Ramsay Garden
Encyclopedia
Ramsay Garden is a block of sixteen private apartment buildings in the Castlehill area of Edinburgh
, Scotland
. They stand out for their red ashlar
and white harl
ed exteriors, and for their prominent position, most visible from Princes Street
.
Developed into its current form between 1890 and 1893 by the biologist
, botanist and urban planner
Patrick Geddes
, Ramsay Garden started out as Ramsay Lodge, a block of Georgian "garden homes" built by the poet and wig-maker Allan Ramsay the Elder
in 1733.
project that he had embarked on in Edinburgh’s Old Town
. The area had fallen into disrepair, and Geddes hoped both to improve the living conditions of the working class, and to increase the number of wealthier residents. He was also involved in improving buildings for use as student accommodation. To these purposes Geddes rehabilitated a significant number of tenement buildings in slums along the Royal Mile, including Abbey Cottages, Whitehorse Close and Riddle’s Court.
The Ramsay Garden development also served these aims. It was partly financed by the prospective buyers of the apartments, and partly by 2000 pounds that Geddes's wife, Anna Morton, had inherited from her father. Geddes engaged the architect Stewart Henbest Capper to remodel Ramsay Lodge, and to build six large new flats onto it at right angles. By this time Geddes had acquired a position at a university in London, but he continued to supervise the design of Ramsay Garden on his frequent trips to Edinburgh. The building work was overseen by Sydney Mitchell
, who had taken over as architect, possibly due to Capper's poor health. The result of the partnership was a combination of traditional Scottish domestic architecture and a rather fanciful proliferation of balconies, towers and eaves. Geddes referred to Ramsay Garden in later years as the "seven-towered castle I built for my beloved".
As a result of his own experiences in universities, and inspired by the better student facilities he had seen in Europe, Geddes was also concerned with the provision of quality accommodation for students. By the time Ramsay Garden was being built he had already established other student Halls of Residence in partnership with the Town and Gown Association. By the end of the nineteenth century he had managed to provide enough housing for more than 200 university students and staff. The Halls of Residence were intended to be self-governing, with responsibility for drawing up house rules left to the students themselves. The Ramsay Lodge section of the Ramsay Garden development was used for this purpose. Murals painted by John Duncan on the walls of the dining and common rooms depicted images from Celtic myth and history. Lectures and seminars were sometimes held on the premises.
Other parts of Ramsay Garden were available to the public. The Geddes family lived in number 14, a twelve-room apartment on the fourth storey. By all accounts it was an impressive residence. The drawing-room was two rooms connected by an archway, with the whole measuring 20 by 40 feet. The sweeping views, which reached as far as the old Kingdom of Fife, could be admired through the bay
and turret window spaces at each end. This room was regularly used for large gatherings. Fresco
es by Charles Mackie
graced the master bedroom. The lease of the apartment was eventually sold to the Town and Gown Association due to Geddes's financial difficulties. Although he later wished to repurchase it, his desire for the apartment to remain in the family was not fulfilled.
Ramsay Lodge was the last of the University Halls to be sold off by the Town and Gown Association. When it was purchased in 1945 by the Commercial Bank of Scotland
, it was a condition of sale that the murals be retained. The Bank went on to use the Lodge as a residential hostel and training centre.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. They stand out for their red ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
and white harl
Harl
Harling is a Scottish term describing an exterior building surfacing technique. The theory of harling is to produce a long-lasting weatherproof shield for a stone building. A pigment can be embedded in the harled material, thus obviating the need for repainting...
ed exteriors, and for their prominent position, most visible from Princes Street
Princes Street
Princes Street is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland, UK, and its main shopping street. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1 mile from Lothian Road in the west to Leith Street in the east. The street is mostly closed to private...
.
Developed into its current form between 1890 and 1893 by the biologist
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
, botanist and urban planner
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
Patrick Geddes
Patrick Geddes
Sir Patrick Geddes was a Scottish biologist, sociologist, philanthropist and pioneering town planner. He is known for his innovative thinking in the fields of urban planning and education....
, Ramsay Garden started out as Ramsay Lodge, a block of Georgian "garden homes" built by the poet and wig-maker Allan Ramsay the Elder
Allan Ramsay (poet)
Allan Ramsay was a Scottish poet , playwright, publisher, librarian and wig-maker.-Life and career:...
in 1733.
History
Geddes' work on Ramsay Garden began in the context of an urban renewalUrban renewal
Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
project that he had embarked on in Edinburgh’s Old Town
Old Town, Edinburgh
The Old Town of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is the medieval part of the city. Together with the 18th-century New Town, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has preserved its medieval plan and many Reformation-era buildings....
. The area had fallen into disrepair, and Geddes hoped both to improve the living conditions of the working class, and to increase the number of wealthier residents. He was also involved in improving buildings for use as student accommodation. To these purposes Geddes rehabilitated a significant number of tenement buildings in slums along the Royal Mile, including Abbey Cottages, Whitehorse Close and Riddle’s Court.
The Ramsay Garden development also served these aims. It was partly financed by the prospective buyers of the apartments, and partly by 2000 pounds that Geddes's wife, Anna Morton, had inherited from her father. Geddes engaged the architect Stewart Henbest Capper to remodel Ramsay Lodge, and to build six large new flats onto it at right angles. By this time Geddes had acquired a position at a university in London, but he continued to supervise the design of Ramsay Garden on his frequent trips to Edinburgh. The building work was overseen by Sydney Mitchell
Sydney Mitchell
Arthur George Sydney Mitchell was a Scottish architect. He designed a large number of bank branches, country houses, churches and church halls...
, who had taken over as architect, possibly due to Capper's poor health. The result of the partnership was a combination of traditional Scottish domestic architecture and a rather fanciful proliferation of balconies, towers and eaves. Geddes referred to Ramsay Garden in later years as the "seven-towered castle I built for my beloved".
As a result of his own experiences in universities, and inspired by the better student facilities he had seen in Europe, Geddes was also concerned with the provision of quality accommodation for students. By the time Ramsay Garden was being built he had already established other student Halls of Residence in partnership with the Town and Gown Association. By the end of the nineteenth century he had managed to provide enough housing for more than 200 university students and staff. The Halls of Residence were intended to be self-governing, with responsibility for drawing up house rules left to the students themselves. The Ramsay Lodge section of the Ramsay Garden development was used for this purpose. Murals painted by John Duncan on the walls of the dining and common rooms depicted images from Celtic myth and history. Lectures and seminars were sometimes held on the premises.
Other parts of Ramsay Garden were available to the public. The Geddes family lived in number 14, a twelve-room apartment on the fourth storey. By all accounts it was an impressive residence. The drawing-room was two rooms connected by an archway, with the whole measuring 20 by 40 feet. The sweeping views, which reached as far as the old Kingdom of Fife, could be admired through the bay
Bay window
A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room, either square or polygonal in plan. The angles most commonly used on the inside corners of the bay are 90, 135 and 150 degrees. Bay windows are often associated with Victorian architecture...
and turret window spaces at each end. This room was regularly used for large gatherings. Fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
es by Charles Mackie
Charles Mackie
Charles "Charlie" Mackie was a Scottish footballer. He was born in Peterhead. His regular position was as a forward. He played for Aberdeen, West Ham United, and Manchester United.-External links:*...
graced the master bedroom. The lease of the apartment was eventually sold to the Town and Gown Association due to Geddes's financial difficulties. Although he later wished to repurchase it, his desire for the apartment to remain in the family was not fulfilled.
Ramsay Lodge was the last of the University Halls to be sold off by the Town and Gown Association. When it was purchased in 1945 by the Commercial Bank of Scotland
Commercial Bank of Scotland
The Commercial Bank of Scotland Ltd. was a Scottish commercial bank. It was founded in Edinburgh in 1810, and obtained a royal charter in 1831. It grew substantially through the 19th and early 20th centuries, until 1959, when it merged with the National Bank of Scotland to become the National...
, it was a condition of sale that the murals be retained. The Bank went on to use the Lodge as a residential hostel and training centre.