Part 16

The south and west sides were of an equally picturesque character, but neither had any central gable. The south had triple dormer windows joined in the centre with one dormer window at each side. The two towers were seen rising above the roof, and a wide terrace with open stone Elizabethan balustrading extending the entire front, with steps down to the garden in the centre below. The terrace was 130 ft. in length. The west side had the two gables, one at each end, with three tall dormer windows in the roof; these were connected by wood balustrading, and a window with three lights was placed below each. The granite-stone ornaments in the old fronts were replaced in the new fronts.

The vignette gives a view of a small garden fountain, designed from one in the old garden at Blickling in Norfolk. The plinth is hexangular in plan, with the scrolls projecting on the three sides. To the top of the jet its height is about 9 feet.

_DESIGN No. 39._

SUMMER VILLA FOR THE COUNT KINSKI, AT TEPLITZ.

This villa was designed about the year 1852, for an Austrian nobleman, who wished to have a villa in the English Elizabethan character. The plan was arranged after his own figured sketches, and it is given here as showing the requirements considered desirable for such a building in a summer place of

retirement, or palace for a foreign nobleman’s occupation. The porch was approached on four sides by flights of steps 12 ft. 6 in. in diameter; it opened into a hall _b_, 20 ft. in length by 14 ft. in width. The drawing-room _c_, of noble size, with two bay windows, was 36 ft. in length by 22 in width. The dining-room _d_, in the opposite side of the hall, was 28 ft. in length by 18 ft. in width. The butler’s pantry _k_, and the servants’ offices and kitchen _g_, with a large store-closet _h_, and scullery _i_, adjoined. A bread-room is shown at _j_, _l_ is the servants’ hall, _m_ a china-closet, _n_ a store-room, and _o_ the servants’ staircase, _q q_ are the servants’ entrances, and _r r_ the closets.

Returning to the principal portion of the building, the chief staircase, _v_, opens from the entrance hall, _e e e_ are nurseries, and _f_ is the library. On the first floor, _a_ is the balcony over the porch; this was to be used for smoking, &c., _b_ is the best bed-chamber, and _c_ the boudoir to the same, _d_ is the second best bedchamber, and _e_ its boudoir, _f_ is the third best bedchamber, and _g_ its boudoir, _h_ is a bedroom without any boudoir, _i_ is the housekeeper’s bedroom, _k k k_ the men’s sleeping room, _i_ housemaid’s closet, _j j_ closets, _l l_ linen-closets, _m_ a closet or bath-room, _n_ the principal staircase, and _o_ the servants’ staircase.

The attic plan was devoted to the sleeping rooms, _b b b_, of the female servants. Here plans are made

(the building being so large) on a smaller scale than the other plans in this volume.

The perspective view merely exhibits the common forms of Elizabethan character. The tower which formed the entrance was 70 ft. in height from the foundation to the top of its roof, the height of the ground-floor rooms was 14 ft. 3 in. They had rich plaster friezes, and the staircase had carved oak Elizabethan balustrading. The second-floor rooms were 12 ft. 3 in. in height, and were very plain in character. The upper floor of the tower was open, but could be closed by sashes; this was intended for a smoking retreat. A small detail of one of the gabled windows in front is given below. Altogether, the design had a most picturesque effect, and its style met with approval. It combined utility with elegance,

and completely answered the objects for which it was constructed.

Another villa was designed for an Austrian nobleman, the Prince Clary: a view of it is given in the first illustration of this volume, through the window of the architect’s study. It was intended as a summer retreat for the Prince and his friends when engaged in a fishing-excursion on the noble river the Elbe, on the banks of which it was placed. It contained a large centre dining-room, 48 ft. by 22, with a saloon or drawing-room, 40 ft. by 20 ft., and extensive accommodation for the kitchen and servants’ departments. The upper storey contained 14 best bedrooms, each with an ante or dressing-room, besides bath-room and the sleeping apartments for the domestics.

_DESIGN No. 40._

HARRINGTON HOUSE, QUEEN’S PALACE GARDENS.

This building, with which the present collection of designs closes, is probably the most unpicturesque example in the volume. Its exterior has been frequently criticised; whatever its merits or demerits may be, it certainly is wholly unlike, while at the same time it is not inferior, to the strange style at present so popular with the younger branch of architectural professors, which appears to be a

mixture of the Byzantine and Romanesque styles, joined with the Roman Gothic. Some call it the Missal style, others the Northern Italian. The sole recommendation of it is that it comes more expensive to carry out than any other. This house has at least the reputation of being a very comfortable one, and as more than usually adapted to receive large assemblies and fashionable parties. Indeed the noble Earl who erected it was so pleased with it, that on entering, on its completion, he addressed the following note to the author:--

H. H., Kensington Palace Gardens, _31 May, 1854_.

My dear Sir,--

I take this opportunity of expressing to you my thanks for having constructed a house, in my humble judgment, _without a fault_.

Believe me most sincerely yours,

(Signed) HARRINGTON.

To C. J. Richardson, Esq.

And after having resided in it nine months, he again wrote as follows:--

H. H., Palace Gardens, Kensington, _2nd February, 1855_.

My dear Sir,--

I pray you to accept my cordial thanks for your most able architectural skill in the construction of my house. I have lived in it one season, and have not discovered in it a single fault.

Believe me most truly yours,

(Signed) HARRINGTON.

To C. J. Richardson, Esq.

The site upon which the house stands was taken by the Earl from the Commissioners of Her Majesty’s

Woods and Forests, and it certainly is, or was, one of the best sites for building in the metropolis. It adjoins Kensington Gardens, looking on the old winter garden of Queen Anne. Agreeable and admirable a

site for building as this was, in 1853, it remained for some time utterly neglected. The first speculator had been ruined, and only one or two of his houses (one erected by Mr. Owen Jones, the architect) were

standing in the road. Soon after the Earl of Harrington acquired the land, and erected this building, the whole of the road, on each side, was covered with first-class mansions.

The terms of the agreement were, that the Earl should take plot No. 9 and the northern portion of plot No. 10, having a frontage of 196 ft. to the Queen’s Road, and a depth of about 260 ft., for a period of 91¼ years, from the 5th July, 1851, at a peppercorn rent for the first year, of 73_l._ 10_s._ for the second year, and of 147_l._ a year for the remainder of the term, also a rent of 5_s._ a year in lieu of land-tax for every year except the first.

The Earl was to expend a sum of not less than 6000_l._ in erecting upon the ground a dwelling-house of the first-class style of building. The house was to be insured in the sum of 6000_l._, and the Earl was to pay jointly, with the adjacent occupiers, the expense of lighting and keeping up the road, which was a private one, and to pay the gatekeepers at the lodge. The rest of the covenants of the agreement were such as are usually found in such documents.

The house was, until the present year, the only Gothic one in the district, the Earl insisting upon having this, his favourite style, admitted. It stands in the centre of the road at the highest level, and is well up out of the ground. The principal floor is 7 ft. above the outside road of approach, and 14 ft. above the level of the public road. The whole of the walls stand on a basement of concrete, and the lower flooring is 5 ft. above the level of the foundations. The basement story is 14 ft. in height, and of entirely fireproof construction. The best rooms on the ground-floor are 17 ft. 6 in. in height, the secondary rooms are 15 ft. high. All the principal staircases are of stone; the ground plan on page 479 shows the

entrance hall, _a_, approached by 12 steps; it is 30 ft. in length, by 21 ft. in width; _b_ is the principal staircase, situated on one side of the saloon in the centre of the building; the latter is 41 ft. long by 21 ft. wide. The dining-room _e_, and the library _c_, on each side of the hall, are respectively 30 ft. by 22 ft. The great room, with the bay window, entered from the saloon, is the picture gallery _f_. This room is 41 ft. long by 30 ft. wide, without the bay. The drawing-rooms _d_, _d_, on each side, are each 25 ft. by 20 ft.; _g_, the conservatory, measures 40 ft. by 21 ft.; this, with the two drawing-rooms and the picture gallery, can in less than half an hour be thrown into one by the removal of the large folding-doors in the picture

gallery, which can be taken away, frames complete, by simply removing a few screws. A length of drawing-room is then gained of 125 ft.

The principal staircase is shown in elevation on page 477; the plans are here given to a larger scale.

The lower plan shows a portion of the first flight and the servants’ passage, _a_, under the first landing; _b_ is their staircase down to the basement, this should have been shown on the left-hand side. It is the footman’s staircase, adapted for him to ascend and

descend readily from or to the basement, and the passage _a_ permits him to enter either side of the house without being seen. The upper plan shows the two flights, right and left, rising from the principal landing. Each of these has 22 steps. Three more in the centre lead up to the gallery round the saloon; the section of the staircase, given on p. 482, clearly shows this arrangement. The staircase front is in Bath stone. The only ornaments are the decorated corbels supporting the small angular projections or buttresses necessary to receive the iron standards of the railing above. One of the corbels and a panel of the iron railing is given. This is carried up the stairs on both sides and round the gallery, and is richly coloured and gilt. The only remaining portions of the ground plan to be described are the secondary rooms. A side entrance is at _j_, and the waiting room, _i_, is also at the side; _h_ is the servants’ staircase, going from the basement to the attic. On the other side of the building _o_ is the Earl’s dressing-room, with a study or writing room by its side. This has a lift, _n_, from the kitchen, enabling it to be used as a serving room. The picture gallery has a flight of steps descending to a large ornamented garden at the back of the house, _n n_ is the stable yard, and _k k k_ rooms over the stable.

The section through the complete building, given on page 486, shows the general character of the interior. The rooms are wholly without ornament; all have plain cornices formed of running Gothic mouldings. The

only decorated portion is the saloon (_inf._), the coved ceiling of which has the shields of painted and gilt coats of arms of family connexions, together with

mottoes and monograms. The skylight is filled with richly coloured embossed glass, every pane having a shield of arms, its ceiling being panelled with painted enrichments on a blue ground. A view of the saloon is given on p. 487; it contains in the centre a statue

by Theed, of Lady Chandos Pole, the eldest daughter of the Earl. The statues are shown in the plan by the letters _m m_. The ground floor is supplied with warm-water pipes; these are shown by the dotted lines. They are sunk in the brickwork forming the substructure of the flooring, and covered with open ornamental ironwork. The hall has two warm-water pedestals. The whole of the rooms and conservatory are so warmed.

The latter part of the interior resembles in some respects a small chapel. A half-section of a portion

of its roof is given on p. 488; it measures 22 ft. from the floor to the collar-beam. The corbels, from which the roof springs, are decorated with shields of arms, surrounded by a garland of strawberry leaves.

In the plan of the one-pair floor _a_ is the boudoir or morning room; _b b b_ are bedrooms; _c c c_ dressing-rooms, and _d_ is the bath-room. The gallery is shown as completely going round the saloon; its ceiling is of ground glass arranged in panels, each of which is

moveable, with a skylight over the whole. There is plenty of light therefore afforded for the paintings with which the walls are covered.

The small attic plan shows these skylights on three sides only, likewise the sleeping-rooms _b b_, and the housemaid’s closet _c_. Under this plan is that of the upper room in the tower with its two slate cisterns, each capable of containing 800 gallons of water. They are supported by strong trussed girders fixed in the walls. This upper room is approached by a

cottage staircase, the plan of which, with its 22 risers, is shown in cut on p. 490. It enables the room to be approached without any structural appearance being seen from without. A half elevation of the exterior, and another of its section is given above. It is well supplied with light.

The building contains upwards of forty rooms; the basement is very large, and contains considerable accommodation. The mere enumeration of these would require every letter in the alphabet to point them out in an engraving, but as it is desirable to show how closely a large establishment of servants can be packed together, the basement plan is given. _a_ is the kitchen, _b_ the scullery, and _c_ the larder. The kitchen is provided with a lift _f_, and a small service window; _d_ is the pastry-room, and _e_ the still-room, with the lift; _g_ is the dairy, _h_ the washhouse, _i_ the laundry, _j_ the butler’s pantry, _k_ the steward’s room with its strong closet; _l_ is the housekeeper’s, with the cook’s room between it and the still-room, _m_ is the servants’ hall, _n_ the men’s sleeping room; _o o_ are wine-cellars, _p_ the butler’s wine-cellar, _q_ the footman’s stairs under the principal staircase, _r_ the warm-water furnace, by the steward’s room, placed at the back of his strong closet; _s_ is the stable, containing eight stalls, one loose box, and a harness-room; _t t t_ are cart-sheds, _u_ is the cowhouse, _v_ the dung-pit, _w_ the coach-house, _x x_ two of the three coal-cellars, _y_ the dust-pit, and _z z z_ are the closets. The carriage-road to the side entrance is formed over the cart-sheds and coal-cellars. These are arched over in brick and covered with a thick layer of Brown’s metallic lava, and are provided with proper drainage. The boot-cleaning place and that for lamps are between the coach-house and the cart-sheds.

The exterior of the building has been censured on account of the Gothic outline being too flat, the roofs too low, and all the windows having common sash

frames. With regard to the latter, it may be considered very probable that if the Gothic race of architects had continued with us to the present day, they would have adopted plate glass for their windows, and put aside their lead-lights and small panes of common glass. One of the greatest improvements that could be made in our cathedrals, not excepting even St. Paul’s, would be the reglazing the windows in the modern style.

As a specimen of the architectural style of the building, the centre bay-window of the principal front is given, with its section and plan. It is 9 ft. 6 in. across, and 21 ft. 4 in. high, and stands directly over the chief entrance. The construction of a projecting bay-window coming over an archway requires a short description.

The three diagrams on page 495 show the manner in which such windows are corbelled out. The upper

one is a plan of the bottom stone course, immediately over the key-stone of the arch; it shows also the centre stone of the second course upon it. The middle diagram shows the two courses from the back. It will be seen that the middle stone of the first course does not bear upon the arch, but is supported by the two end stones let into the wall. The last diagram is a plan of the upper course at top. Slate dowels were used, and an iron bar, shown in plan under elevation _a_, 3 in. by ¾ in., was placed across the course tailing into the walls on each side; and two bars _p p_, each 2½ by ¾ in. and 12 ft. in length, tied it to the flooring of the room. This is shown likewise in the plan, the dotted lines dividing the length of flooring; _d_ is the upper course of stones, and _c_ one of the principal beams of the floor.

The bell-turret stands 20 ft. above the roof. This is carved in oak; an elevation, section, and plan is given. Only those parts of the building are intended to be here illustrated which have some peculiarity of design or construction.

A building of this size would require about 150 working drawings to be made for it, and a considerable number to be given to show its construction.

It was completed in about two years, at an expense of 14,814_l._; but this did not include the price of the warming apparatus, nor that of the lightning conductor fixed to the bell-turret.

Whatever opinions may be expressed in regard to the architectural details of this erection, the author at least can plead, as its owner stated in the letters, copies of which have been given, that the essentials of a house, convenience, comfort, and complete suitability for all domestic purposes, were accomplished. These objects being attained, any real or imaginary faults perceived by professional critics may be palliated if not forgotten.

INDEX.

PAGE

Introduction, 3-48

“Albert Hall of Arts”, 131

Architectural history, 16

Architectural orders, 20 _et seq._

Architecture and gardening, 46, 312

Architecture, English, 25

Architecture, Grecian, &c., 11

Architecture, Mexican, &c., 26

Architecture, origin of, 8

Architecture, principles of, 27

Architecture, Roman, 23

Architecture, Suburban, 29

Architectural symmetry, &c., 31

Arnott’s, Dr., system of warming, 357

Arnott’s ventilator, 414

Aspect of a house, 36

Asphalte as a paving, 235

Atmosphere, the, and smoke, 431

Bacon, Lord, on house construction, 256

Balconet, an iron, 331

Balconet, design for a, 123

Balusters for a staircase, 277

Balustrade, a garden, 363 _et seq._

Balustrade, Elizabethan, 181

Balustrade for a staircase, 282

Balustrades, stone, 247

Balustrading, cut wood, 279

Balustrading, designs for iron, &c., 299

Balustrading, house and garden, 204 _et seq._

Barge-board, 247

Bath-house, design for a, 214

Bower, garden, rooms, 242

Boyd’s flue, 414

Bricks, ventilating, 157, 170

Buildings, foundation of, 151

Carving by machinery, 278

Casements, iron, 220

Castle, Gunnarstrop, Sweden, 464

Ceiling, a dining-room, 288

Ceiling and cornices, 44

Ceiling, drawing-room and library, 290, 291

Ceiling for a drawing-room, 166

Ceiling for a hall, 286

Ceiling, ornament for a, 61

Ceilings, ornamental, various, 313 _et seq._

Ceilings, plaster ornament for, 161

Chalk concrete, 83

Chapel, design for a Roman Catholic, 210

Cheshire wooden houses, 233

Chimney-piece, ancient, at Enfield, 228

Chimney-pieces, designs for, 80, 81, 319

Chimney-pot, ornamented, 329, 330, 423

Chimney stack, ancient, 74

Churches, concrete, 96

Clunch, 246

Concrete as a foundation, 152

Concrete, chalk, 83

Concrete churches, 96

Concrete construction, 82

Concrete cottages, 83

Concrete, nature, cost, &c., of, 91

Concrete, remarks on, 93

Concrete sewers, 96

Concrete walls, 92

Construction, fire-proof, 156

Construction, concrete, 82

Corbels, 172

Corbel, French cut-wood, 403

Corbels, ragstone, 392

Cornice and ceiling, 44

Cornice, design for a plaster drawing-room, 101

Cornice for a drawing-room, 166

Cottage, design for a picturesque, 62

Cottage, double, design for a, 66, 72

Cottage, gardener’s, 50

Cottages, Hampshire, Kentish, &c., 88 _et seq._

Cottage or lodge, design for a small, 58

Cottage or lodge, design for a huntsman’s, 78

Country house, design for a small, 174

Country villa, design for a, 182

Cubitt’s flues, 407

Dab houses, 251

Damp walls, 152

Damp, wash to prevent, in walls, 159

Deals, stained, 45

Decoration external and internal, 42

Denley’s flue, 413

Door, entrance for a hall, 458

Door ornaments, 69

Doric order, 20

Drain-eye, 450

Egyptian architecture, 19

Elizabethan balustrades, 181

Elizabethan villa, 280

Encaustic tiles, 460

English architecture, 25

Escutcheon, design of an, 69

Escutcheon, key, 172

Finials, 109

Finials, roof, 80

Fireplace for a hall, 284

Fireplace, the, 404

Fire-proof construction, 156

Fire-proofing, 158

Flue construction, 405 _et seq._

Flue pedestal, the, 446

Flues, Cubitt’s, 407

Flues, various, 405 _et seq._

Fogs, London, and smoke, 443

Foundations, concrete, 152

Foundations of buildings, 151

Fountain, an ancient nymph’s, 47

Fountain, garden, 49

Fountain, garden, design for a, 469

Fountains, various designs for, 307

French villas, roofs, zinc work, &c., 273

Frieze, external, 173

Frieze for dining and drawing-room, 178

Frieze, plaster, for a drawing-room, 65

Gable, ornamental, 170, 220, 300

Gardens, ancient, 312

Gardens and architecture, 45

Garden, architectural, 313

Garden bower rooms, 242

Gardener’s cottage, 50

Garden fountain, 49

Garden gate, a, 204

Garden gate, design for a, 95

Garden, gate to a flower, 265

Garden or summer villa, 302

Garden summer house, 262

Garden steps, 197

Garden seat, design for a, 361

Garden, vignette plan of an Old English, 119

Gate, a garden, 265

Gates, iron, in Hyde Park, 128

Gate lodge, Hyde Park, 125

Gates, Park, 149

Gates of London Parks, 139

Gothic, modern, 24

Gothic screen, 205

Gothic style, 10

Gothic window, 204

Grecian architecture, 11

Gunnarstrop castle, Sweden, 464

Half-Timbered houses, 248

Hall ceiling, 286

Hall fireplace, 284

Hall, lecture, design for a, 456

“Hall of Arts and Sciences,” Kensington, 133

Hall stove, 285

Hall, stove for entrance of a, 120

Hampshire cottages, 88

Handle, design for a door, 69

Harrington estate, the, 136

Harrington House, Queen’s Palace Gardens, 476

Houses, foundations of, 151

Haum as a building material, 249

Hiort’s flue, 412

Hot-water apparatus, 349

House, a bachelor’s, 401

House, a garden summer, 262

Houses, aspect of, 36

Houses, dab and wattle, 251

House construction, Lord Bacon on, 256

House, design for a small country, 174

Houses, heating of, 34

Houses in Kent, 249

Houses, noggin, &c., 249

Houses, post-and-pan, 252

Houses, site, &c. of, 351