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The Architecture of Great Britain

The architecture of Great Britain has a long history, and over that history architecture has ranged from the simplest hovel to the most elaborate palace. The first architect of the English Renaissance was Inigo Jones. He went to Italy twice, once in 1600 and again in 1613; he returned a thoroughgoing Palladian, and not a follower of the Early Baroque. He built a Banqueting Hall at Whitehall in London that conforms in every respect to the principles embodied in Palladio's treatise, though it does not copy any specific building by Palladio. The building is rather symmetrical, self-sufficient, and more like a Renaissance palazzo than any other building above the Alps. The style of Jones is supported by Palladio's authority as a theorist, and it stood as a beacon of classicist orthodoxy in England for two centuries (Janson 602).

The next major architect of England was Christopher Wren, and much of the classicism of Jones can be seen in works by Wren such as St. Paul's Cathedral. Sir Christopher Wren was the greatest English architect of the late seventeenth century. The second-story windows in the structure along with the dome are reminiscent of Bramante's Tempietto. Wren was an unorthodox prodigy who first studied anatomy, mathematics, and astronomy. He was esteemed by Sir Isaac Newton. He did not turn seriously to architecture until he was 30 years of age. He might have remained an amateur architect if the great London fire of 1666 had not destroyed the Gothic cathedral of St. Paul and many lesser churches. After the fire, however, he was named to the royal commission for rebuilding the city. A few years later he started his designs for St. Paul's. The tradition of Inigo Jones only provided a starting point for this process. Wren only made one trip abroad, and at that time he visited Paris at the time of the dispute over completion of the Louvre. He must have sided with Perrault, whose design for the East Front is re...

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The Architecture of Great Britain. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 08:15, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1691887.html