Sir Edwin Lutyens I: Spalding War Memorial

     Lincolnshire is perhaps not rich in the work of well-known architects, and what work there is tends to be on the small scale.  This small building, that might easily be mistaken for a mere garden pavilion, is a case in point.  It is, in fact, the War Memorial in the southern Lincolnshire market town of Spalding (I've mentioned it briefly before on this blog).  It is the work of the most important 20th century architect in Britain, Sir Edwin Lutyens.  It is his only work in the county.
     The memorial, which was unveiled in 1922, stands in the 18th century gardens of Ascoughfee Hall.  The billowing, cloud-like hedge on the right of first photograph is original, though grown to deformity with the years.  I think the pond too may be an original 'feature'.  Perhaps, then, a cramped place for the annual Remembrance Day commemoration.  It is an Italianate sort of design - Lutyens by this time had, to a great extent, abandoned the Arts and Crafts style for the Grand Manner of Classicism. However the spirit of the Arts and Crafts lived on in a building such as this; the roof is shod in pan tiles, and the cornice is constructed of stone and creasing tiles.  Inside, on the back wall are carved the names of the Fallen.  The floor of brick and stone recalls those he designed for his early country houses.  The Wiki article points out the similarity between the Spalding war memorial and the entrance pavilion Anneux British Cemetery at Cambrai
     In front stands the austere and enigmatic Stone of Remembrance which Lutyens had designed for the then Imperial War Graves Commission.

 

Old House

   Some pictures of my old house in Lincolnshire, some I posted on insta and others on here, and some have been languishing on a memory stick in my desk.  Can't help regret that the 'project' was never finished.  In retrospect it was, perhaps, one of the most integrated periods of my life.

St George, Stamford I

      Before I moved west one of the minor projects of this blog was to visit and document all the Medieval parish churches in Stamford. At the time only one remained 'unblogged': St George (if you exclude the remains of St Paul's church which now forms part of the chapel of Stamford School).  Whereas the other medieval churches in Stamford are open daily, St George's rarely seems to be open outside service time.  I'm tempted to ascribe this to the parish's evangelicalism I'm not sure that would be an entirely fair assumption.

     St George's is small, and low - in both senses of the word.  It barely makes any impression on that wonderful Stamford skyline as seen from the Meadows.  There are probably those totally unaware of the church's existence, its presence being so unassuming.  It stands, the shy focal point of an irregular urban space called St George's Square that is lined with some really delicious houses.  The churches of St Mary, and All Saints stand in similar urban contexts and form some of the best architectural ensembles in Stamford.
      The exterior of St George's is the work of four building campaigns (there is older work inside).  Sometime in the midst of the 15th century church was rebuilt under the patronage of the first Gatrer King of Arms William de Bruges. The curious tower a mixture of the Medieval and the late 17th century, and in the nineteenth century there were two restorations.  The first under Edward Browning rebuilt the chancel and added the w porch and in the second J C Traylen enlarged the structure (those transept-like outer aisles).  Thankfully both architects working with the Perpendicular style of medieval church.

Walk around Stamford

    A hop and a skip from Peterborough by train is Stamford.  My last visit was six years ago.  As readers may know I lived near by this remarkable town and visited regularly.  I shopped there in preference to Peterborough.  On this visit it seemed much quieter than I remember it, more like the atmosphere of nearby Oundle or Uppingham.

     Stamford is one of the greatest stone-built towns in England, if not the whole UK and I do recommend a visit. If you're a tourist staying in London it is is quite an easy thing to pop-up on the train (NB you will have to change at Peterborough).¹ You will be amply rewarded.

1 Two small travel tips if you are travelling up from London: 1) be aware that it may well be cheaper to break down your journey rather than pay for a single return journey - I saved about 50% on my fare to Stamford by paying for the two legs of the journey separately i.e. two singles for the journey between King's Cross and Peterborough, and a return for the journey between Peterborough and Stamford. 2) It may well be cheaper to travel by express from King's Cross to Peterborough and not on a slower stopping train.  Booking in advance also helps to keep the cost down.

Own work: Grant's Iron Foundry

     As avid readers of this blog will know I am very much a fan of Bryan Browning - south Lincolnshire's finest, and provincial architect extraordinaire. It is an architecture of power and emotion with roots in the English Baroque school and French Neo-classicism. Anyway here is my latest painting a mixed media effort. It depicts the monumental entrance to the former Grant's Iron Foundry on Wharf Rd in Stamford. Quite the thing.