Benjamin Bucknall (1833 – 16 November 1895) was an English architect of the
Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
in
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities ...
and
South Wales
South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...
, and then of neo-
Moorish architecture
Moorish architecture is a style within Islamic architecture which developed in the western Islamic world, including al-Andalus (on the Iberian Peninsula, Iberian peninsula) and what is now Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia (part of the Maghreb). The ...
in Algeria. His most noted works include the uncompleted
Woodchester Mansion in Gloucestershire, England
[ and his restoration of the ]Villa Montfeld
The Villa Montfeld is an historic residence in the El Biar district of Algiers, Algeria, which serves as the residence of the Ambassador of the United States to Algeria. The villa was built in the mid-19th century and was reconstructed in a Mooris ...
in El Biar
El Biar (from Arabic "الأبيار", meaning "The Wells") is a suburb of Algiers, Algeria. It is located in the administrative constituency of Bouzaréah in the Algiers Province. As of the 1998 census, it has a population of 52,582 inhabitants ...
, Algiers.[Woodchester Mansion website: Benjamin Bucknall, p. 4.]
Career
In 1851 Bucknall began work as a millwright
A millwright is a craftsperson or skilled tradesperson who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites.
The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mecha ...
, but in 1852 William Leigh helped him to start work for the architect Charles Hansom in Clifton, Bristol
Clifton is both a suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The eastern part of the suburb lies within the ward of Clifton D ...
.[ Hansom was a ]Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
and in 1852 Bucknall converted to Catholicism.[
Bucknall admired the work of the French architect ]Eugène Viollet-le-Duc
Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (; 27 January 181417 September 1879) was a French architect and author who restored many prominent medieval landmarks in France, including those which had been damaged or abandoned during the French Revolution. H ...
, and travelled to visit him in France in 1861[ and in ]Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR ...
, Switzerland in 1872.[ Between 1874 and 1881 Bucknall translated five of Viollet-le-Duc's works into English.][
]
Family
Bucknall was the fifth of seven sons born to Edwin and Mary Bucknall of Rodborough
Rodborough is a large village and civil parish in the district of Stroud, Gloucestershire, in South West England. It is directly south of the town of Stroud, north of the town of Nailsworth and north-west of the town of Minchinhampton. The par ...
, Gloucs.[ In 1862 Bucknall was married to Henrietta King.][Woodchester Mansion website: Benjamin Bucknall, p. 3.] After 1864 they moved to Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the C ...
and by 1869 were living in Oystermouth.[ The Bucknalls had four children: Mary, Charles (born 1864), Edgar (born 1868) and Beatrice (born 1870).][
Bucknall's health deteriorated and he spent the winter of 1876–77 in ]Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques d ...
.[ In 1878 he settled there permanently, leaving Henrietta and the children in Gloucestershire.][ The 1881 Census recorded Henrietta and Mary living at ]Bisley, Gloucestershire
Bisley is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Bisley-with-Lypiatt, in the Stroud district, in Gloucestershire, England, about east of Stroud. The once-extensive manor included Stroud and Chalford, Thrupp, Oakridge, Bussage ...
.[ Some of their children visited Bucknall in Algiers, and Edgar died there in a boating accident in 1889.][
In Algiers Bucknall changed his architectural style to neo-Moorish architecture, in which he built villas, notably in the ]El Biar
El Biar (from Arabic "الأبيار", meaning "The Wells") is a suburb of Algiers, Algeria. It is located in the administrative constituency of Bouzaréah in the Algiers Province. As of the 1998 census, it has a population of 52,582 inhabitants ...
district of Algiers.[ His works include a restoration of the ]Villa Montfeld
The Villa Montfeld is an historic residence in the El Biar district of Algiers, Algeria, which serves as the residence of the Ambassador of the United States to Algeria. The villa was built in the mid-19th century and was reconstructed in a Mooris ...
, now the residence of the US Ambassador to Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
. He died in Algiers in 1895 and is buried there.[ A road in Algiers was named ''Chemin Bucknall'' in his honour, but since ]independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...
it has been renamed.[
]
Buildings
Houses
* Woodchester Mansion, Gloucs, ''circa'' 1858
*St Stephens, a cottage orné
Cottage orné () dates back to a movement of "rustic" stylised cottages of the late 18th and early 19th centuries during the Romantic movement, when some sought to discover a more natural way of living as opposed to the formality of the preceding ...
at Nympsfield
Nympsfield is a village and civil parish in the English county of Gloucestershire. It is located around four miles south-west of the town of Stroud. As well as Nympsfield village, the parish contains the hamlet of Cockadilly. The population take ...
, Gloucs, ''circa'' 1860
*Tocknells House, Painswick
Painswick is a town and civil parish in the Stroud District in Gloucestershire, England. Originally the town grew from the wool trade, but it is now best known for its parish church's yew trees and the local Rococo Garden. The village is mainly ...
, Gloucs, ''circa'' 1860
*West Grange, Stroud, Gloucs, 1866
*Villa Montfeld
The Villa Montfeld is an historic residence in the El Biar district of Algiers, Algeria, which serves as the residence of the Ambassador of the United States to Algeria. The villa was built in the mid-19th century and was reconstructed in a Mooris ...
, El Biar
El Biar (from Arabic "الأبيار", meaning "The Wells") is a suburb of Algiers, Algeria. It is located in the administrative constituency of Bouzaréah in the Algiers Province. As of the 1998 census, it has a population of 52,582 inhabitants ...
, Algiers: restoration[
]
Churches and monastic houses
*Church of Our Lady and St Michael, Abergavenny
The Church of Our Lady and St Michael in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, is a Roman Catholic parish church. A Grade II* listed building, it was built between 1858 and 1860 to a design by Benjamin Bucknall.
History and architecture
Abergavenny remain ...
, Monmouthshire, 1858[Woodchester Mansion website: Benjamin Bucknall, p. 2.]
*Saint George RC church, Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
, Somerset, 1860[
*]St Mary's Roman Catholic Church, Monmouth
St Mary's Roman Catholic Church, in St Mary's Street near the centre of Monmouth, is the earliest post-Reformation Catholic public place of worship to be permitted in Wales. The church is a late Georgian Roman Catholic church with later Victori ...
, 1861–71[
*]St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church
St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church, Little Malvern, Worcestershire, England is a Benedictine parish church administered by the monks of Downside Abbey. The attached churchyard contains the grave of the composer Edward Elgar and of his wife, Alic ...
, Little Malvern
Little Malvern is a small village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the lower slopes of the Malvern Hills, south of Malvern Wells, near Great Malvern, the major centre of the area often referred to as ''The Malverns' ...
, Worcestershire, 1862[
*Saint David's Priory RC church, Swansea, ]Glamorgan
, HQ = Cardiff
, Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974)
, Origin=
, Code = GLA
, CodeName = Chapman code
, Replace =
* West Glamorgan
* Mid Glamorgan
* South Glamorgan
, Mot ...
: extension, 1864[
*Saint Thomas' RC church, Fairford, Gloucestershire: presbytery, 1865][
*Holy Trinity ]Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...
parish church, Llanegwad
Llanegwad () is a community located in Carmarthenshire, Wales. The population taken at the 2011 census was 1,473.
Llanegwad is built up mainly of small farms and detached homes. The community is bordered by the communities of: Llanfihangel Rhos ...
, Carmarthenshire, 1865–78[
*Holy Trinity Church of England parish church, ]Slad
Slad is a village in Gloucestershire, England, in the Slad Valley about from Stroud on the B4070 road from Stroud to Birdlip.
Slad is notable for being the home and final resting place of Laurie Lee, whose novel ''Cider with Rosie'' (1959) ...
, Gloucs: reconstruction, 1869
*Longworth Chapel, Bartestree
Bartestree is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, east of Hereford on the A438 road. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 330.
History
The name is thought to be derived from the Old English Beorhtwald's ...
Convent, Herefordshire
Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouths ...
(with E.W. Pugin
Edward Welby Pugin (11 March 1834 – 5 June 1875) was an English architect, the eldest son of architect Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin and Louisa Barton and part of the Pugin & Pugin family of church architects. His father was an architect an ...
), 1869–70[
*Saint Francis of Assisi RC Church, ]Baddesley Clinton
Baddesley Clinton () is a moated manor house, about 8 miles (13 km) north-west of the town of Warwick, in the village of Baddesley Clinton, Warwickshire, England. The house probably originated in the 13th century, when large areas of the ...
convent, Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avo ...
(with T.R. Donnelly), 1870[
*Saint Rose of Lima Convent, Stroud, Gloucs.][
*]Abbotskerswell Priory
Abbotskerswell Priory, on the outskirts of the village of Abbotskerswell, near Newton Abbot, Devon, England, was the home of a community of Augustinian nuns from 1861 until 1983. It has now been converted into apartments for retirees.
Abbotsle ...
, Newton Abbot
Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...
, Devon: later buildings[
*Swansea Seamen's Church][
]
Other buildings
* Swansea Grammar School[
* Imperial Hotel, Stroud]
Translations from French into English
*[
*][
*][
*][
*][
*][
*][
]
References
Sources
*
*
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bucknall, Benjamin
1833 births
1895 deaths
19th-century English architects
Gothic Revival architects
English ecclesiastical architects
Architecture in Algeria
People from Rodborough
British expatriates in Algeria
Architects from Gloucestershire