Alexander Roos ( – 30 June 1881) was an Italian-born British architect and urban planner. He was the architect to the Bute Estates in South Wales, for which he designed many buildings and laid out several areas of

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Early life

Alexander Roos was born in Rome in about 1810, apparently the son of Karl Roos (1776–1836), a German

cabinet maker A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (so ...

based in Rome. Alexander Roos studied architecture with

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassic ...

in Berlin.

Career

In or before 1835 Roos made decorations for Hadzor House,

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

, based on designs from Pompeii where he had previously made drawings. This work led to two major commissions: at Deepdene House in Surrey for Henry Thomas Hope, and at Bedgebury House,

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

for General William Beresford. These commissions led to a successful architectural career in Britain. In the 1840s Roos had an extensive architectural practice in Scotland. In 1845 the wealthy industrialist John Crichton-Stuart, Second Marquess of Bute appointed Roos as architect for his extensive estates in South Wales. Roos laid out much of

, which was expanding rapidly at the time, and designed several buildings in Cardiff. When the second marquess died in 1848 Roos became one of the two trustees managing the Bute estate on behalf of the infant John Crichton-Stuart, Third Marquess of Bute. Roos was dismissed when the third marquess came of age in 1868. It appears that Roos then retired from architecture. Alexander Roos architect grave St Pancras and Islington Cemetery

Alexander Roos architect grave St Pancras and Islington Cemetery

Death

Roos died on 30 June 1881. He is buried at

St Pancras and Islington Cemetery St Pancras and Islington Cemetery is a cemetery in East Finchley, North London. Although it is situated in the London Borough of Barnet, it is run as two cemeteries, owned by two other London Boroughs, Camden (formerly St Pancras) and Isling ...

Notable projects

* , Hadzor House,

– decorations in the style of ancient Pompeii. * 1836–41, Deepdene House, Dorking, Surrey – Reconstruction as a Roman villa. * 1836–41, Bedgebury House,

– remodelling in Italianate style. * , House of Falkland, Fife –

chimneypiece The fireplace mantel or mantelpiece, also known as a chimneypiece, originated in medieval times as a hood that projected over a fire grate to catch the smoke. The term has evolved to include the decorative framework around the fireplace, and ca ...

s, decorative work and

parterre A ''parterre'' is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the part of ...

s. *1843,

Aldbar Castle Aldbar Castle, or Auldbar Castle, was a 16th-century tower house, located southwest of Brechin, in Angus, Scotland. History The estate was owned by the Crammond family since the 13th century before it was sold to John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis (c. 15 ...

, Angus – alterations and redecoration. *1845–48, urban planning,

, including layout of

Cathays Park Cathays Park ( cy, Parc Cathays) or Cardiff Civic Centre is a civic centre area in the city centre of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, consisting of a number of early 20th century buildings and a central park area, Alexandra Gardens. It i ...

(now Cardiff Civic Centre) *1854,

Sophia Gardens Sophia Gardens ( cy, Gerddi Sophia) is a public park in Riverside, Cardiff, Wales, on the west bank of the River Taff. International test cricket matches and county cricket matches are held in the Sophia Gardens cricket ground, the home of ...

, Cardiff – design of public park. *1850s, Green Hill Temple (summerhouse), House of Falkland, Fife. *1850s, Bruce Fountain,

Falkland, Fife Falkland ( gd, Fàclann), previously in the Lands of Kilgour ( 1200), is a village, parish and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, at the foot of the Lomond Hills. According to the 2008 population estimate, it has a population of 1,180. Etymo ...

. *mid 1850s, Houses in

Mount Stuart Square Mount Stuart Square is a residential and commercial square in Cardiff, Wales. It is located in the Butetown area of the city. Originally developed in the late 1800s as a residential location for nearby dock workers, it quickly became a centre f ...

Butetown Butetown (or ''The Docks'', cy, Tre-biwt) is a district and community in the south of the city of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. It was originally a model housing estate built in the early 19th century by the 2nd Marquess of Bute, for whose t ...

*1858, St Lleurwg's Church Hirwaun *1862, St Andrew's Church, Cardiff (now ''Eglwys Dewi Sant'') – Roos completed the design by ''Prichard & Seddon''. *1860–62, West Lodge, Cardiff Castle *1868, St Margaret's Church, Roath, Cardiff – ground plan for rebuilding.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roos, Alexander 19th-century British architects 1881 deaths British urban planners British people of German descent Year of birth uncertain