Thomas Rickman
Encyclopedia
Thomas Rickman was an English
architect
who was a major figure in the Gothic Revival.
He was born at Maidenhead, Berkshire
, into a large Quaker family, and avoided the medical career envisaged for him by his father, a grocer and druggist; he went into business for himself and married his first cousin Lucy Rickman in 1804, a marriage that estranged him from the Friends . The failure of his business dealings in London and the death of his first wife left him despondent: the long walks into the countryside that he took for his state of mind were the beginning of his first, antiquarian interest in church architecture. All his spare time was spent in sketching and making careful measured drawings, and classifying medieval architecture, at first through its window tracery, into the sequence that he labelled "Norman
" "Early English", "Decorated English" and "Perpendicular English", names that have remained in use, which he was already employing in his diaries in 1811; he gained a knowledge of architecture which was very remarkable at a time when little taste existed for the beauties of the Gothic
styles. The Encyclopædia Britannica 1911 reported that "in 1811 alone he is said to have studied three thousand ecclesiastical buildings". In September that year he gave the first of a series of lectures on medieval architecture at the small Philosophical Society of Liverpool, which he had joined.
His first publication was an article on Gothic architecture for Smith's Panorama of Arts and Sciences (Liverpool), which was separately published in 1817 as An Attempt to discriminate the Styles of English Architecture from the Conquest to the Reformation, 1817, the first systematic treatise on Gothic architecture
and a milestone in the Gothic Revival. It was reprinted several times and founded Rickman's public reputation. He was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
in 1829.
As an architect, Rickman was self-taught. When in the Church Building Act of 1818 a large grant of money was set by the government to build new "Waterloo churches", Rickman sent in a design of his own which was successful in an open competition; thus he was fairly launched upon the profession of an architect, for which his natural gifts strongly fitted him. Rickman then moved to Birmingham
where he designed the St George's Church (demolished in 1960) for the city. The design also consisted of churchyard gates, completed in 1822, which remain today. By 1830 Rickman had become one of the most successful architects of his time. He built churches at Hampton Lucy
, Ombersley
, and Stretton-on-Dunsmore, St George's at Birmingham, St Philip's, St Mary the Virgin and St Matthew's
in Bristol
, two in Carlisle, St Peter's and St Paul's at Preston, St David's in Glasgow, Grey Friars at Coventry
, St Michael's Church, Aigburth
and many others. He also designed New Court of St John's College, Cambridge
, a palace for the bishop of Carlisle
, and several large country houses.
Rickman attracted a large share of the Church Building Committee's patronage in the new churches built in the West Midlands pursuant to the Church Building Act of 1818. Rickman's transitional Gothic style, that later designers looked down on as "Church Commissioners' Gothic", did not stand the more rigorous scrutiny of better-informed historicists in the age of photography. The Encyclopædia Britannica 1911 said of his churches "These are all in the Gothic style, but show more knowledge of the outward form of the medieval style than any real acquaintance with its spirit, and are little better than dull copies of old work, disfigured by much poverty of detail." A later, more generous critic, Sir Howard Colvin
, has remarked:
Rickman nevertheless played an important part in the revival of taste for medievalism perhaps second only to Pugin. His Attempt to discriminate the Styles of Architecture in England shows painstaking research, and ran through many editions.
Rickman died at Birmingham on January 4, 1841. He was married three times: first to his cousin, Lucy Rickman of Lewes; secondly to Christiana Hornor; thirdly to Elizabeth Miller of Edinburgh, by whom he had a son and a daughter. His tomb was placed in the churchyard of the church he designed; St George's Church. The tomb, designed by R. C. Hussey
and completed in 1845, still stands, although the church does not.
Henry Hutchinson
partnered with Rickman in December 1821 and formed a practice called Rickman and Hutchinson. Rickman remained in this practice until Hutchinson's death in 1831.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
who was a major figure in the Gothic Revival.
He was born at Maidenhead, Berkshire
Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a town and unparished area within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It lies on the River Thames and is situated west of Charing Cross in London.-History:...
, into a large Quaker family, and avoided the medical career envisaged for him by his father, a grocer and druggist; he went into business for himself and married his first cousin Lucy Rickman in 1804, a marriage that estranged him from the Friends . The failure of his business dealings in London and the death of his first wife left him despondent: the long walks into the countryside that he took for his state of mind were the beginning of his first, antiquarian interest in church architecture. All his spare time was spent in sketching and making careful measured drawings, and classifying medieval architecture, at first through its window tracery, into the sequence that he labelled "Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
" "Early English", "Decorated English" and "Perpendicular English", names that have remained in use, which he was already employing in his diaries in 1811; he gained a knowledge of architecture which was very remarkable at a time when little taste existed for the beauties of the Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
styles. The Encyclopædia Britannica 1911 reported that "in 1811 alone he is said to have studied three thousand ecclesiastical buildings". In September that year he gave the first of a series of lectures on medieval architecture at the small Philosophical Society of Liverpool, which he had joined.
His first publication was an article on Gothic architecture for Smith's Panorama of Arts and Sciences (Liverpool), which was separately published in 1817 as An Attempt to discriminate the Styles of English Architecture from the Conquest to the Reformation, 1817, the first systematic treatise on Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
and a milestone in the Gothic Revival. It was reprinted several times and founded Rickman's public reputation. He was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
Society of Antiquaries of London
The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...
in 1829.
Rickman's architectural practice
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
where he designed the St George's Church (demolished in 1960) for the city. The design also consisted of churchyard gates, completed in 1822, which remain today. By 1830 Rickman had become one of the most successful architects of his time. He built churches at Hampton Lucy
Hampton Lucy
Hampton Lucy is a village and civil parish on the River Avon, northeast of Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire.-Prominent residents:*Charles Maries , the Victorian botanist was born and educated at Hampton Lucy....
, Ombersley
Ombersley
The village of Ombersley is in the Wychavon District Council area of Worcestershire.The first known reference to the village was the granting of a Charter to Abbot Egwin, later Saint Egwin, of Evesham Abbey in 706 AD. This was the Charter of King Æthelweard of the Hwicce, which granted twelve...
, and Stretton-on-Dunsmore, St George's at Birmingham, St Philip's, St Mary the Virgin and St Matthew's
St Matthews Church, Cotham
St Matthews is a church in the Cotham area of Bristol, England.It was built between 1833 and 1835 by Thomas Rickman.It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade II listed building.- External links :*...
in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, two in Carlisle, St Peter's and St Paul's at Preston, St David's in Glasgow, Grey Friars at Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, St Michael's Church, Aigburth
St Michael's Church, Aigburth
St Michael's Church, Aigburth, also known as St Michael-in-the-Hamlet Church, is in St. Michael's Church Road, St Michael's Hamlet, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building...
and many others. He also designed New Court of St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
, a palace for the bishop of Carlisle
Bishop of Carlisle
The Bishop of Carlisle is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Carlisle in the Province of York.The diocese covers the County of Cumbria except for Alston Moor and the former Sedbergh Rural District...
, and several large country houses.
Howard Colvin
Sir Howard Montagu Colvin, CVO, CBE , was a British architectural historian who produced two of the most outstanding works of scholarship in his field.-Life and works:...
, has remarked:
- "He was no ecclesiologistEcclesiologyToday, ecclesiology usually refers to the theological study of the Christian church. However when the word was coined in the late 1830s, it was defined as the science of the building and decoration of churches and it is still, though rarely, used in this sense.In its theological sense, ecclesiology...
. If the detailing of his buildings was unusually scholarly, the planning remained Georgian, and the total effect of most of his churches is thin and brittle, if by no means unattractive"
Rickman nevertheless played an important part in the revival of taste for medievalism perhaps second only to Pugin. His Attempt to discriminate the Styles of Architecture in England shows painstaking research, and ran through many editions.
Rickman died at Birmingham on January 4, 1841. He was married three times: first to his cousin, Lucy Rickman of Lewes; secondly to Christiana Hornor; thirdly to Elizabeth Miller of Edinburgh, by whom he had a son and a daughter. His tomb was placed in the churchyard of the church he designed; St George's Church. The tomb, designed by R. C. Hussey
Richard Charles Hussey
Richard Charles Hussey, always referred to as R.C. Hussey, was a British architect. He was in partnership with Thomas Rickman from 1835, whose practice he assumed in 1838 with the latter's failing health. -Works:...
and completed in 1845, still stands, although the church does not.
Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson
Henry Hutchinson was an English architect who partnered with Thomas Rickman in December 1821 to form the Rickman and Hutchinson architecture practice, in which he stayed until his death in 1831. Hutchinson was born on October 16, 1800, in Ticknall, Derbyshire. He partnered with Rickman after he...
partnered with Rickman in December 1821 and formed a practice called Rickman and Hutchinson. Rickman remained in this practice until Hutchinson's death in 1831.
List of works
- St. George's Church, Everton 1813
- St. Michael's Church, Aigburth 1813
- Church of St ThomasSt. Thomas' Peace GardenSt Thomas' Peace Garden is a small public park in Birmingham, England designated as a monument to peace and a memorial to all those killed in armed conflict. It was designed around the tower and west porticos of St. Thomas's Church, Bath Row, which was half demolished in the Birmingham Blitz in...
, BirminghamBirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
(war damaged 1940, now St. Thomas' Peace Garden) 1826-29 - Bank for Birmingham Banking Company (now Midland Bank), Temple Row, BirminghamBirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
1830. - Holy Trinity Church, Lawrence HillHoly Trinity Church, Lawrence HillThe Trinity Centre, formerly the Holy Trinity Church, in Lawrence Hill, Bristol is designated by English Heritage as a grade II* listed building. The building is protected by a covenant, which states that it is to only be used for community, arts, youth and education services...
1832 - Keeper's Lodge, Audley End, Essex 1835
- St. Stephen's Church, SneintonSt. Stephen's Church, SneintonSt. Stephen's Church, Sneinton is a parish church in the Church of England.The church is Grade II listed by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport as it is a building of special architectural or historic interest.-History:...
1837 - Rose CastleRose CastleRose Castle is a fortified house in Cumbria, England, on a site that was home to the bishops of Carlisle from 1230 to 2009. It is within the parish of Dalston, from Dalston itself...
(alterations), Cumbria