Earl of Lincoln--Committee of the Commons--Appointment of New Palace Commissioners--Appointment of Dr. Reid--Difficulties arising therefrom, and arbitration of Mr. Gwilt--The Great Clock--Competition and success of Mr. Dent--Professor Airy and Mr. E. B. Denison referees--Mr. Denison the chief Director--His tone and method of controversy--The Great Bell and its disasters--The Fine Arts Commission--The Architect’s exclusion from it--His scheme for the Decoration of the Building--The scheme of the Commissioners--Its ideal excellence and practical drawbacks--Connection with Mr. Pugin--Real nature of the aid given by him--Mr. Thomas and the stone carving--Mr. Meeson and the practical engineering--Other assistants in the work--Opening of the House of Peers--Opening and alteration of the House of Commons--The Architect knighted in 1852--The Great Tower hardly completed at his death. Section III. THE REMUNERATION QUESTION--Its points of public interest--General question of architectural percentage--Its bearing on the particular work--Original attempt at a bargain by Lord Bessborough--Accepted under protest--Re-opening of the question--First Minute of the Treasury, and reply--Mr. White acts for Sir C. Barry--Second Minute of the Treasury--Counter statement--Third Minute of the Treasury--Submitted to by Sir C. Barry--Protest of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and reply--Practice of the Government after Sir C. Barry’s death--General reference to the question of expenditure--Summing up of the chief points of the controversy 143

The NEW PALACE AT WESTMINSTER.

I. HISTORY OF THE GROWTH OF THE DESIGN.--Influence of external circumstances on the design--Lowness and irregularity of site--Limitation of choice to Elizabethan and Gothic styles--Choice of Perpendicular style--Original conception of the Plan--Question of restoration of St. Stephen’s Chapel--Use of Westminster Hall as the grand Entrance to the building--Simplicity of plan--Principle of symmetry and regularity dominant--Enlargement of Plan after its adoption--Conception of St. Stephen’s porch--The Central Hall--The Royal entrance and Royal Gallery--The House of Lords, its construction and decoration--The House of Commons, and its alteration--Great difficulty of the acoustic problem--Enlargement of public requirements--Alterations of design in the River Front--The Land Fronts--The Victoria Tower--The Clock Tower--General inclination to increase the upward tendency of the design, and the amount of decoration. II. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTUAL BUILDING.--Its dimensions--Its main lines of approach; the public approach--The Royal approach--The private approaches of Peers and Commons--General character of the plan--The external fronts--The towers--Criticisms on the building by independent authorities 236

CHIEF DESIGNS NOT EXECUTED.

Large number of designs not executed--Views of Metropolitan Improvement--Reasons for notice of such designs--Clumber Park--New Law Courts--National Gallery--Horse Guards--British Museum--General scheme laid before the late Prince Consort--Design for new Royal Academy--Crystal Palace--Alterations of Piccadilly and the Green Park--Prolongation of Pall Mall into the Green Park--Westminster Bridge--Extension of the New Palace at Westminster round New Palace Yard--GREAT SCHEME OF METROPOLITAN IMPROVEMENTS--Plan and description--General remarks thereon 266

GENERAL NOTICE OF PUBLIC LIFE.

Public action--His natural dislike of publicity--His characteristics as a Commissioner--Royal Academy--Scheme for Architectural Education--Royal Institute of British Architects--Scientific Societies--Royal Commission of 1851--Exposition Universelle of 1855--Professional arbitrations at Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Leeds--St. Paul’s Cathedral Committee 302

PRIVATE LIFE AND DEATH.

Leading events of his life--General habits of work--Domesticity and privacy of life--Acquaintances and friendships--Distaste of publicity--Leading features of character--Personal appearance--Failure of health--Death--Funeral in Westminster Abbey--Erection of Memorial Statue--Conclusion 323

(A.) List of Architectural Designs 355

(B.) Letter to his Royal Highness the Prince Consort as to the South Kensington Scheme 358

(C.) Papers on the Remuneration Controversy 369

(D.) List of Subscribers to the Memorial Statue 405

ERRATA. (Corrections made by etext transcriber.)

Page 109, line 23, _for_ “Berkshire” _read_ “Hampshire.”

Page 147, line 12, _for_ “November” _read_ “December.”

Pages 195, 196, transpose paragraphs beginning “As soon as,” &c., and “The first aid,” &c.

Page 259, line 32, _for_ “twenty-five” _read_ “twenty-nine,” and _for_ “thirty” _read_ “forty-three.”

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PORTRAIT OF SIR CHARLES BARRY _Frontispiece._

1. Plan of Travellers’ Club 82

2. View of Travellers’ Club 82

3. Plan of Reform Club 93

4. View of Reform Club 95

5. Plan of Bridgewater House 97