The Royal Architectural Museum was an English museum, established in London in 1851 to educate architects and workers on architectural art. It closed during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and most of its collections are now held in the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

History

The museum, initially known as the Architectural Museum, was founded by architects George Gilbert Scott, Sir

Charles Barry Sir Charles Barry (23 May 1795 – 12 May 1860) was a British architect, best known for his role in the rebuilding of the Palace of Westminster (also known as the Houses of Parliament) in London during the mid-19th century, but also respons ...

and

George Godwin George Godwin FRS (28 January 1813 – 27 January 1888) was an influential British architect, journalist, and editor of ''The Builder'' magazine. Life He was one of nine children of the architect George Godwin senior (1780–1863) and trained a ...

. Prince Albert was a patron,

Thomas Philip de Grey, 2nd Earl de Grey Thomas Philip de Grey, 2nd Earl de Grey, 3rd Baron Grantham, 6th Baron Lucas, KG, PC, FRS (born Robinson, later Weddell; 8 December 178114 November 1859), styled as The Hon. Thomas Robinson until 1786 and as Lord Grantham from 1786 to 1833, of ...

, was its first president and

Alexander Beresford-Hope Sir Alexander James Beresford Beresford Hope PC (25 January 1820 – 20 October 1887), known as Alexander Hope until 1854 (and also known as A. J. B. Hope until 1854 and as A. J. B. Beresford Hope from 1854 onwards), was a British author and Co ...

was a trustee. The museum was also backed by

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and pol ...

. Its initial collections included plaster casts of European gothic architectural ornamentations, decorative ironwork, tiles, woodcarving, sculptural stonework and stained glass, plus architectural models, plans and drawings. From 1852 to 1854, the museum was housed in a loft in

Canon Row Canon Row is a historic street in the City of Westminster in London. It is best known as the location of Canon Row Police Station. History In 1878 Canon Row extended from the back of Richmond Terrace to Bridge Street, Westminster, and about midwa ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

, where it also incorporated a School for Art-workmen. In 1857, it moved to South Kensington (where it occupied the upper floor of one of the so-called 'Brompton Boilers' at the modern day V&A Museum); in 1869 it moved again, to new purpose-built premises (designed by

Ewan Christian Ewan Christian (1814–1895) was a British architect. He is most frequently noted for the restorations of Southwell Minster and Carlisle Cathedral, and the design of the National Portrait Gallery. He was Architect to the Ecclesiastical Commiss ...

and Joseph Clarke) at 18–20, Bowling Street, Westminster; the street, located behind the Dean's Yard at

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

, was renamed Tufton Street in 1870. Upon its reopening its royal patronage was renewed by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

and it became the Royal Architectural Museum. A school of architectural art was established at the museum. This was initially jointly managed by the museum, the

Architectural Association The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest independent school of architecture in the UK and one of the most prestigious and competitive in the world. Its wide-ranging programme ...

and 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 ...

, but by 1873 the school was solely managed by the museum, and it later changed its name to become the

Westminster School of Art The Westminster School of Art was an art school in Westminster, London. History The Westminster School of Art was located at 18 Tufton Street, Deans Yard, Westminster, and was part of the old Royal Architectural Museum. H. M. Bateman described ...

(later, in 1904, merging with the Westminster Technical Institute – today part of

Westminster Kingsway College Westminster Kingsway College is a large college for further education in central London with centres in King's Cross in Camden, together with Victoria and Soho centres in Westminster. Founded in 2000 and having origins dating back to 1910, the ...

). In 1904, the museum was wound up, with the building and contents gifted to the AA who maintained its administrative, legal and curatorial functions. For some years, the AA School was co-located in the Westminster premises, but by 1915 these were regarded as too small. The building was sold to the National Lending Library for the Blind and was demolished and consequently rebuilt in 1935. Most of the museum's collections ended up in the Victoria and Albert Museum.

References

{{Authority control 1851 establishments in England 1851 in art