James Thomas Knowles (1806–1884) was an English architect with an extensive practice, who designed upper-class houses in an

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

manner more familiar in the work of Sir

Charles Barry Sir Charles Barry (23 May 1795 – 12 May 1860) was an English 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 responsi ...

. The drawings he submitted in the competition for the new

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

lost to Barry's.

Major works

In London, Knowles built in 1854 the confident and technically assured

palazzo A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

at 15

Kensington Palace Gardens Kensington Palace Gardens is an exclusive street in Kensington, west of central London, near Kensington Gardens and Kensington Palace. Entered through gates at either end and guarded by sentry boxes, it was the location of the London Cage, t ...

, which is today the official residence of the Ambassador of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. Together with his son Sir

James Thomas Knowles (1831–1908) Sir James Thomas Knowles (13 October 1831 – 13 February 1908) was an English architect and editor. He was intimate with the poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson and the founder of the Metaphysical Society to encourage rapprochement between religion an ...

, he was responsible for the Victoria Station Hotel – originally named The Grosvenor and recently rebranded and reopened under this name after an 18-month, £20 million refurbishment. Knowles provided a vast Italianate mansion at Silverton Park, Devon, for

George Wyndham, 4th Earl of Egremont George Francis Wyndham, 4th Earl of Egremont (30 August 1786 – 2 April 1845) of Orchard Wyndham, Somerset and Silverton Park, Devon, was an English nobleman and naval officer. Origins He was the son of William Frederick Wyndham (1763–182 ...

, who had inherited the title but not the family seat of

Petworth House Petworth House is a late 17th-century Grade I listed English country house, country house in the parish of Petworth, West Sussex, England. It was built in 1688 by Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, and altered in the 1870s to the desi ...

, Sussex, and was determined to build a rival. It was not fully complete when the Earl died in 1845, and after a house sale in 1892 had dispersed its contents, it was demolished except for the stables. Over a century later, a brief, unillustrated catalogue description in the 1892 sale inspired the creation of a forgery of an ancient Egyptian portrait head, known as ''

Amarna Princess The ''Amarna Princess'', sometimes referred to as the "Bolton Amarna Princess," is a statue forged by British art forger Shaun Greenhalgh and sold by his father George Sr. to Bolton Museum for £440,000 in 2003. Based on the Amarna art-style of a ...

''. Knowles also built the Italianate

Blackborough House Blackborough House is a listed building, grade II listed privately owned English country houses, country house in Blackborough, Devon, Blackborough, Devon, east of Cullompton. It was built in 1838 and as of 2023 is undergoing restoration. Con ...

in 1832 for Lord Egremont. Chosen by Sir Francis Cook to rebuild the

Monserrate Palace The Monserrate Palace () is a palatial villa located near Sintra, the traditional summer resort of the Portuguese court in the foothills overlooking the Atlantic Ocean north west of the capital, Lisbon. History According to legend, there was ...

in Sintra, Portugal, Knowles added to the previous

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

construction exotic decoration of mixed neo-Indian and neo-Moorish styles. This Palace of Monserrate, along with the Palace of Pena, is considered to be one of the most important examples of Romantic architecture in Portugal. One of Knowles's sketchbooks survives in the library 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 ...

.National Archives
. His son, Sir James Thomas Knowles, practised as an architect in partnership with his father and edited the ''

Contemporary Review ''The Contemporary Review'' is a British biannual, formerly quarterly, magazine. It has an uncertain future as of 2013. History The magazine was established in 1866 by Alexander Strahan and a group of intellectuals intent on promoting their v ...

'' in 1870–1877.

References

*James Stevens Curl, ''A Dictionary of Architecture''

Major works

References

Further reading