ENGLISH ARCHITECTURE

English Architecture: Origins and Development

English Architecture: Origins and Development

Introduction

English architecture has been subject to a lot of change and evolution during the reigns of different Kings, but has remained a constant as choice among other styles as the favourite. The English country houses used to be owned by individuals who also had residence in London, as a sign of their prosperity. Country houses provided employment for the rural communities as well as providing the city folk a place to reside in the country when they felt they needed time away from the hustle bustle of London. There were a large amount of staff hired for indoors as well as the outdoors, and they were paid throughout the year regardless of the house being in usage or not. Manor houses enjoyed a peak period but there came a time after the agricultural depression of the last 19th century when country houses and owners faced a decline. Taxes as well as the after-effects of World War I saw the demolishment of a huge amount of houses. The houses that remained had to adapt to the changes bought upon through the same after effects (Miers and Musson, 2009, pp.134-136).

The English often used the terms “country house” and “stately home” interchangeably, and literary magazines that provided advice about home started to make the rounds in late 20th century, adding to the hype around such houses. There were several types of country houses that were developed with particular themes in mind, such as the houses Ascott in Buckhimghamshire, which were developed to create a harmonious effect of landscape symmetry. There were however, those that were meant to be used as status symbols, often being called “power houses” and did not pay regard to the landscape or other civilization around them. In this paper, I will discuss the origins as well as the evolution of such country houses as well as the architectural changes that took place leading back to and Jacobean architecture(Girouard, 2009, pp.16-23).

Discussion

The gothic and Tudor architecture has had an obvious effect on the English architecture, as there was a certain aspect to stability in that style of building. Henry VIII famously granted ecclesiastical houses to his favourites among his people, which were later converted into country homes bought by private parties. These properties were given particular names such as Castle, Manson, Park, house, Manor and so on, to distinguish their importance amidst others. The rule of Elizabeth I saw the development of properly architect-designed mansions where the art movements of the time. One such movement mostly reflected in English country house architecture is the Renaissance, which used the fantastical “turrets and towers” theme in its style. The Palladian style during the reign of Charles I also changed the face of architecture at the time, and is still seen in some areas of England The baroque style reared its head by late 18th century, but its reign was brief an was overtaken by neoclassicism in which architects such as Robert Adam made ...