Sir Herbert Baker

This is the first full biography from childhood of the eminent British Architect Sir Herbert Baker. Written with the full cooperation of his family and with access to his archive and private papers, it gives an account of his remarkable life as the leading architect to the British Empire. From London, through the commemoration of the empire's war dead in France, via South Africa and Australia to India, he celebrated the might of an empire that once ruled a quarter of the world. He was an intimate friend of many of most fascinating men of his age, including Cecil Rhodes, Lawrence of Arabia, John Buchan, Jan Smuts and, of course, his fellow architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. After a Victorian architectural apprenticeship in London and on to becoming the most prolific architect of his age in South Africa, he built the new imperial capital of New Delhi in India with Lutyens, before returning to London. These built or rebuilt such landmark buildings as the Bank of England, South Africa House, India House, Rhodes House, and the stands for Lords Cricket Ground, as well as numerous churches and private houses.

This is the first full biography from childhood of the eminent British Architect Sir Herbert Baker. Written with the full cooperation of his family and with access to his archive and private papers, it gives an account of his remarkable life as the leading architect to the British Empire. From London, through the commemoration of the empire's war dead in France, via South Africa and Australia to India, he celebrated the might of an empire that once ruled a quarter of the world. He was an intimate friend of many of most fascinating men of his age, including Cecil Rhodes, Lawrence of Arabia, John Buchan, Jan Smuts and, of course, his fellow architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. After a Victorian architectural apprenticeship in London and on to becoming the most prolific architect of his age in South Africa, he built the new imperial capital of New Delhi in India with Lutyens, before returning to London. These built or rebuilt such landmark buildings as the Bank of England, South Africa House, India House, Rhodes House, and the stands for Lords Cricket Ground, as well as numerous churches and private houses.

The fifteen essays in this book explore the influence of imperialism in a range of urban centres, including London, Paris, Rome, Vienna, Marseilles, Glasgow and Seville. The first part on "imperial landscapes" is devoted to large-scale architectural schemes and monuments, including the Queen Victoria Memorial in London and the Vittoriano in Rome. In the second part, the focus is on imperial display throughout the city, from spectacular exhibitions and ceremonies, to more private displays of empire in suburban gardens. The final part considers the changing cultural and political identities in the imperial city, looking particularly at nationalism, masculinity and anti-imperialism.

This is the first comprehensive study of the reception of classical architecture in different regions of the world. Exploring the impact of colonialism, trade, slavery, religious missions, political ideology and intellectual/artistic exchange, the authors demonstrate how classical principles and ideas were disseminated and received across the globe. By addressing a number of contentious or unresolved issues highlighted in some historical surveys of architecture, the chapters presented in this volume question long-held assumptions about the notion of a universally accepted ‘classical tradition’ and its broadly Euro-centric perspective. Featuring thirty-two chapters written by international scholars from China, Europe, Turkey, North America, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand, the book is divided into four sections: 1) Transmission and re-conceptualisation of classical architecture; 2) Classical influence through colonialism, political ideology and religious conversion; 3) Historiographical surveys of geographical regions; and 4) Visual and textual discourses. This fourfold arrangement of chapters provides a coherent structure to accommodate different perspectives of classical reception across the world, and their geographical, ethnographic, ideological, symbolic, social and cultural contexts. Essays cover a wide geography and include studies in Italy, France, England, Scotland, the Nordic countries, Greece, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Germany, Poland, India, Singapore, China, the USA, Mexico, Brazil, New Zealand and Australia. Other essays in the volume focus on thematic issues or topics pertaining to classical architecture, such as ornament, spolia, humanism, nature, moderation, decorum, heresy and taste. An essential reference guide, The Routledge Handbook on the Reception of Classical Architecture makes a major contribution to the study of architectural history in a new global context.

This book explores how since colonial times South Africa has created its own vernacular classicism, both in creative media and everyday life.