Archibald Elliot (August 1761 – 16 June 1823) was a Scottish

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

based in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. He had a very distinctive style, typified by square plans, concealed roofs, crenellated walls and square corner towers. All may be said to derive from the earlier local example of

Melville Castle Melville Castle is a three-storey Gothic castellated mansion situated less than a mile (2 km) west-south-west of Dalkeith, Midlothian, near the North Esk. History An earlier tower house on the site was demolished when the present structu ...

by James Playfair. Many of his works have been demolished.

Life

He was born in

Ancrum Ancrum ( gd, Alan Crom) is a village in the Borders area of Scotland, 5 km north west of Jedburgh. The village — which currently has a population of around 300 — is situated just off the A68 trunk road on the B6400 which runs through ...

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Be ...

the son of a carrier. After training as a joiner he moved to cabinet design, working then in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and appears to have then trained as an architect before returning to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

to work in Edinburgh. Archibald Elliot ran an architecture practice in London and Edinburgh with his brother James Elliot. Following James's death in 1810, Archibald ran the company on his own. It was later taken over by Archibald's son, Archibald Elliot Junior. He contributed to many significant buildings and streets in Edinburgh, including

St Paul's and St George's Church St Paul's and St George's Church (known colloquially as "Ps and Gs") is an evangelical church of the Scottish Episcopal Church in central Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located on the corner of Broughton Street and York Place in the east end of Edi ...

, Rutland Square, the

Regent Bridge Regent Bridge is a road bridge in Edinburgh, Scotland, where the A1 road enters the New Town from the east and passes over a hollow near Calton Hill. The bridge was built in the 19th century, in the neoclassical style as the medieval city was ...

, Waterloo Place and Calton Prison (now demolished). He was also involved with work on many country houses in Scotland, including

Blair Castle Blair Castle (in Scottish Gaelic: Caisteil Bhlàir) stands in its grounds near the village of Blair Atholl in Perthshire in Scotland. It is the ancestral home of the Clan Murray, and was historically the seat of their chief, the Duke of Atholl ...

and

Taymouth Castle Taymouth Castle is situated to the north-east of the village of Kenmore, Perth and Kinross, in the Highlands of Scotland, in an estate which encompasses 450 acres. It lies on the south bank of the River Tay, about a mile from Loch Tay, in the h ...

Perthshire Perthshire ( locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the nort ...

, Loudoun Castle in

Ayrshire Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of ...

, and

Stobo Castle Stobo Castle is located at Stobo in the Scottish Borders, in the former county of Peeblesshire. The Manor of Stobo was originally owned by the Balfour family. It became the family seat of the Graham-Montgomery Baronets from 1767. The buildin ...

Peeblesshire Peeblesshire ( gd, Siorrachd nam Pùballan), the County of Peebles or Tweeddale is a historic county of Scotland. Its county town is Peebles, and it borders Midlothian to the north, Selkirkshire to the east, Dumfriesshire to the south, and Lan ...

. He is buried near the centre of

New Calton Cemetery New Calton Burial Ground is a burial ground in Edinburgh. It was built as an overspill and functional replacement to Old Calton Burial Ground and lies half a mile to its east on Regent Road in Edinburgh, Scotland, on the south-east slopes of Ca ...

, close to his works on Waterloo Place. A son, William Elliot (1796–1828) lies with him. His younger brother, James Elliot (1770–1810), worked with him from 1800 until his early death. Archibald's sons, Archibald Elliot (died 1843) and Alexander Elliot, ran a practice in

. Archibald inherited his father's practice on his death.Dictionary of Scottish Architects: Elliot

Main works

The grave of Archibald Elliot in New Calton Cemetery

* Loudoun Castle complete rebuilding around an original 17th-century tower house (1804) (largely demolished) *

(1805) *

(1806) *Guildhall,

Dunfermline Dunfermline (; sco, Dunfaurlin, gd, Dùn Phàrlain) is a city, parish and former Royal Burgh, in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. The city currently has an estimated population of 58,508. Accord ...

(1807) * Calton Prison (1815) (demolished 1930) *Midlothian County Hall,

(1816) (demolished) * Waterloo Monument, Peniel Heugh (1817) * St Paul's Chapel, York Place, Edinburgh (1818) *35 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh (as

Royal Bank of Scotland The Royal Bank of Scotland plc (RBS; gd, Banca Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a major retail and commercial bank in Scotland. It is one of the retail banking subsidiaries of NatWest Group, together with NatWest (in England and Wales) and Ulster Bank ...

head office) (1819) *Rutland Square and Rutland Street, Edinburgh (1819–21) *St George's Church, Paisley co-designed with William Reid (1819) *Broughton McDonald Church, Broughton Place,

(1820) *Edmonstone House, south of

(1821, now largely demolished) *

Blair Atholl Blair Atholl (from the Scottish Gaelic: ''Blàr Athall'', originally ''Blàr Ath Fhodla'') is a village in Perthshire, Scotland, built about the confluence of the Rivers Tilt and Garry in one of the few areas of flat land in the midst of the Gr ...

Church (1823) *

Jedburgh Jedburgh (; gd, Deadard; sco, Jeddart or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the historic county of Roxburghshire, the name of which was randomly chosen for Operation Jedburgh in su ...

Castle Jail (1823) *St Marks Episcopal Church, Portobello (1823) completed posthumously by his son (1825-7)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliot, Archibald 18th-century Scottish architects 1761 births 1823 deaths People from Roxburgh Gothic Revival architects British neoclassical architects 19th-century Scottish architects