Architecture of Ireland
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The architecture of
Despite the oft-times significant British and wider European influence, the fashion and trends of architecture have been adapted to suit the peculiarities of the particular location. Variations of
Pre-Christian Ireland
Passage tombs consisted of a central burial chamber, with a long passageway to the entrance. Again, standing stones were often used for the walls, with slabs of stone over the roof. Newgrange in particular is more interesting in that the inner chamber uses
From some time beginning around the Iron Age, Ireland has thousands of
Early Christian Ireland
One feature not usually found outside Ireland is the round tower, such as that at Clonmacnoise in County Offaly or the one on Devenish Island near Enniskillen in County Fermanagh. These were usually built within the monasteries that sprang up all over the island, as the country became the "land of saints and scholars". They were possibly defensive in nature, serving as lookout posts and a place of refuge during an attack (the door to such structures was usually quite high off the ground). Viking raids on Ireland's shores and monasteries were relatively common. St. Cronan's Church in Tuamgraney, County Clare, a pre-Romanesque church which dates from the 10th century, is the oldest church in continuous use in both Ireland and Great Britain.[3][4]
Eventually, some Vikings settled permanently in Ireland, and the main cities were established by the Vikings. Although no buildings from that era are now intact, some street arrangements have their origins in the original Viking layouts. Remains of Viking dwellings have been discovered in many locations, but notably at Wood Quay in Dublin, King John's Castle in Limerick and near Waterford (where what is thought to be the original settlement at Waterford has been uncovered in 2004 during construction of the city's ring road).
Medieval Ireland
After early stone remains, the next most visible features in the Irish countryside are the innumerable castle remains, tower houses and intact castles. Apart from well-known and restored castles such as Bunratty Castle, many unknown remains (particularly of tower houses) exist next to newer farmhouses, or again, simply in fields. Carrickfergus Castle, built by John de Courcy in 1177, as his headquarters after his invasion of Ulster, is the most perfectly preserved Norman castle on the island. The castle at Cahir is also a particularly well-preserved example.
Many fine churches in Ireland were also built during this time, such as
Some of Ireland's main cities were built up and fortified before and during the mediaeval period. Limerick remained a walled city until the 18th century, while Derry's medieval walls still stand today. Such features as King John's Castle were built as major fortifications.
The Restoration and after
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In the decades after the
In the early 18th century classical Palladian architecture swept through Ireland, the driving force behind this new fashion was the Irish architect Edward Lovett Pearce. Pearce, born in County Meath in 1699, had studied architecture in Italy, before returning in 1725 to Ireland to oversee, and later, almost, co-design Ireland's first Palladian mansion Castletown House.
Castletown house was a milestone in Irish architecture, designed originally by the Italian Alessandro Galilei, circa 1717, in the manner of an Italian town palazzo, for Ireland's most influential man, the politician Speaker William Conolly, it set a new standard and fashion in Irish architecture. The original architect had returned to Italy before the first stone was laid, subsequently the Irish Pearce was responsible not only for the construction, but modification and improvement to the original plan. From the mid-1720s onwards almost every sizeable building, in Ireland, was cast in the Palladian mould.
Through Castletown and his later work, including the
Elsewhere in Dublin, George Semple built St Patrick's Hospital (1747) and Thomas Cooley the Royal Exchange (1769; now City Hall).
Georgian Ireland
In the later half of the 18th century, one of the most important architects in the country was the London-born
Francis Johnston was the third great Irish architect of this period. Johnston served as Architect to the Board of Works for a time and was thus responsible for much of the planning of Georgian Dublin. He also left a number of very fine buildings, including St. George's Church, Hardwicke Place and the Viceregal Lodge in the Phoenix Park. This latter now serves as Áras an Uachtaráin, the official residence of the President of Ireland, and is one possible model for the White House in Washington. Leinster House also claims this distinction, and the Neoclassical Castle Coole in County Fermanagh designed by James Wyatt bears an even greater similarity.
In addition to these large-scale buildings, the defining characteristic of Georgian city planning was terraces and squares of elegant family homes. In Ireland, many of these became tenements during the course of the 19th century and a significant proportion were demolished as part of various 20th-century slum clearance programmes. However, many squares and terraces survive in both Dublin and Limerick. Of particular interest are Pery Square in the latter city and Merrion Square in the former. Some smaller towns in Ireland also have Georgian architecture of interest, such as the fine Georgian squares and terraces of Mountmellick, County Laois, and Birr, County Offaly, which is a designated Irish Heritage Town.
Near the end of
To enhance the new buildings and cope with larger traffic volumes, the
Victorian period
During the 19th century, because all of Ireland was a constituent part of the United Kingdom, British architecture continued to influence building styles in Ireland. Many prominent Irish buildings were designed and built in Ireland during this period (1837–1901), including Findlater's Church[5] on Parnell Square, the Royal City of Dublin Hospital,[6] Olympia Theatre,[7] the Central Markets in Cork, the National Museum of Ireland,[8] the National Library of Ireland,[9] the Natural History Museum,[10] and the National Gallery of Ireland.[11] Many of these new buildings were located in the Southside of Dublin in places like Kildare Street and Baggot Street and in the centre of Cork. An important contributor was the notable English architect, Decimus Burton. He remodelled much of Cobh, commissioned by the 5th Viscount Midleton, in the 1840s. He was the designer of Martinstown House in County Kildare. Prior to that he spent almost two decades renovating the vast neglected public areas of Phoenix Park in Dublin and incidentally designing Dublin Zoo.[12][13][14]
However, few buildings were built outside the major cities other than a few railway stations in the provincial towns.
During the Victorian period, many new statues were erected in Ireland, particularly in Dublin, Belfast and Cork. These included several rather elegant statues of figures such as Queen Victoria, Daniel O'Connell and Henry Grattan.
One of Ireland's finest Victorian buildings is the cathedral dedicated to
20th century – present
In the 20th century, Irish architecture followed the international trend towards modern, sleek and often radical building styles, particularly after
and met with a cool reception among those more accustomed to traditional designs.In January 1940, the
In 1953, one of Ireland's most radical buildings, Bus Éireann's main Dublin terminal building, better known as Busáras was completed. It was built despite huge public opposition, excessive costs (over £1m) and even opposition from the Catholic Church.[18] Michael Scott, its designer, is now considered one of the most important architects of the twentieth century in Ireland[19] – however the original structure has become dilapidated and dated.
One of the main proponents of modernist and Brutalist architecture in Ireland was Sam Stephenson. Stephenson designed the Civic Offices (1979) and the Central Bank of Ireland (1980), both of which generated considerable controversy at the time of their construction.[20] In the same period, Liam McCormick designed the modernist Met Éireann headquarters in Glasnevin, Dublin (1979).[21]
In 1987, the government started to plan what is now known as the IFSC. The complex today houses over 14,000 office workers. One of the most symbolic structures of modern Irish architecture is the Spire of Dublin. Completed in January 2003, the structure was nominated in 2004 for the prestigious Stirling Prize.
From the 2010s and onwards, several new mid to high-rise buildings have been erected in Dublin, such as Capital Dock, The Exo Building and College Square.
Vernacular architecture
The thatched roof cottage and blackhouse have a tradition dating back 9,000 years.[22] Now considered quaint, thatched cottages are often rented out for tourists on holidays. A characteristically exuberant vernacular expression is often found in shopfronts throughout Ireland. Patrick O'Donovan has observed that in the nineteenth century there was "a brilliant explosion" of domestic architecture borne of the opportunities that plate glass, Art Nouveau and classical and gothic themes all offered up at the time. "In Ireland", he wrote, "the villages were not the places where people lived, but where they came for supplies and, most regularly, to attend church. Yet the shops did almost everything that the Church could not do, and offered an alternative, perhaps, to the latter's solemnity."[23]
See also
- Architecture of Limerick
- Georgian Dublin
- Irish Architectural Archive
- List of Irish towns with a Market House
- Listed buildings in Northern Ireland
- Pebbledash
- Sheela na gig an architectural grotesque which adorns numerous ancient buildings.
Notes and references
- ISSN 0066-622X.
- ^ Wilkinson, George (1845). Practical Geology and Ancient Architecture of Ireland. London: John Murray, Albemarle Street; William Curry Jun. and Co. p. 184.
- ^ "Through the door of history". Irishtimes.com. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ "Summers Past: Nuala O'Faolain cycles from Dublin to Lahinch, 1989". Irishtimes.com. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ Findlater's Church Archived 1 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Royal City of Dublin Hospital Archived 9 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Olympia Theatre Archived 2 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ National Museum of Ireland Archived 3 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ National Library of Ireland Archived 1 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Natural History Museum Archived 20 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ National Gallery of Ireland Archived 2 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Phoenix Park: History from the Georgian Period to the Present. The Nineteenth Century and the Decimus Burton Era".
- ^ "Dictionary of Irish Architects, 1720-1940".
- ^ "Chapelized Gate Lodge, Phoenix Park". Dublin. [accessed 2018.12.05]
- ^ "Church of Christ The King". turnerscross.com. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ "Barry Byrne (1883 – 1967) - Church Of Christ The King". turnerscross.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ "An Irishman's Diary". The Irish Times. 1 November 2004. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
- ^ Bus Eireann Archived 26 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Michael Scott Archived 11 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Sam Stephenson (1933-2006)". archiseek.com. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ "Weather Forecasting Inside Met Éireann". rte.ie. 2002. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ BallybegVillage.com. "Thatching in Ireland, Thatched Roof, Thatched Cottage, Irish Thatch". Ballybegvillage.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ John Murphy, Irish Shopfronts, photographs by John Murphy, with an introduction by Patrick O'Donovan. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1981.
Bibliography
- Becker, Annette, and Wilfried Wang. 20th-century Architecture: Ireland. Prestel: 1997. ISBN 3-7913-1719-9.
- Craig, Maurice. Dublin 1660–1860. Allen Figgis: 1980. ISBN 0-900372-91-5.
- McParland, Edward. A New Way of Building: Public Architecture in Ireland, 1680–1760. Yale University Press: 2001. ISBN 0-300-09064-1.
- Dennison, Gabriel, and Baibre Ni Fhloinn. Traditional Architecture in Ireland. Royal Irish Academy: 1994. ISBN 1-898473-09-9.
- McCullough, Niall. A Lost Tradition: The Nature of Architecture in Ireland. Gandon Editions: 1987. ISBN 0-946641-03-X.
External links
- Archiseek, Irish Architecture Online
- Ireland at the first Lisbon Architectural Triennale (2007)
- Details of Arts Council support for architecture in Ireland
- Architectural Association of Ireland
- Dictionary of Irish Architects
- Irish Architecture Foundation
- Loving Architecture Festival
- Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland
- Civic and Ecclesiastical Architecture of Georgian Dublin Collection. A UCD Digital Library Collection.
- Domestic Architecture of Georgian Dublin Collection. A UCD Digital Library Collection.
- The Irish Architectural Archive
- Urban Design Ireland
- The Irish Georgian Society
- Ireland at the 10th International Architecture Venice Biennale (2007)
- National Inventory of Architectural Heritage – NIAH
- The Archaeology of Ancient Ireland (Michael Sundermeier)
- Dublin Town Planning Competition 1914. A UCD Digital Library Collection.
- Dataset comprising photographic documentation of 444 buildings in Dublin, Ireland. A UCD Digital Library Collection.
- HIBERNIA: Inventories include historical, geographical, and architectural information collected from 1993 to 1995 for 1,280 of Dublin's buildings. A UCD Digital Library Collection.