Thomas Hamilton (architect)
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Thomas Hamilton (11 January 1784 – 24 February 1858) was a
He was one of the leading Greek Revivalists in Scotland, "more imaginative than his peers and more refined in his detailing".[1] He was a favourite of the church for his Gothic designs, being commissioned to design many Free Churches after the Disruption of 1843. He also designed shops and banks, many of which survive.
Life
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Hamilton was born on 11 January 1784 in
In 1791 his father, working from premises on Brodies Close, substantially altered a building at the head of Old Assembly Close[3] on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh to make it their family home (now known as 166 High Street). It is notable for its arched windows on the first floor, all visible from the street and unlike the other rectangular windows in the block. The Hamiltons occupied all three upper floors, the ground floor being occupied by William Vair, a stocking maker.[citation needed]
Hamilton's father received many City commissions between 1796 and 1803 allowing Hamilton to attend the old High School in High School Yards from 1800 to 1801. The rector at the time was Alexander Adam.[citation needed]
In 1803 the family moved to a newly built house of 47 Princes Street in Edinburgh's New Town. His father (listed as a "wright") still retained a workshop at Allan's Close on the Royal Mile in the Old Town.[4] Hamilton was by then apprenticed to his father. His mother Jean died approximately at the time of this move or shortly before.[citation needed]
In 1804 his father remarried: to Margaret McAra. By this time young Thomas seems largely to have been working under the wing of his uncle. John Hamilton (d.1812), a builder living and operating from 4 Dundas Street in the New Town,[5] helping with building projects such as Heriot Row. During this time he acquired considerable knowledge of stone masonry.[citation needed]
In 1812 his uncle John died and left the bulk of his estate to Hamilton who was 28 years old. This included several houses on Heriot Row and Dundas Street, built by them both.[citation needed]
Since the move to Princes Street, however, his father's affairs had been in disarray, with Hamilton possibly supporting him to some degree.[
Hamilton's earliest known architectural drawing, dated 1813, is a plan requested by the Dean of Guild for a scheme by Robert Burn (architect) (1752–1815) to remodel a house on St Andrew Street.
Hamilton was a founding member of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1826.
In the 1830s he is listed as living at 57 York Place, on the eastern edge of the Edinburgh New Town.[6]
He trained John Henderson in the 1820s.[7] The architect John Starforth trained under Hamilton in the 1830s.[8]
In 1852, he submitted a design for improving the Bank of Scotland's Head Office, which was unpopular and described as a "prominent deformity" by Lord Cockburn in 1849. The design was of Greek neo-classical style, and he received 200 guineas (£12000 in today's terms).[9]
In his final years he was living at 41 York Place. Interestingly, in deference to his father, he is still referred to as "Thomas Hamilton Junior, architect".[10]
He died at 9 Howe Street (an office) on 24 February 1858.
The Martyrs' Monument
The Scottish Political Martyrs' Monument is a 90-foot (27 m) tall obelisk which is a prominent feature on the Edinburgh sky-line. It was funded by public subscription raised by the radical MP Joseph Hume. The monument bears the following inscription:
To The Memory Of Thomas Muir, Thomas Fyshe Palmer, William Skirving, Maurice Margarot and Joseph Gerrald. Erected by the Friends of Parliamentary Reform in England and Scotland, 1844.
It includes the following quotation:
I have devoted myself to the cause of The People. It is a good cause - it shall ultimately prevail - it shall finally triumph.
(Speech of Thomas Muir in the Court of Judiciary on 30 August 1793.)
Hamilton also designed the
Burns Monuments (Edinburgh and Alloway)
The building of a mausoleum on the grave of
Following a large subscription in 1817 from Scottish expatriates in India[1] a monument in Edinburgh was funded and after a debate lasting over a decade Thomas Hamilton won this commission in 1831. While largely repeating the design of the Alloway monument, he designed the Edinburgh monument to contain a full sized statue of Burns by John Flaxman. The statue was later removed to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery where it remains on display.
Whilst the Alloway monument is accessible all the year round, the Edinburgh monument is accessible only on special occasions such as Doors Open Day (usually one weekend in late October in Edinburgh). As part of the Edinburgh Art Festival it was opened daily between 28 July 2016 and 28 August 2016.
List of main architectural works
His main works included:[13]
- 1820 Norwich Union Insurance Society Building, 32 Princes Street, Edinburgh, demolished c.1880
- 1822 Kinghorn Town Hall, Fife
- 1823 James Spittal's shop "The Gilded Balloon" on the Cowgate (facing Blair Street) destroyed in the Cowgate fire, 2002
- 1824 Hopetoun Rooms, 72 Queen Street, Edinburgh, demolished 1967
- 1825 John Knox Monument, Glasgow Necropolis
- 1825–28 Burns Monument Alloway, Ayrshire
- 1825–29 Royal High School, Edinburgh
- 1826 1 to 12 Castle Terrace, Edinburgh
- 1827–30 Ayr Town Hall
- 1828 Cumstoun House, near Kirkcudbright
- 1829–32 Lawnmarket, Edinburgh
- 1829 John Knox Church, Edinburgh, not executed
- 1829 Monument to Sir Robert & Lady Liston, Churchyard Gogar
- c.1830 Falcon Hall, Morningside Road, Edinburgh, demolished
- 1830 Monument to French Prisoners, Valleyfield Mills, Penicuik
- 1830 Arthur Lodge (attributed), Dalkeith Road, Edinburgh
- 1830 Blackwood's Shop, 45 George St, Edinburgh
- 1830–32 The Manse, Coldstream
- 1831 Dean Orphanage, Edinburgh
- 1831 The Burns Monument, Edinburgh
- 1831–34 Wallace Tower, Ayr
- 1836 Alyth Parish Church, Perth & Kinross
- 1842 Episcopal Chapel, Bath St, Dunfermline
- 1844 Physicians Hall, 9 Queen St, Edinburgh
- 1843 New North Free Church, Forrest Road, Edinburgh
- 1844 St. John's Free Church, Johnston Terrace, Edinburgh
- 1844 Martyrs' Memorial, Old Calton Cemetery, Edinburgh
- 1848 rebuilding of St. Mary's Church, South Leith
- 1850 Free Church, Dunbar
- 1850 Kennoway Church, Fife
- 1858 additions to Dunbeath Castle, Caithness
Gallery of architectural works
-
Burns Monument, Alloway -
Burns Monument, Edinburgh -
Royal High School, Calton Hill Edinburgh -
Royal High School, Calton Hill Edinburgh -
Dean Orphanage, Edinburgh -
Dean Orphanage portico and towers -
Physicians Hall, Edinburgh -
Wallace Tower, Ayr -
St. Mary's Church, South Leith -
New North Road Free Church, Edinburgh (now the Bedlam Theatre)
References
- ^ a b "Thomas Hamilton, architect - Joe Rock's Research Pages".
- ^ "The Early Years, 1784 - 1815 - Joe Rock's Research Pages". sites.google.com. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1792
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1805
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1810
- ^ "Edinburgh Post Office annual directory, 1832-1833". National Library of Scotland. p. 81. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
- ^ Dictionary of Scottish Architects: John Henderson
- ^ Goold, David. "John Starforth". Dictionary of Scottish Architects. Retrieved 25 February 2018.
- ^ Wall text from The Bank on the Mound, The Museum on the Mound, Edinburgh.
- ^ Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1823
- ^ South Leith Parish Church: 150th anniversary booklet
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "Regent Road, Burns Monument including Boundary Wall and Railings (Category A Listed Building) (LB27801)". Retrieved 18 March 2019.
- ^ Thomas Hamilton Architect 1784-1858, Joe Rock, 1984, Scottish Arts Council
Further reading
- Fisher, Ian (1984): Thomas Hamilton in Scottish Pioneers of the Greek Revival, The Scottish Georgian Society, Edinburgh, pp 37–42
- Rock, Joe (1984): Thomas Hamilton Architect 1784-1858, Scottish Arts Council
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