Giles Arthington Worsley (22 March 1961 – 17 January 2006) was an English architectural historian, author, editor, journalist and critic, specialising in British

country houses An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a town house. This allowed them to spend time in the country and in the city—hence, for these peopl ...

. He was the second son of Sir Marcus Worsley of

Hovingham Hall Hovingham Hall is a country house built in the Palladian style in the village of Hovingham, North Yorkshire, England. It has been the seat of the Worsley family and the childhood home of the Duchess of Kent. It was built in the 18th century on ...

, a nephew of

Katharine, Duchess of Kent Katharine, Duchess of Kent, (born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley, 22 February 1933) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V. The Duchess of Kent converted to Roman Ca ...

, and died of cancer aged 44.

Family life

Giles Arthington Worsley was born on 22 March 1961 in

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, being the second of three sons of Sir (William) Marcus John Worsley, 5th Baronet, and his wife the Hon. Bridget Assheton (1926–2004), a daughter of

Ralph Assheton, 1st Baron Clitheroe Ralph Assheton, 1st Baron Clitheroe, (24 February 1901 – 18 September 1984), was an English aristocrat and politician. Biography Assheton was born on 24 February 1901. His father was Sir Ralph Assheton, 1st Baronet (1860–1955), and his m ...

. His family moved into Hovingham Hall when he was aged 12, after his father inherited the title and estate, which in 2006 was 3,000 acres. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

, studied Modern History at New College

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

( MA) including architectural history from

Howard Colvin Sir Howard Montagu Colvin (15 October 1919 – 27 December 2007) was a British architectural historian who produced two of the most outstanding works of scholarship in his field: ''A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600–1840' ...

, and then in 1983 studied at the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

(PhD, 1989) with his thesis on ''The Design and Development of the Stable and Riding House in Great Britain from the Thirteenth Century to 1914'', which was later reworked into his 2004 book ''The British Stable''. He married Joanna Beaufort Pitman (born 1963, daughter of Peter Pitman), the writer and

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

(London) journalist, a great-granddaughter of

George Lawson Johnston, 1st Baron Luke George Lawson Johnston, 1st Baron Luke, KBE (9 September 1873 – 23 February 1943), was a British businessman. Early life and education Luke was the second son of John Lawson Johnston, a butcher who became a beef stock manufacturer and the fou ...

, by her grandmother the Hon Margaret Beaufort Lawson Johnston who married Sir Isaac

James Pitman Sir Isaac James Pitman (known as James), KBE (14 August 1901 – 1 September 1985) was a distinguished publisher, senior civil servant, prominent educationalist, and leading politician, whose lifetime pursuit was the study of etymology, o ...

), at St George's Church, Hanover Square, London, 21 September 1996, with one of the page boys attending the bride being Edward Windsor, styled Baron Downpatrick, grandson of the

Duke of Kent Duke of Kent is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of King George V. Since 1942, the title has been held by Prince Edwar ...

. They had three daughters, Alice Beaufort, (born 19 June 1998, on the pavement outside St Mary's Hospital, Paddington), Emma Sylvia, (born 13 October 2000), and Lucy. They lived in North Kensington, London. Worsley's mother died of cancer on 22 May 2004, and he was diagnosed with cancer in the Spring of 2005. He died in London on 17 January 2006. His funeral took place in Hovingham, North Yorkshire, on 26 January 2006. A service celebrating his life was held in London on 9 March 2006. A memorial plaque was placed at St Clement's Church, North Kensington, London.

Career

Worsley joined ''Country Life'' weekly magazine in 1985 as an architectural writer, working for

Clive Aslet Clive Aslet (born 15 February 1955) is a writer on British architecture and life, and a campaigner on countryside and other issues. He was for many years editor of '' Country Life'' magazine. He is Visiting Professor of Architecture at the Univers ...

and Marcus Binney, becoming architectural editor in 1989. In 1994 he left ''Country Life'' to take over from

Dan Cruickshank Daniel Gordon Raffan Cruickshank (born 26 August 1949) is a British art historian and BBC television presenter, with a special interest in the history of architecture. Professional career Cruickshank holds a BA in Art, Design and Architecture ...

as editor of the recently created ''Perspectives on Architecture'' monthly magazine, funded by Prince Charles through his Institute of Architecture. In March 1998 ''Perspectives on Architecture'' ceased publication after 33 issues (its February/March issue being the last) and he became the architecture correspondent of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' newspaper in London, which he continued until his death in 2006. He was elected a fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soci ...

(FSA) in 1999. He became a senior research fellow at the

Institute of Historical Research The Institute of Historical Research (IHR) is a British educational organisation providing resources and training for historical researchers. It is part of the School of Advanced Study in the University of London and is located at Senate Hou ...

in 2002, which he also continued until his death in 2006. In 1988 he won the

Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain (SAHGB) is a United Kingdom learned society for people interested in the history of architecture. Purpose The Society exists to encourage interest in the history of architecture, to enab ...

's Essay Medal. In 1995 his book ''Classical Architecture in Britain: the Heroic Age'' won the Yorkshire Post Best Art Book Award. Honorary Positions held: *

Georgian Group The Georgian Group is a British charity, and the national authority on Georgian architecture built between 1700 and 1837 in England and Wales. As one of the National Amenity Societies, The Georgian Group is a statutory consultee on alterat ...

Journal, editor, 1991–94. *

committee member. * Somerset House Trust, member. *

The National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director of ...

Trustees, Building Committee member. *

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 ...

, member. * Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, Design Committee member, from 2001.

Travel Fellowship

The annual Giles Worsley Travel Fellowship was announced in February 2007 by the

RIBA 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 ...

and the British School at Rome. The Fellowship is awarded each year to an architect or architectural historian, who then spends three months (October to December) at the British School at Rome, studying an architectural topic of their choice. Travel, accommodation and board and a monthly stipend is provided. Each Fellow is then required to deliver a public presentation on their return. The first applications were received in February 2008, with the recipient being announced in April. Recipients and their topics: *2008 – Rebecca Madgin, ''The contemporary value of industrial architecture – the Ostiense Quarter''. *2009 – Gwyn Lloyd Jones, ''Rome, a meeting ground of two architectural geniuses: Francesco Borromini and Frank Lloyd Wright''. *2010 – Léa-Catherine Szacka, ''Roma Interrotta: A comparative historical analysis of the 18th Century urban project on display (1978 to 2008)''. *2011 – Rashid Ali, ''Architecture and urbanism of Mogadishu 1930–80''. *2012 – Thomas Brigden, ''The city of Rome’s key vistas and their viewing places''. *2013 - Tom True, "Power and place: the Marchigian cardinals of Sixtus V". *2014 - Ricardo Agarez, "The making of the Roman ''palzzina'', 1930-60". *2015 - Mark Kelly, "Ancient and modern concrete vaulting in Rome". *2016 - Jana Schuster, "Living Heritage: The Adaptive Reuse of Ancient Buildings in Rome".

Books

*''Architectural Drawings of the Regency Period 1790–1837'' (1991) catalogue of exhibition of

Drawings Collection at its Heinz Gallery in London, Andre Deutsch, , . *''The Georgian Group Journal'', and various ''Georgian Group Symposiums'', editor, 1991–94. *''Classical Architecture in Britain: the Heroic Age'' (1995) Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, Yale University Press, , . *''The Life and Works of John Carr of York'' (2000) by the late Brian Wragg, edited by Giles Worsley, Oblong Creative, , . *''England's Lost Houses: From the Archives of Country Life'' (2002) Aurum Press, , . *''The British Stable'' (2004) An Architectural and Social History (based on Worsley’s PhD thesis), photography by William Curtis Rolf, Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, Yale University Press, , . *''Drawing from the Past: William Weddell and the Transformation of

Newby Hall Newby Hall is a country house beside the River Ure in the parish of Skelton-on-Ure in North Yorkshire, England. It is 3 miles south-east of Ripon and 6 miles south of Topcliffe Castle, by which the manor of Newby was originally held. A Grade ...

'' (2005) by Giles Worsley, Kerry Bristol, and William Connor (catalogue of 2004–5 exhibition of

Robert Adam Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him. With his ...

's sculpture gallery drawings held at

Leeds Art Gallery Leeds Art Gallery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, is a gallery, part of the Leeds Museums & Galleries group, whose collection of 20th-century British Art was designated by the British government in 1997 as a collection "of national importance ...

), Jeremy Mills Publishing, , . *''Inigo Jones and the European Classicist Tradition'' (2007) published posthumously, Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, Yale University Press, , .

Articles

*''Gothic Architecture and Its Meanings, 1550–1830'' (2002) edited by Michael Hall, based on a Georgian Group Symposium, with Giles Worsley explaining Vanbrugh's architecture in terms of the search for a national style, Spire Books, , . *''

Aske Hall Aske Hall is a Georgian country house, with parkland attributed to Capability Brown, north of Richmond, North Yorkshire, England. It contains an impressive collection of 18th-century furniture, paintings and porcelain, and in its grounds a Joh ...

, Yorkshire, the seat of the Marquess of Zetland'', Parts I & II, Country Life, 1 March 1990 and 8 March 1990 (pages 98–103). * Silver Tassie, Wargrave, Berkshire - 'A Home Fit for Ratty' Country Life 18 June 1992

References

External links

Biography – The Dictionary of Art HistoriansObituary – The GuardianObituary – The Yorkshire PostObituary – The Courtauld Institute of ArtTravel Fellowship – The British School at RomeTravel Fellowship – RIBATravel Fellowship Holders – The British School at Rome
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worsley, Giles 1961 births 2006 deaths English architectural historians British magazine writers English non-fiction writers Deaths from cancer in England People educated at Eton College Alumni of New College, Oxford Alumni of the Courtauld Institute of Art English male non-fiction writers Country Life (magazine) people Worsley family Younger sons of baronets 20th-century English male writers