Herbert Baker
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (June 2021) |
Sir Herbert Baker | |
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St John's College , Johannesburg; State House, Nairobi |
Sir Herbert Baker
Among the many churches, schools and houses he designed in South Africa are the
Life and career
The fourth son of nine children of Thomas Henry Baker (1824–1904),
He was educated at
He worked initially for
South Africa
He embarked for South Africa in 1892 ostensibly to visit his brother, and was commissioned in 1893 by Cecil Rhodes to remodel Groote Schuur, Rhodes' house on the slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town, and the residence of South African Prime Ministers. Rhodes sponsored Baker's further education in Greece, Italy and Egypt, after which he returned to South Africa and stayed the next twenty years.
In South Africa, Baker first partnered with Masey and Sloper, from 1903 to 1907. In 1904, he appointed Francis Leonard Fleming as his assistant, eventually becoming partners with Fleming in 1910 and working together until 1918, when Baker cut ties with the South Africa office.
He had the patronage of
In 1902, Baker left his practice at the Cape in the hands of his partner and went to live in Johannesburg, where he built Stonehouse. On a visit to the United Kingdom in 1904, he married his cousin, Florence Edmeades, daughter of Gen. Henry Edmund Edmeades, bringing her back to Johannesburg, where two sons, the first of four children, were born. Baker quickly became noted for his work, and was commissioned by a number of the "Randlords" (the wealthy mining magnates of Johannesburg) to design houses, particularly in the suburbs of Parktown and Westcliff. He also designed commercial premises and public buildings.
Some Herbert Baker buildings in South Africa
- Beach road Muizenberg, Cape Town
- St Boniface Church, Germiston
- Bishop Bavin School, St. George's
- Bishop's Lea, George
- Cecil John Rhodes Cottage, Boschendal[6]
- Champagne Homestead, Boschendal[6]
- King William's Town
- Glenshiel, Johannesburg
- Government House, Pretoria[7][8]
- Grey College, Bloemfontein
- Groote Schuur, Cape Town. Presidential residence (1910 to 1984)
- Helpmekaar Kollege
- Honoured Dead Memorial[9] in Kimberley, Northern Cape
- Jeppe High School for Boys
- Mandela Rhodes Place, Cape Town
- St. Mary's Anglican Church, Rosettenville
- McClean telescope building, Royal Observatory, Cape Town
- Balgowan, KwaZulu-Natal
- Droxford House (Kitchener road), Pietermaritzburg
- Ou Meul Huis, De la Bat Skool vir Dowes, Worcester, Western Cape[10]
- The Outspan, Parktown, Johannesburg[11]
- Pallinghurst, Parktown, Johannesburg[11]
- Northwards, Johannesburg
- Pilrig House, 1 Rockridge Road, Parktown
- Pretoria Station
- Rhodes Memorial, Cape Town. Baker used a design similar to the Greek Temple at Segesta.
- Grahamstown
- Roedean School, Johannesburg
- Sandown House, John Molteno.
- School House, Bishops Diocesan College, Rondebosch, Cape Town
- South African Institute for Medical Research, Johannesburg
- St. Andrew's College, Grahamstown chapel
- St Andrew's School for Girls, Johannesburg
- St Anne's College Chapel in Pietermaritzburg
- St. George's Cathedral, Cape Town
- St. John's College, Johannesburg
- St Margaret's (1905) Rockridge Road, Parktown
- St Mary's Cathedral, Johannesburg
- St. Martin's School (Rosettenville)
- St Michael and All Angels, Observatory, Cape Town
- St Michael and All Angels Anglican Church, Boksburg[12]
- Stone House, Rockridge Road, Parktown. Baker's own house and the first he built in Johannesburg[11]
- Union Buildings, Pretoria
- Villa Arcadia, Johannesburg[11]
- Templeton High School, Bedford, Eastern Cape, South AFrica
- Workers' Village at Lanquedoc, Boschendal[6]
- Welgelegen Manor, Balfour, Mpumalanga
- Wynberg Boys' High School, Cape Town (now housing the Junior School)
- The Rectory, Simon's Town - Simon's Town Museum
Union Buildings, South Africa
In 1909 Baker was commissioned to design the Government Building of the Union of South Africa (which was formed on 31 May 1910) in Pretoria. Pretoria was to become the administrative centre for the new government. In November 1910, the cornerstone of the Union Buildings was laid.
Lord Selborne and Henry Charles Hull, a member of the first Union Cabinet, chose Meintjieskop as the site for Baker's design.[13] The site was that of a disused quarry and the existing excavations were used to create the amphitheatre, which was set about with ornamental pools, fountains, sculptures, balustrades, and trees.
The design consisted of two identical wings, joined by a semi-circular colonnade forming the backdrop of the amphitheatre. The colonnade was terminated on either side by a tower. Each wing had a basement and three floors above ground. The interiors were created in the Cape Dutch Style with carved teak fanlights, heavy doors, and dark ceiling beams contrasting with white plaster walls and heavy wood furniture. Baker used indigenous materials as far as possible. The granite was quarried on site while Buiskop sandstone was used for the courtyards.
Stinkwood and Rhodesian teak were used for timber and wood panelling. The roof tiles and quarry tiles for the floors were made in Vereeniging. The Union Buildings were completed in 1913, after which Baker left for New Delhi from where he returned home to England.
Rhodes Cottage, Boschendal South Africa
In 1897,
The first name recorded in the guestbook was that of
In the 1990s the cottage was revamped and refitted while preserving its character. It stands on Estate 20, one of the Founders' Estates which form Phase 1 of the residential development of Boschendal.[3]
India
In 1912 Baker went to India to work with
United Kingdom
Works from 1913 include:
- War Memorial Building, Harrow on the Hill (English Heritage TQ1534987385)
- High Commission building in Trafalgar Square, London
- King George Von 8 July 1930.
- The Port Lympne Mansion (now a zoo) in Kent in south-east England
- One of the grandstands at Old Father Time, a weather vane in the shape of Father Time, which adorned his stand until it was replaced in 1996. The weather vane, now a famous symbol of the home of cricket, was moved to another stand at the ground. He also designed the Grace Gatesat Lord's.
- The North Range of Downing College, Cambridge. The design was based on that of the original architect of the college, William Wilkins.
- Rebuilding of the Bank of England, London, demolishing most of Sir John Soane's original building. Described by Nikolaus Pevsner in 'Buildings of England' as "the greatest architectural crime, in the City of London, of the twentieth century".
- The War Cloister at Winchester College.
- Tewin Memorial Hall, Hertfordshire completed in 1922.
- Rhodes House in Oxford, headquarters of the Rhodes Scholarships.
- Goodenough College, London.
- Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge (1933–34).[16]
- Busby's House, Westminster School, situated at 23 Great College Street. The building was erected in 1936.
- Church House, Westminster, built throughout the late 30s and opened by King George VI on 10 June 1940.
War memorials
- Ascot War Memorial, Berkshire[17]
- Wadhurst War Memorial, East Sussex[18]
- Blackmoor War Memorial, Hampshire[19]
- Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Winchester War Memorial, Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire[20]
- Hatfield War Memorial, Hertfordshire[21]
- County of Kent War Memorial Cross, Canterbury, Kent[22]
- Harrow School War Memorial Building, Harrow School, London[23]
- Etchingham War Memorial, East Sussex[24]
Belgium
Following the First World War, Baker was appointed one of four principal architects by the
Kenya
Baker wrote: "The Governor and Director of Education were much concerned to provide a healthy education for the European youth under the conditions of the climate. So with their encouragement I designed a school at Nairobi with a crypt as a playground – like the undercroft of Wren's library at
Other impressive buildings in Nairobi designed by Baker and completed with his assistant, Jan Hoogterp, include the East African Railways Headquarters, Law Courts and Government House (now
- Prince of Wales School, Nairobi[26]
France
Post the
- Adanac Military Cemetery
- Australian Imperial Force burial ground
- Delville Wood Cemetery and Memorial
- Courcelette Memorial, Canadian war memorial
- Dantzig Alley British Cemetery
- Flatiron Copse Cemetery
- Le Trou Aid Post Cemetery
- London Cemetery and Extension
- Loos Memorial, Loos-en-Gohelle
- Ovillers Military Cemetery
- Quarry Cemetery, Montauban
- Tannay British Cemetery, Thiennes
Australia
Fairbridge Chapel was built at
- Fairbridge Church, Pinjarra, Western Australia[28]
Zimbabwe
The Cathedral of Saint Mary and All Saints was built in what was then Salisbury in Southern Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe); the first Anglican church in Fort Salisbury, now Harare, was a pole and dagga hut built in 1891 by Canon Balfour on the west side of Harare Street, between Albion and Speke Avenues. A pro cathedral[clarification needed] was begun the following year to the north of the present cathedral. It was built of brick and corrugated iron, under the direction of Archdeacon Upcher. The building seemed quite unusable as a cathedral despite having an iron nave by 1898 and extended in 1911.[29]
The parishioners decided that they needed a better cathedral but they were extremely ambitious, and employed the services of architect Francis Masey. When he died in 1912, Sir Hebert Baker, his former partner, took over the project. Baker is credited for designing the Union Buildings in Pretoria, South Africa, and worked with architect Lutyens on the master plan of New Delhi in India. Baker designed the cathedral in the Romanesque architectural style with round arches and round windows. A tall circular bell tower was intended to be a reference to the conical tower from Great Zimbabwe, but the idea was not pursued because it made the bell tower look like a lighthouse.[29]
References
- ^ Basic biographical details of Herbert Baker at the Dictionary of Scottish Architects Biographical Database.
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30547. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ ISBN 978-0-620-38001-0
- ^ The Dictionary of National Biography, 1941-1950, ed. Leopold Legg, Edgar Williams, 1959, p. 41
- ^ The buildings of England: Kent - West and the Weald, 3rd edn., 2012, p. 194
- ^ ISBN 1-86842-191-0.
- ^ Baker, D. (1988). "Baker, Lutyens, and the Union Buildings". South African Journal of Cultural History. 2 (1): 62–69. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
- ^ Stuart J Handley. "Herbert Baker's Houses in South Africa". The Lutyens Trust. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
- ^ Kimberley in the Northern Cape Archived 23 May 2007 at the Wayback Machine. South Africa Holiday (20 July 2007). Retrieved on 2013-07-29.
- ^ "History". De laBat School for the Deaf. Archived from the original on 4 April 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
- ^ a b c d "The Parktown Heritage". Archived from the original on 23 March 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
- ^ Wood, Peter. "Sir Herbert Baker on the East Rand". boksburghistorical.com. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
- ^ Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa vol. 7
- ^ "The building Blocks of British empire". Hindustan Times. 7 June 2011. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011.
- ISBN 978-0-670-08482-1.
- ^ Historic England. "Scott Polar Research Institute (Grade II) (1268369)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
- ^ "Ascot War Memorial". Historic England. Archived from the original on 3 December 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
- ^ "Wadhurst War Memorial, East Sussex". Historic England. Archived from the original on 11 January 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
- ^ Historic England. "Blackmoor War Memorial Cloister, Cross, and Fountain (1174603)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "The Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Winchester War Memorial (1445852)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "Hatfield War Memorial including memorial cross, garden wall and gates, and shelter pavilion (1445906)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "County of Kent War Memorial Cross (1446080)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ Historic England. "Harrow School War Memorial Building, Memorial Shrine, Ceremonial Staircase and Retaining Wall (1358630)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
- ^ "Etchingham War Memorial, East Sussex". Historic England. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
- ^ Captain B.W.L. Nicholson RN, CBE, DSO - First Headmaster of the Prince of Wales School, 1931-37 Archived 8 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Oldcambrians.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-29.
- ^ Sir Herbert Baker and the Prince of Wales School Archived 13 July 2006 at the Wayback Machine. Oldcambrians.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-29.
- ^ "THE THIEPVAL MEMORIAL AND THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME 1916" (PDF). Thiepval.org.uk. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ "Fairbridge Village". Places Database. Heritage Council of WA. December 2016. Archived from the original on 22 April 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ a b Jackson, 1995
- "Westminster Abbey » Sir Herbert Baker". Westminster Abbey. Archived from the original on 31 May 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
- Jackson, P. (1995). Historic Buildings of Harare. Harare: Quest Publishing.