Victorian style in architecture: features, architectural masterpieces. Victorian era

The era of the reign of Queen Victoria in the UK is one of the most significant and even revolutionary. The second half of the 19th century was a time of turbulent transformation in all spheres of life of the British, and this could not but be reflected in architecture. Let's talk about what a Victorian style is in architecture, what is its specificity and what are its variants.

History of the era

In 1837, the youngest Queen Victoria appeared on the throne of the British Empire . She fell into the lot of various tests, she stayed in power for 60 years and was able to make the country prosperous, cultured, civilized. The Victorian era (years - from 1837 to 1901) is not a homogeneous period of history. At this time, there was a rapid development of industry, culture, economy. Britain over the years completely changed its way of life, its mentality. The country becomes one of the most powerful empires of the world, strengthening its influence in Asia and Africa. In the last years of Victoria's rule, development slows down, but many achievements of that era are still important for modern Britain. Queen Victoria was an active propagandist of strict morality, which is perhaps the main feature of this period. She also believed that technical modernization and the development of culture were important. Therefore, it is precisely for this period that the rapid growth of English literature and architecture is necessary.

Victorian Culture

Features of the period of the reign of Queen Victoria is the absence of wars and technological boom. The British are becoming a fairly wealthy nation, and the growing middle class is the main locomotive of social development. For this period there is an active development of education, there is such a phenomenon as tourism, a new way of thinking is formed among the inhabitants of the empire. Following the example of their queen, the British profess strict and conservative moral views, they are restrained in entertainment and industrious, and all this is another reason for the country's economic growth. A new worldview becomes the basis for a breakthrough in art. The ideological basis of Victorianism was the fusion of utilitarianism and evangelism. Not the least role in culture was played by English literature. C. Dickens, W. Thackeray, C. Doyle, Bronte's sisters are typical authors of that time. The visual concept of the epoch is embodied by the Pre-Raphaelites. Of particular importance for world architecture is the Victorian style in architecture. The British of that time paid great attention to their dwelling. Therefore, architecture and decoration become a very important part of the new lifestyle.

Common features of the architecture of the Victorian era

The term "Victorian style" is trying to identify a huge period of time, which is characterized by a strong heterogeneity. Therefore, in a strict architectural sense, there is no such single phenomenon. In the English-speaking countries of that era, eclectic retrospectiveism dominated, uniting several similar but still independent trends. This Italian style, neo-Gothic, the style of the period of the Second Empire, the Indo-Sarancini style and other varieties.

The architecture of the Victorian era is riddled with practicality, like the rest of the culture, and eclectic. It has such features as the combination of elements from different historical eras. Buildings were made using a large number of details, rich colors, carvings on the facade. Towers, balconies, friezes, peaked roofs, many windows of different volume, terraces, high entrances with a porch, an abundance of textures and decor - all this is Victorian.

The periodization of Victorian architecture

The so-called Victorian style in architecture arises as a response to previous eras - Georgian and the style of Queen Anne, who were distinguished by great rigor and restraint. In the architecture of the times of Queen Victoria, there are traditionally three main periods:

1. Early (1835-1855). It is a period of neostils, hobbies of historicism. At this time, there are variants with a prefix of neo-known styles such as Gothic, Rococo, Moorish, Byzantine, Chinese.

2. Medium (1855-1870). At this time, the flow of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, the work of the artist W. Morris, is occurring. During this period, a return to the value of uniqueness and manual work is in contrast to the early period when things of mass production dominated. Once again, individuality is recognized as the main value.

3. The Late (1870-1901). This period is also called the Victorian Renaissance. There is a rethinking of the traditions of baroque, Gothic. Architects recall the Tudors and use some of the techniques of the 16th century in new buildings.

Gothic Revival

In the architecture of the whole world after the era of "big" styles, there was a periodic appeal to certain traditions of architecture, England did not escape such "returns". The 19th century, especially its second half, is a time of rethinking and unusual reading of techniques and solutions of different styles and historical eras. In the 40s of the 19th century, a wave of neo-Gothicism swept over England. Lancet windows, spiers and turrets, arches in the spirit of the Middle Ages are becoming extremely popular. And various elements of medieval churches have now been actively used for the design of residential and commercial buildings. In England, during the reign of Queen Victoria, many buildings were built in the style of neo-Gothic. The most famous of them are the London Parliament with the famous clock tower Big Ben, Royal London Court complex, similar to the fairytale medieval palace, and the brightest St. Pancras station of red brick. This style was so popular in the Victorian era that sometimes these two terms are synonymous.

Italian Victorian

The era of Queen Victoria is characterized by an eclectic architecture that seeks to bring together details of different styles and national characteristics. At this time, the Italian style is gaining popularity, especially it was well manifested in residential architecture, in country houses in the USA. Its main features are a low, wide roof, colonnades, arches, Roman pediments, as well as a rich decor of the facades. This style is ideal for decorating cottages that built a middle class in the province and the suburbs of London.

Style of the Second Empire

French culture and architecture of different periods had a significant impact on world architecture. It could not escape this influence and England, the 19th century in which it became a time of fascination with the Empire, the so-called Second Empire. Despite the complex relationship of English and French cultures, from 1855 to 1885 the British give their due to the architecture of the times of Napoleon III. The main feature of this style were roof skylights, which were considered very functional, as well as high, narrow doors and large curved windows. Style lasted in England for a short time and was mainly used for the design of public buildings and lucrative houses.

The style of Queen Anne's time

The reign of Queen Anne - the beginning of the 18th century. This was the heyday of the English Baroque, with its passion for wealth and luxurious decor. Architectural masterpieces of the time were rethought in the time of Queen Victoria. The main ideologue of the revival of the style of the times of Queen Anne was the architect Richard Norman Shaw, his efforts in England there were many houses that became a real classic of British architecture. These include the Swan house in Chelsea, the first apartment building in the Albert Hall area, several houses on St. James Street, much of the construction of the suburb of Bedford Park, many cottages in different parts of the UK, as well as in New Zealand and India.

Roman style

The architectural style of the Victorian era tried to find new interpretations of the finds of architects of the past. In the late 19th century, architects recalled the ancient Roman tradition of erecting temples and castles of the 11th and 12th centuries. In the Victorian times, brutal stone buildings were mostly created for people or for public use. Later, Henry Hobson Richardson actively promoted this style in the residential construction of the United States. The main features were laconism, monumentality and integrity. Founding houses with gray stone towers were very fond of the representatives of the nascent bourgeoisie.

Folk style

Folk (folk) Victorian style in architecture has become an organic combination of old English traditions in the construction of cottages for families of workers and new at that time technologies. So there were mansions, decorated with wooden siding or wooden tile (shingle). This style most of all has got accustomed and has received huge distribution in architecture of the USA. Emigrants from Britain wanted to build a piece of good old England on the new land, and there appeared spacious wooden houses with turrets, balconies, terraces and cornices. Cheap materials allowed the families of workers to get separate houses and to approach the middle class in terms of standard of living.

Stick

In the era of Victoria, especially the late period, the architects sought to find new combinations of elements of different styles. So at the turn of the gothic and style of Queen Anne's time a stick appears - a kind of half-timbered construction. Architecture as the art of combining ancient traditions and new technologies sought to find new solutions for beautiful and comfortable housing. Houses in styk style were almost completely erected from wood by wireframe technology. But to simplify and reduce the cost of construction, racket technology was mainly used. This style is more widely spread in the US.

Indo-Saracen style

The architecture of Great Britain not only sought to interpret the styles of European architecture, but also turned its attention to the national traditions of the colonies. So in British India there was an Indo-Saracenic style, with the help of which the colonialists wanted to show their continuity with the indigenous rulers of the country. The British erect luxurious palaces-residences, stylized for the construction of Moguls. This tradition was eagerly picked up by the local aristocracy, which began to build its palaces in this pseudo-national style. Later motives of the Indian and Saracenic architecture began to penetrate into residential construction, especially for cottages for the provincial middle class in Britain and the US.