Francis Petre
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Francis William Petre (27 August 1847 – 10 December 1918), sometimes known as Frank Petre, was a New Zealand-born architect based in
Able to work competently in a wide diversity of architectural styles, he was also notable for his pioneering work in concrete development and construction. He designed numerous public and private buildings, many of which are still standing in and around Dunedin. His outstanding buildings are a few of his churches and seminaries, the basis of his international reputation.
Early life
Petre was a descendant of
The
Francis Petre was born in 1847 at
Members of British aristocratic families would generally be possessed of a private income and often entered one of the military services or the church, although other professions were becoming increasingly common. As the third son of the younger son of a
Around 1869 Petre qualified as an architect and engineer, and after a brief period in private practice in London working for architect and engineer
Architect
From 1875 Petre seems to have devoted his life to architecture. Working by the standard of his day he designed in the
the great richness and delicacy of detail, and the closer application of geometrical rules to architecture–more especially in the window tracery which exhibits greater variety of design, together with an easier and more perfect flow into the various parts of the whole structure.[3]
The English Gothic revival style had become popular for Protestant church architecture in the British colonies, as it had in Britain itself, following the rise of the
Petre's early speciality was his work in mass concrete, at the time a novel building material in New Zealand. Widely used by the ancient Romans the formula for making it was lost and a new one only invented in the 18th century. Three of Petre's earliest projects were all constructed in this material: Judge Chapman's house (today known as "Castlamore" or "Woodside"), the clifftop villa nicknamed Cargill's Castle in 1876, and St. Dominic's Priory in 1877. However, according to the whims of his patrons, he did also work with more conventional building materials. Recent analysis of the concrete in the Chapman house reveals unreinforced concrete walls, and imported Portland cement used as a binder. It is one of the earliest Portland cement concrete buildings in New Zealand. Cargill's Castle, built only a year or so later has some concrete roofs and floors, and a number of different types of reinforcement.[4]
St Dominic's Priory, Dunedin
Petre described the style of his 1876–77 creation, St Dominic's Priory, as Anglo-Saxon, referring to the straight-sloped window apertures. The style of the building, however, was very much of Petre's own interpretation and only lightly influenced by Anglo-Saxon architecture.
The building is notable for its use of poured concrete, a comparatively new building material in 1870s New Zealand, but one well suited to the creation of the large number of windows in the building's facade. The structure is simultaneously grand and austere, reflecting well its use as a convent.
St Dominic's Priory was the largest un-reinforced concrete building in the southern hemisphere (steel reinforcing being then a little used construction method), and earned Petre the lasting nickname of "Lord Concrete".
Cathedrals
F. W. Petre designed three of New Zealand's cathedrals, each distinguished by a different architectural style: St Joseph's Cathedral in Dunedin, the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Wellington and the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Christchurch.
1878 St Joseph's Cathedral, Dunedin
While Petre designed many churches, schools, public buildings, and private houses, his largest and grandest project, the Roman Catholic cathedral at Dunedin, was never fully completed. The entrance facade and the
Petre's intention, which is clear from the almost 90 pages of drawings held in the diocesan archives, was to design the most impressive cathedral in
1901 Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Wellington
That
Architectural ideas of the mid-19th century advanced by such architects as Pugin, and still adhered to by the recently deceased prominent New Zealand architect Benjamin Mountfort, decreed that only Gothic was suitable for Christian worship. Ignoring these old-fashioned and now expensive rules, Petre designed the new church in the Palladian style, which in this country had only a few years before been considered almost too heretical for worship.
The design was theatrical in the extreme. The imposing principal facade of Oamaru Stone consisted almost solely of one huge portico constructed of six ionic columns, while the facade was crowned by a high pediment more in the style of
The interior of the church continued the Palladian theme. The large nave was colonnaded, with the columns supporting a clerestory of arch-topped windows, while the chancel was approached through an enormous arch that mirrored the classic Palladian
The cost of the new church was taken from funds intended for the construction of the new cathedral, thus delaying that project. After seventy years of delays, the intention to build the new cathedral was finally abandoned. In 1984, following new enlargements and additions, Petre's church of the Sacred Heart was reconsecrated as Wellington's principal Roman Catholic Cathedral. In 1901 when the church was designed, Petre's use of the Palladian as a style for such a high-profile building would have been unusual in New Zealand.
1904 Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, Christchurch
Of all Petre's many designs, the most outstanding is usually considered to be the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Christchurch, commonly known as the Christchurch Basilica. Commenced in 1901, it replaced a smaller wooden church designed by Benjamin Mountfort that had been in use since 1864. The cathedral was officially opened on 12 February 1905, a mere four years after construction began. The building, said by some to be based on the 19th-century Church of Vincent-de-Paul in Paris, has been held to be the finest renaissance style building in Australasia.
Forsaking Mountfort's 19th-century Gothic, Petre designed the new church in a Renaissance, Italian basilica style, albeit with one major exception. Ignoring Renaissance convention, Petre obtained a greater visual impact by siting the Italianate green copper-roofed dome not above the crossing (as in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome), but directly above the sanctuary. In Petre's opinion, this design element, coupled with the Byzantine apse, added extra grandeur and theatre to the high altar set in the tribune. The nave and chancel roofs were supported by colonnades of ionic columns and the entrance facade of the cathedral was flanked by twin towers in the manner of many of Europe's great renaissance churches.
While often likened to
The cathedral, constructed of concrete sheathed in
After sustaining minor damage in the
Other churches
Apart from the many smaller churches Petre designed (see
Domestic architecture
The styles in which F. W. Petre designed his private houses were as diverse as those of his cathedrals and churches. It seems that, unlike many notable architects, he designed according to the wishes of his clients: those who wanted a castle received a castle, and those who wished for a small mansion disguised as an English Tudor cottage were equally fortunate.
A large private residence designed by Petre can be found in Lovelock Avenue, Dunedin. It was originally built for Judge Chapman in 1875 and christened "Woodside", though it has been known throughout much of its history as "Castlamore". This imposing structure sits on the slopes of the
Thus, the design appears as a comfortable dwelling complete with
One of Petre's abilities was that he could vary his styles of architecture. In 1883 he built a mansion in Christchurch known as "Llanmaes" for a local merchant. The style selected came to be known in New Zealand as the "English Cottage" style. This was a complete reversal of his previous work: rather than impressive grandeur, this style was intended to evoke nostalgic rustic charm. Similar in nature to the work of George Devey at a similar time in England, the style was a form of idealised Tudor with half-timbered black beams set into white painted walls, beneath beamed gables and tiled roofs. This form of design eventually became very popular in New Zealand from around 1910.
Two of Petre's "English Cottages" exist close to each other in Cliffs Road, Dunedin, overlooking the sea in the suburb of
Personal life
One of Petre's first large houses, the
In 1903, Petre was appointed Consular Agent for Italy in Dunedin following the death of Edward Cargill. He was a founder member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, was elected a Fellow in 1905, and was president of the institute in 1907–08. Unusually for a man at the peak of his profession, Petre was known as congenial and popular.[9] He died at Dunedin, in December 1918, following 42 years of architectural practice and two days after the opening of the finally completed St Patrick's Basilica, Oamaru. He was buried at the Andersons Bay Cemetery, Dunedin.
Evaluation
Dunedin was a dynamic place for an architect to be in the late 19th century, due to its great prosperity and subsequent expansion just before and after 1900. These were largely the result of the
Petre certainly did not obtain his many important commissions because of a lack of competing architects. The equally versatile
Petre's buildings, in whatever style, all have one common denominator: an attention to the smallest detail. It was said that his drawings of stones, window traceries, arches and ornamentation were so precise that stonemasons could execute his intentions from one single drawing. It is this attention to detail which is outstanding, whether the simple carving on the capital of an Ionic column or the heavy ornate work on the monumental
Francis Petre's work cannot be judged against that of the great classical architects of the northern hemisphere, who so clearly influenced him. He did not create a style or have a revival period named after him. His achievement was adapting and developing so many established styles well; whether through the new techniques of steel or concrete, or through more traditional building methods. He was given amazing opportunities to prove himself worthy as an accomplished and inspired architect; the many monumental buildings with which he provided New Zealand are testimony to his talent.
See also
Notes
- ^ "Early Land Sharks & Speculators". Anthony G. Flude. Archived from the original on 30 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
- ^ Godley, Charlotte (1936). Letters From Early New Zealand. p. 69.
- ^ "The Cathedral Architect 1847–1918". St Joseph's Cathedral. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
- ^ Miller, Robin (2011). "Pieces of the jigsaw - the early development of concrete in Otago, New Zealand". Proceedings of the 16th Engineering Heritage Australia Conference, Hobart, November 2011: 1–22.
- ^ "An Engineer's Perspective on Restoring the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament". Marist Messenger. New Zealand Catholic Church. Retrieved 14 September 2011. Reprinted from Engineering Insight, May/June 2011, p. 20.
- ^ "Bishop chooses demolition for Christchurch's historic Catholic cathedral". 4 August 2019.
- ^ Dungey, Kim (31 December 2009). "Petre designed Tudor-style home". Otago Daily Times. p. 41.
- OCLC 154283103.
- ^ a b Lochhead, Ian. "Petre, Francis William". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
- Evening Star. No. 5610. 2 March 1881. p. 2. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
- ^ "Historical Significance of Cargill's Castle". The Cargill's Castle Trust. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
- ^ "Petre, Francis William 1847–1918". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Retrieved 20 November 2005.
References
- Dictionary of New Zealand Biography Volume Two (1870–1900) (1993).
- Hamilton PR. (1986) Francis Petre: 1847–1918. An Investigation into New Zealand Architectural Biography. MA Thesis, University of Auckland.
- Knight, H., and Wales, N. (1988). Buildings of Dunedin. Dunedin: John McIndoe Ltd. ISBN 978-0-86868-106-1.
- New Zealand Tablet published Dunedin. Issues of; 27 Apr 1877, 12 Sep 1884, 28 Sep 1877, 17 Nov 1882, 13 Jul 1883, 11 Nov 1887, 18, May 1888, 25 Jan 1889, 15 Jan 1892, 29 Jan 1892, 12 Feb 1892, 11 Nov 1892, 15 Dec 1893, 4 May 1894, 1 Jul 1894, 11 Oct 1895, 20 Dec 1895, 13 Mar 1896, 11 Feb 1898, 3 Jun 1898, 10 Jun 1898, 24 Jun 1898, 26 Jan 1899, 13 Apr 1899, 17 May 1900, 21 Mar 1901, 4 Jul 1901, 20 Feb 1902, 18 Jun 1903, 22 Oct 1903, 8 Jun 1905, 3 May 1906, 22 Aug 1907, 22 Apr 1909, 1 Jul 1909, 16 Feb 1905, 20 Jun 1907, 22 Aug 1907
- NZ Historic Places magazine, June 1984, pp. 10–11. March 1995, pp. 33–34
- Stacpoole, J. (1976). Colonial architecture in New Zealand. A H & A W Reed.
- The Cyclopedia of New Zealand 1903. Entry for Petre, Francis William. full text portrait
- Wynn-Williams, D. B. (1982). The Basilicas of F. W. Petre (PDF) (Master of Arts). University of Canterbury.
Further reading
- Herd, J., and Griffiths, G.J. (1980). Discovering Dunedin. Dunedin: John McIndoe Ltd. ISBN 978-0-86868-030-9.
External links
Media related to Francis Petre at Wikimedia Commons