Robert Kelfull Speechly (17 September 1840 – 17 September 1884) was a 19th-century British architect.

Life and work

Speechly was born in 1840 in

Whittlesey Whittlesey (also Whittlesea) is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England. Whittlesey is east of Peterborough. The population of the parish was 16,058 at the 2011 Census. History and architecture W ...

, Cambridgeshire, the son of Thomas Kelfull Speechly and Sarah, née Bellars, and a younger brother of John Speechly, later Bishop of Travancore and Cochin. He was educated at

Oundle School Oundle School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school) for pupils 11–18 situated in the market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire, England. The school has been governed by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City ...

and, from 1855 to 1860, articled to Henry Dawson of London. His drawings from 1857 suggest that he toured Italy during this period.Jonathan Mane-Wheoki (1998). Brief careers in Christchurch. New Zealand Historic Places, No. 67 pp 28-31 Early work included supervising installation of stained glass windows to the memory of

Sir Harry Smith Lieutenant-General Sir Henry George Wakelyn Smith, 1st Baronet, GCB (28 June 1787 – 12 October 1860) was a notable English soldier and military commander in the British Army of the early 19th century. A veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, he is a ...

at St Mary's Church, Whittlesey in December 1862, design of the porch of St Mary's Church, Higham, Kent in 1863 and as William Slater's assistant on reconstruction of the central tower of

Chichester Cathedral Chichester Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Holy Trinity, is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Chichester. It is located in Chichester, in West Sussex, England. It was founded as a cathedral in 1075, when the seat of ...

. He became a Member of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supp ...

in 1864. Speechly was sent to

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, New Zealand in 1864 by Sir George Gilbert Scott as resident architect to supervise the building of the new

ChristChurch Cathedral ChristChurch Cathedral, also called Christ Church Cathedral and (rarely) Cathedral Church of Christ, is a deconsecrated Anglican cathedral in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It was built between 1864 and 1904 in the centre of the city ...

. The Cathedral Commission's decision not to accept Scott's advice and appoint Speechly, rather than the leading local architect,

Benjamin Mountfort Benjamin Woolfield Mountfort (13 March 1825 – 15 March 1898) was an English emigrant to New Zealand, where he became one of the country's most prominent 19th-century architects. He was instrumental in shaping the city of Christchurch's unique ...

(1825–1898), led to an intense debate in the Christchurch newspapers. When lack of money halted construction of the cathedral in late 1865, Speechly completed his four-year contract in New Zealand as architect to the Anglican Church Property Trustees, supervising all buildings undertaken by them. He was involved in the design of a number of churches, houses and schools in the Canterbury settlement, assisted by his pupil, and then partner, William Fitzjohn Crisp. These included

Christ's College Chapel Christ's College Chapel is part of Christ's College, Christchurch. Description The chapel was designed by Robert Speechly and was built in 1867. Its simple style was in harmony with Christ's College Big School, which is four years older. The ...

(1867), St Mary's Church, Merivale (1866), St Mary's Church, Addington (1867), St John's Parsonage (1866) and St Luke's Vicarage (1867–1868). Speechly left New Zealand for

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia in 1868, where he entered into partnership with the diocesan architect, Lionel Terry. Their designs for cathedrals for Melbourne and

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, New South Wales, were initially accepted but later set aside. Speechly returned to England in 1869, where he was one of a team of architects employed by Alfred Waterhouse on the rebuilding of Eaton Hall, Cheshire. He died in London in 1884.GRO Register of Deaths, Sep 1884 Hendon 3a 103

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Speechly, Robert 1840 births 1884 deaths People from Whittlesey People educated at Oundle School 19th-century English architects Architects from Cambridgeshire