The work of the Historical Analysis and Research Team
4.15.1 Casework (make a selection from the sites below)
British Museum, London Borough of Camden
Sutton House
Marlborough House, Old Steine, Brighton
Board of Ordnance Magazines, Marchwood, Hampshire
St Edward's Hospital, Cheddleton, Staffordshire
St Augustine's Grange, Ramsgate, Kent
Preston Wynne
Peabody Islington Estate, London
Ightfield Barn, Whitchurch, Shropshire
Major Projects
Danson House, Bexley, Kent
Down House, Bromley, Kent
British Museum, London Borough of Camden
The major changes proposed for the British Museum in the wake of the move of the British Library to St Pancras will have a great impact on Sir Robert Smirke's neo-classical masterpiece. Extensive detailed research has been undertaken into a number of aspects relating to the fabric that is helping inform our responses to the proposals of Foster Associates.
Sutton House
Sutton House is a rare survival of a near-London courtier house built in 1535 for Sir Ralph Sadlier. HART undertook a detailed programme of investigation and analysis of the structure to assist and inform its preservation. The results of this analysis will be published shortly.
Marlborough House, Old Steine, Brighton
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At the request of the Historic Buildings Inspector, HART carried out research into the history of this Grade I house by Robert Adam, to inform comment on proposals for conversion into a restaurant/wine bar. Marlborough House was built in 1786, incorporating remains from an earlier (c 1765) double-pile plan house, and research, which was combined with a rapid fabric analysis, explored the wider urban and art historical contexts of the building in order to gain a fuller understanding of its relationship to the town and its significance in the work of Robert Adam. Although English Heritage did not object, the application was rejected by Brighton and Hove planning committee and is now the subject of an appeal, and our research is forming the basis for discussions about the building's future.
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Board of Ordnance Magazines, Marchwood, Hampshire
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One of the largest gunpowder stores in the country, the Marchwood magazines and depot on Southampton Water have declined since their closure in the early 1960s and the site is now in a serious state of decay. Research into the genesis of the depot at the end of the Napoleonic wars has established the historical significance of the site and will be used in helping encourage a sympathetic approach to the site's reuse.
St Edward's Hospital, Cheddleton, Staffordshire
St Edward's psychiatric hospital was designed and built between 1893 and 1897 by Giles, Gough, and Trollope, leaders in the design of lunatic asylums', and is a remarkably complete and very elegant example of the echelon or broad arrow plan favoured for this type of institution. The hospital was listed Grade II in 1997, and its future is now the subject of a dispute between representatives of the NHS executive and the local planning authority. Under the terms of the NHS Estate code, Historic buildings and the Health Service (1995), the view of English Heritage is being sought on the special interest of this building, in particular to differentiate those parts of the site of primary and secondary architectural or historical importance from those that positively detract from this importance. HART is now undertaking this survey, which is the first of its kind conducted by English Heritage, and it is hoped that this work will establish a workable format for the future.
St Augustine's Grange, Ramsgate, Kent
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The Grange was designed and built between 1843 and 1844 by one of Britain's greatest architects, designers, and theorists, Augustus Pugin (1812-52), as his own home. It is listed Grade I and forms part of a group of buildings associated with the Pugin family: St Augustine's Roman Catholic Church, built at Pugin's own expense (1845-51); the priest's house (1849), and the monastery, St Augustine's Abbey, (1860-61), designed by Pugin's eldest son for the Benedictine monks who took over the church. The Grange was in almost continuous occupation by the Pugin family from 1843 until 1928. For a while it was used as a school building and as auxiliary accommodation by the monks. In the 1980s the house reverted to family occupation and was bought by the Landmark Trust in 1997. The Trust is keen to refurbish the building for use as holiday lets and approached English Heritage for pre-application advice, prior to making an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund. HART has researched the architectural history of the house that highlighted the areas altered or extended by the later members of the Pugin family, and evaluated these alterations, to inform negotiations concerning the extent of new work necessary for adaptation of use as holiday lets.
Preston Wynne
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Peabody Islington Estate, London
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The Peabody Trust was founded in London in 1862 by George Peabody, the wealthy American banker and philanthropist. It is the largest charity and housing association dedicated to housing the poor in London and has a stock of over 17,000 homes, mostly consisting of densely-built sites in inner London - the famous Peabody Estates with some cottage estates in the suburbs. The earliest surviving Peabody buildings in London are on the Islington Estate (1864) with others at Shadwell, Chelsea, and Blackfriars dating from soon afterwards. These early estates are historically of seminal importance as being among the first to address the problems of housing the poor in a consistent way, with an identifiable architectural form. The brick-built Italianate blocks grouped in a square forming a courtyard and thus protected' from the outside world, are the hall-mark of the early estates. The famous 'Peabody Square', familiar to many Londoners and visitors to London, was conceived by Henry Darbishire (1825-99), architect to the Peabody Trust from 1864 until 1885. Following the listing of the Peabody estates at Islington and Blackfriars in 1996, the Peabody Trust approached English Heritage with the idea of preparing a conservation plan for the Islington Estate. The plan would identify the qualities of historical and architectural significance of the estate, the areas vulnerable to change, the likely impact on the fabric of repointing, window replacement, new cabling etc, and, from these, draw up a policy for the future sensitive treatment of the estate. From this plan, principles could be abstracted and made relevant and appropriate to other estates. An historian from HART, the English Heritage historic buildings adviser, the conservation officer for Islington Borough Council and the architect from the Peabody Trust are collaborating on the Conservation Plan for Islington Estate, which is intended to provide a useful working model for the care of other Victorian housing estates in years to come. A joint publication between Peabody and English Heritage is planned when the conservation plan has been completed and agreed by all parties.
Ightfield Barn, Whitchurch, Shropshire
Ightfield barn is a large, timber-framed structure situated near Whitchurch in North Shropshire. The barn was originally of six bays, and although the end bays had collapsed following many years of neglect, the building still retained much of its original framing and form, revealing it as a high status building of some ambition. During the summer of 1997 the future safety of the building was placed very much in the balance, following an official request from the owner for permission to demolish the barn and reassemble the salvaged timbers on a nearby site. English Heritage was strongly opposed to any such action, and recommended that the case be brought before a public enquiry. To help strengthen English Heritage's case for preservation of the structure in situ, HART was requested to carry out a detailed fabric analysis and historical study of the building, and produce a report aimed at setting out the architectural and historical interest of the barn. In addition to the fabric analysis, documentary and archaeological research was also carried out, to identify both the history of ownership of the barn, and to help determine the historical significance of the building and its relationship with the adjacent farmhouse and moated site.
Major Projects
English Heritage's Major Projects Team has taken over responsibility for a number of projects, particularly in cases where the rescue of a structure is too complex an undertaking for the owner, or where we have taken over ownership of a site for the period necessary to complete the work. Efforts are then made to ensure a viable future use, either returning the building to its original owners or finding a new sponsor. As with any large undertaking involving a historic building, the understanding of the building history and the archaeology of the fabric is an important first step in planning the project. HART has worked closely with Major Projects, both as part of project teams and in developing a more strategic approach to managing historic significance in conservation projects.
Danson House, Bexley, Kent
Danson was a prime example of a building at risk when it was taken over by English Heritage in 1996. Research into the historic development of the building by HART and the Architectural Paint Research Team has informed the restoration of the masonry exterior and fitting out of the richly decorated principal floor. The first phase of works, all of the major structural work as well as the restoration of the historic interiors on the principal floor, has been completed. A report recording the substance of our research into the history and fabric of the building will be produced this summer, and it is hoped to make this information more widely available through publication. We are considering a feasibility study for the future use of the site, and have entered into consultation with the local authority regarding certain aspects of the 200-acre site, a splendid Brownian landscape, which is contemporary with the 1760s house. We are also considering a feasibility study by the architects Purcell Miller Tritton for the future use of the house. Although these proposals inevitably require some alteration to the secondary floors, further analysis of the development of the house has informed the scheme to minimise their impact on the historic fabric.
Down House, Bromley, Kent
Down House, Charles Darwin's home from 1842 until his death in 1882, and where he wrote On the origin of species, has been restored by English Heritage and is once again open to the public. Keystone Historic Buildings Consultants have completed their study of the fabric of the house and combined it with a detailed study of the extensive historic documentary and pictorial evidence which records the development of the house during the Darwin period. This research proved invaluable in shaping the restoration of the house, gardens, greenhouse, and laboratory, and we are now considering its publication.
4.15.1 Casework
4.15.2 Dendrochronology
4.15.3 Strategic Initiatives