Sir William Whitfield (21 October 1920 – 16 March 2019) was a British architect and town planner.

Early life

Whitfield was born in

Stockton-on-Tees Stockton-on-Tees, often simply referred to as Stockton, is a market town in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. It is on the northern banks of the River Tees, part of the Teesside built-up area. The town had an estimated ...

into a coal-owning family and studied architecture at

King's College, Newcastle Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick univer ...

(later the

Newcastle University School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Newcastle University School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape is based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Housed in a Grade 2 listed building in the university quadrangle (built in 1913 to a design by WH Knowles and adjacent to the School of ...

), where he was admitted at the unusually early age of 16, and where he later studied Town Planning after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Career

Whitfield designed the

Glasgow University Library Glasgow University Library in Scotland is one of the oldest and largest university libraries in Europe. At the turn of the 21st century, the main library building itself held 1,347,000 catalogued print books, and 53,300 journals. In total, the ...

(1968) and the Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery Extension at the University of Glasgow (1962–81), as well as an extension to the

Newcastle University Students' Union Newcastle University Students' Union (NUSU) is the students' union of Newcastle University in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is an organisation with the intention of representing and providing services and welfare for the students of Universi ...

building (1964) and University Theatre (now unrecognisable and called the Northern Stage). He designed the Business School and the Science Library at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

(both now extended). In 1970 a major bush-hammered concrete Brutalist extension to Whitfield's design was opened at

Arthur Beresford Pite Arthur Beresford Pite (2 September 1861 – 27 November 1934) was a British architect known for creating Edwardian buildings in Baroque Revival, Byzantine Revival and Greek Revival styles. The early years Arthur Beresford Pite was born on 2 S ...

and John Belcher's 1890-1893 Institute of Chartered Accountants headquarters, Chartered Accountants' Hall, including a new entrance; as well as the 1987 Department of Health building,

Richmond House Richmond House is a government building in Whitehall, City of Westminster, London. Its name comes from an historic townhouse of the Duke of Richmond that once stood on the site. History Stewart Dukes of Richmond Richmond House was first built ...

in Richmond Terrace, Whitehall, London. He designed the Chapter House at

St Albans Cathedral St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Norman times. It ceased to be a ...

, the Catheral Lodge in the close at

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the C ...

and the new

Mappa Mundi A ''mappa mundi'' (Latin ; plural = ''mappae mundi''; french: mappemonde; enm, mappemond) is any medieval European map of the world. Such maps range in size and complexity from simple schematic maps or less across to elaborate wall maps, th ...

Library at

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

in a free gothic style. Gates to Tusmore Park - geograph

With Andrew Lockwood he designed the neo-Palladian mansion Tusmore Park in Oxfordshire for the Saudi Arabian financier Wafic Saïd. He was

Surveyor of the Fabric of St Paul's Cathedral The post of Surveyor of the Fabric of St Paul's Cathedral was established in 1675. The role is an architectural one, with the current holder being responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the cathedral and its buildings. In the past, the rol ...

from 1985 to 1990, architect for the restoration of Christ Church Spitalfields, a Commissioner of

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

, Commissioner of the

Royal Fine Art Commission The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) was an executive non-departmental public body of the UK government, established in 1999. It was funded by both the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for C ...

and a Trustee of the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...

. He was awarded

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the 1976 Birthday Honours and knighted in the 1993 New Year Honours.

References

External links

Biography in Oxford Index
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, William 1920 births 2019 deaths Architects from County Durham New Classical architects Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Bachelor 20th-century English architects People from Stockton-on-Tees