Francis Penrose
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Francis Cranmer Penrose FRS (29 October 1817 – 15 February 1903) was an English architect, archaeologist, astronomer and sportsman rower. He served as
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 ...
, and as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects and Director of the British School at Athens.


Early life

Penrose was born at
Bracebridge, Lincolnshire Bracebridge is a suburb of the city and county town of Lincoln, England. It is situated approximately south from the city centre on the main A1434 Newark Road, stretching approximately from St Catherine's to Swallowbeck alongside the east ba ...
, the third son of Rev. John Penrose who was vicar there, and his wife Elizabeth Cartwright. His mother was the daughter of
Edmund Cartwright Edmund Cartwright (24 April 174330 October 1823) was an English inventor. He graduated from Oxford University and went on to invent the power loom. Married to local Elizabeth McMac at 19, he was the brother of Major John Cartwright, a politic ...
and a teacher and author of children's books under the name Mrs Markham. Penrose was educated at
Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowment, endowments le ...
,
Bedford School :''Bedford School is not to be confused with Bedford Girls' School, Bedford High School, Bedford Modern School, Old Bedford School in Bedford, Texas or Bedford Academy in Bedford, Nova Scotia.'' Bedford School is a public school (English indep ...
,
Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...
and
Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...
. "Penrose, Francis Cranmer" from the Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement at
Wikisource Wikisource is an online digital library of free-content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Wikisource is the name of the project as a whole and the name for each instance of that project (each instance usually rep ...
He rowed for
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
in the
Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...
in the
1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janua ...
, 1841 and 1842 races.


Architectural career

Penrose studied architecture under
Edward Blore Edward Blore (13 September 1787 – 4 September 1879) was a 19th-century English landscape and architectural artist, architect and antiquary. Early career He was born in Derby, the son of the antiquarian writer Thomas Blore. Blore's backg ...
from 1835 to 1838, and studied abroad under the Cambridge designation of "travelling bachelor" from 1842 to 1845. In 1843 in Rome, Penrose noticed a problem with the pitch of the roof of pediment of the
Pantheon Pantheon may refer to: * Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building Arts and entertainment Comics *Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization * ''Pantheon'' (Lone S ...
– subsequent research confirmed that the angle had been changed from its original design. Penrose studied classical monuments in Greece, taking and recording detailed measurements. He was one of the first to discover the
entasis In architecture, entasis is the application of a convex curve to a surface for aesthetic purposes. Its best-known use is in certain orders of Classical columns that curve slightly as their diameter is decreased from the bottom upward. It also may ...
of the
Parthenon The Parthenon (; grc, Παρθενών, , ; ell, Παρθενώνας, , ) is a former temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, that was dedicated to the goddess Athena during the fifth century BC. Its decorative sculptures are considere ...
and to show the deliberate curvature of the steps and entablature. The
Society of Dilettanti The Society of Dilettanti (founded 1734) is a British society of noblemen and scholars that sponsors the study of ancient Greek and Roman art, and the creation of new work in the style. History Though the exact date is unknown, the Society is b ...
became interested in his discoveries and sent him back to Greece to confirm them. In 1848 Penrose was elected a Fellow 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 suppl ...
. He was appointed
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 ...
in 1852 and in this role did his main work. Penrose's work on St Paul's included the choir seats and the marble pulpit and stairs. He designed the memorial to Lord Napier of Magdala and the Wellington tomb in the crypt, and arranged the relocation of the Wellington monument. He was also responsible for rearranging the West entrance steps and for exposing remains of the old cathedral in the churchyard. The new premises for the cathedral's choir school in Carter Lane were built to his designs in 1874. It was after a dispute with the Dean and Chapter that he turned to astronomy. There is some academic controversy over whether Penrose authored an April 1852 article on Athenian architecture, or whether the true author was
Coventry Patmore Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore (23 July 1823 – 26 November 1896) was an English poet and literary critic. He is best known for his book of poetry ''The Angel in the House'', a narrative poem about the Victorian ideal of a happy marriage. A ...
. Penrose was made a Fellow of Magdalene College in 1884. He designed the entrance gate of Magdalene College and the Chapel Court of St John's in Cambridge. From 1886 to 1887 and from 1890 to 1891 he was the first Director of the
British School at Athens , image = Image-Bsa athens library.jpg , image_size = 300px , image_upright= , alt= , caption = The library of the BSA , latin_name= , motto= , founder = The Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, called the foundation meeti ...
, which he had designed. As President of the RIBA from 1894 to 1896, Penrose was appointed architect and antiquary to the
Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...
in 1898. He supplied the entry on
Sir Christopher Wren Sir Christopher Wren PRS FRS (; – ) was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, and mathematician-physicist. He was accorded responsibility for rebuilding 52 churches ...
to the ''Dictionary of National Biography''. Works by Francis Cranmer Penrose at
Wikisource Wikisource is an online digital library of free-content textual sources on a wiki, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. Wikisource is the name of the project as a whole and the name for each instance of that project (each instance usually rep ...
.


Personal life

Penrose was married in 1856 to Harriette Gibbes, daughter of Francis Gibbes, a surgeon of Harewood, Yorkshire.
Emily Penrose Dame Emily Penrose, (18 September 1858 – 26 January 1942) was an ancient historian and principal of three early women's university colleges in the United Kingdom: Bedford College from 1893 until 1898, Royal Holloway College from 1898 until ...
, the second of five children and eldest of their four daughters, became Principal of
Somerville College Somerville College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England, was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. Among its alumnae have been Margaret Thatcher, Indira Gandhi, Dorothy Hodgkin, Ir ...
,
Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
,
Royal Holloway College, London Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It has six schools, 21 academic departm ...
and
Bedford College, London file:Bedford College in York place - photographer is unknown but guess 1908.png, Bedford College was in York Place after 1874 Bedford College was founded in London in 1849 as the first higher education college for education of women, women in th ...
.


Selected works

*Penrose, F.C., (communicated by
Joseph Norman Lockyer Sir Joseph Norman Lockyer (17 May 1836 – 16 August 1920) was an English scientist and astronomer. Along with the French scientist Pierre Janssen, he is credited with discovering the gas helium. Lockyer also is remembered for being the ...
)
''The Orientation of Greek Temples''
Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...
, v.48, n.1228, 11 May 1893, pp. 42–43 *''An Investigation of the Principles of Athenian Architecture, or, The Results of a Recent Survey Conducted chiefly with Reference to the Optical Refinements Exhibited in the Construction of the Ancient Buildings at Athens'', edited by the Society of Dilettanti, London 1851 **2nd edition: ''An investigation of the principles of Athenian architecture, or, the results of a survey conducted chiefly with reference to the optical refinements exhibited in the construction of the ancient buildings at Athens'', London 188
(document server of Heidelberg University)
*A work predicting eclipses


See also

*
List of Cambridge University Boat Race crews This is a list of the Cambridge University crews who have competed in The Boat Race since its inception in 1829. Rowers are listed left to right in boat position from bow to stroke. The number following the rower indicates the rower's weight ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Penrose, Francis Cranmer 1817 births 1903 deaths Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge Cambridge University Boat Club rowers 19th-century British astronomers Directors of the British School at Athens English male rowers Fellows of the Royal Institute of British Architects Fellows of the Royal Society People educated at Bedford Modern School People educated at Bedford School Presidents of the Royal Institute of British Architects Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal