Charles Alban Buckler (1825–1905) was an English author, topographer, architect, artist and

officer of arms An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions: * to control and initiate armorial matters; * to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state; * to conserve ...

. According to

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

, he "became one of the most distinguished of the early to mid-Victorian Catholic architects."

St Leonards-on-Sea – St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs
''Taking Stock'', retrieved 11 June 2022 In the field of

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...

he was the Surrey Herald Extraordinary.

Life

Family

Charles Alban Buckler was born in 1824. He was born into Buckler dynasty of architects and was the son of the noted architect

John Chessell Buckler John Chessell Buckler (8 December 1793 – 10 January 1894) was a British architect, the eldest son of the architect John Buckler. J. C. Buckler initially worked with his father before taking over his practice. His work included restorations o ...

. He grandfather was John Buckler. Since 2013, the Buckler family of architects and topographical artists has been the subject of a research project hosted by the Institute for the History and Theory of Architecture at

ETH Zurich ETH Zurich (; ) is a public university in Zurich, Switzerland. Founded in 1854 with the stated mission to educate engineers and scientists, the university focuses primarily on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. ETH Zurich ran ...

Career

He was a student of medieval art and architecture. He and his father John Chessell Buckler worked together writing architecture books such as ''A History of the Architecture of the Abbey Church of St Alban'' in 1847. In 1844, Charles Buckler converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and went on to design many Catholic churches in England. When his father died in 1851, Charles Buckler was one of six surviving children. In the 1870s, he was commissioned by

Henry Fitzalan-Howard, 15th Duke of Norfolk Henry Fitzalan-Howard, 15th Duke of Norfolk, (27 December 184711 February 1917), styled Lord Maltravers until 1856 and Earl of Arundel and Surrey between 1856 and 1860, was a British Unionist politician and philanthropist. He served as Postmas ...

to re-build

Arundel Castle Arundel Castle is a restored and remodelled medieval castle in Arundel, West Sussex, England. It was established by Roger de Montgomery in the 11th century. The castle was damaged in the English Civil War and then restored in the 18th and earl ...

. The

Duke of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The premier non-royal peer, the Duke of Norfolk is additionally the premier duke and earl in the English peerage. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the t ...

, as

Earl Marshal Earl Marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the U ...

, the head and chief of the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional Officer of Arms, officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the ...

, nominated Buckler to be Surrey Herald Extraordinary. On 16 July 1880, his nomination was accepted 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 Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

. As both an author and editor he was responsible for numerous literary works about history, architecture and heraldry.Buckler, Charles Alban (1824–)
from

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...

, retrieved 11 June 2022 In addition, he was an artist who painted watercolours of such places as

Kirkstall Abbey Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery in Kirkstall, north-west of Leeds city centre in West Yorkshire, England. It is set in a public park on the north bank of the River Aire. It was founded . It was disestablished during the Dissol ...

. He died in 1905 and is buried in the churchyard of St Edward the Confessor Church in Sutton Park, a church which he himself designed.

Architectural works

The Catholic churches Buckler built include: * Immaculate Conception Church,

Stroud Stroud is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District. The town's population was 13,500 in 2021. Sited below the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the ...

, 1857. * St Benedict's Church,

Atherstone Atherstone is a market town and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. Located in the far north of the county, Atherstone is on the A5 national route, and is adjacent to the border with Leicestershire which ...

, 1859. * St Mary's Church,

Shifnal Shifnal () is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, about east of Telford, 17 miles (27 km) east of Shrewsbury and 13 miles (20 km) west-northwest of Wolverhampton. It is near the M54 motorway and A5 (road), A5 road ...

, 1860. *

St Dominic's Priory Church St Dominic's Priory Church (formally named "Our Lady of the Rosary and St Dominic") is one of the largest Catholic churches in London. The church is Listed building#England and Wales, Grade II* listed building on the National Heritage List for ...

, Haverstock Hill, 1863. * St Mary's Church,

East Hendred East Hendred is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish about east of Wantage in the Vale of White Horse and a similar distance west of Didcot. The village is on East Hendred Brook, which flows from the Berkshire Downs to join th ...

, 1863. * St Philip's Church,

Shipston-on-Stour Shipston-on-Stour is a town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon District in southern Warwickshire, England. It is located on the banks of the River Stour, Warwickshire, River Stour, points of the compass, south-southeast of Stratford-up ...

, 1864. * St Richard of Chichester Church,

Slindon Slindon is a mostly rural village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, containing a developed nucleus amid woodland. Much of Slindon's woodland belongs to the National Trust on the southern edge of the escarpment of t ...

, 1865. * St Edward's Church, Windsor, 1867. * Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Joseph Church,

Battersea Park Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea, London, Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies ...

, 1869. * St Francis of Assisi Church,

Midhurst Midhurst () is a market town and civil parish in the Chichester District in West Sussex, England. It lies on the River Rother (Western), River Rother, inland from the English Channel and north of Chichester. The name Midhurst was first reco ...

, 1869. * St Aloysius Church,

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...

, 1869. * St Ignatius of Loyola Church,

Sunbury-on-Thames Sunbury-on-Thames, known locally as Sunbury, is a town on the north bank of the River Thames in the Borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, England, southwest of central London. Historically part of the county of Middlesex, in 1965 Sunbury and other su ...

, 1869. * St Thomas of Canterbury Chapel, Exton Hall, 1869. * Sacred Heart Church,

Camberwell Camberwell ( ) is an List of areas of London, area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles' Church, Camberwell, St Giles ...

, 1872. * Our Lady of Mount Carmel Chapel, Lilystone Hall,

Stock Stocks (also capital stock, or sometimes interchangeably, shares) consist of all the Share (finance), shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporatio ...

, 1875. * St Edward the Confessor Church, Sutton Park, 1876. * Immaculate Heart of St Mary and St Dominic Church,

Homerton Homerton ( ) is an area in London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bordered to the west by Hackney Central, to the north by Lower Clapton, in the east by Hackney Wick, Leyton and by South Hackney to the south. In 2019, it had ...

, 1875-1883. * Our Lady Immaculate and St Philip Neri Church,

Kirtling Kirtling, together with Kirtling Green and Kirtling Towers, is a scattered settlement in the south-eastern edge of the English county of Cambridgeshire. It forms a civil parish with the nearby village of Upend to its north. The population of the ...

, 1877. * St Richard and St Hubert Church, Hadzor, 1878. * Holy Cross Priory, Leicester, 1879 (enlarged). * Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs, St Leonards-on-Sea, 1889.

Literary works

His written works include: * W. Wallen, C. A. Buckler et al ''Two essays elucidating the geometrical principals of Gothic architecture : read before the Geological and Polytechnic Society of the West Riding of Yorkshire'', 23 Sep, and 2 December 1841 * J. C. Buckler and C. A. Buckler, ''Remarks upon wayside chapels : with observations on the architecture and present state of the chantry on Wakefield Bridge'', 1843. * J. C. Buckler and C. A. Buckler, ''A history of the architecture of the abbey church of St. Alban : with special reference to the Norman structure''. 1847. * C. A. Buckler, ''Notes on the churches of the Friars Preachers'', 1862. * C. A. Buckler, ''The cathedral, or abbey church of Iona. A series of drawings, and descriptive letterpress of the ruins by Charles Alban Buckler'', 1866. * C. A. Buckler, ''Bucleriana : notices of the family of Buckler'', 1886. * C. A. Buckler, ''Emblazoned pedigree of the family of Jones, afterwards Herbert, of Treowen and Llanarth Court, Monmouth County : extracted from the records of the College of Arms'', London, 1886–1901. * C. A. Buckler, ''Design model for a baldachino for the Roman Catholic (Cathedral) Church of Our Lady & Saint Philip, Arundel, West Sussex, for the 15th Duke of Norfolk'', 1890.

Gallery

Church of the Immaculate Conception, Stroud - geograph.org.uk - 3546288.jpg, Immaculate Conception Church, Stroud St Mary's Roman Catholic Church - geograph.org.uk - 810601.jpg, St Mary's Church, Shifnal The Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and St. Dominic - geograph.org.uk - 1035783.jpg, St Dominic's Church, Haverstock Hill St Mary, East Hendred - geograph.org.uk - 1547791.jpg, St Mary's Church, East Hendred St Richard's Catholic Church, Slindon - geograph.org.uk - 745019.jpg, St Richard's Church, Slindon St Edward's Church, Windsor.jpg, St Edward's Church, Windsor London - Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Joseph church, from Battersea Park Road.jpg, Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St Joseph Church, Battersea Park Former St Francis of Assisi's Church, Midhurst.JPG, St Francis of Assisi Church, Midhurst St Edward The Confessor, Sutton Park - geograph.org.uk - 364736.jpg, St Edward The Confessor Church, Sutton Park Roman Catholic Church, Kirtling - geograph.org.uk - 1058741.jpg, Our Lady Immaculate and St Philip Neri Church, Kirtling Kościół Św. Krzyża.jpg, Holy Cross Church, Leicester File:Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs, St Leonards, Hastings (IoE Code 495311).JPG, Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs, St Leonards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buckler, Charles Alban English ecclesiastical architects English officers of arms 1825 births 1905 deaths 19th-century English architects Architects of Roman Catholic churches Preservationist architects