John Nash

English architect

• Born: September 1, 1752
• Birthplace: London, England or Neath Glamorgan, Wales
• Died: May 13, 1835
• Place of death: East Cowes Castle, Isle of Wight, England

The most outstanding architect of the Regency period in English history, Nash left a legacy of villas and refurbished estates throughout the British Isles. He designed Regent’s Park and Regent Street in London and extensively redesigned and added to the Royal Pavilion at Brighton and to Buckingham Palace.

Early Life

Few details of John Nash’s early life exist. He was apparently born in London to Welsh parents. His father, probably named Robert Nash, was a millwright from Lambeth, Wales. No facts remain of his mother’s background, other than that she was also Welsh. Robert Nash died young, sometime before his son reached the age of seven. His mother apprenticed the boy to work at about age fourteen to an architect, Robert Taylor (who appears to have had his office near their home). As was customary for indentured boys, Nash worked in Taylor’s office for a period of seven years. He performed menial tasks at first and then rose, with age and experience, to more skilled labor. In his later years, Nash believed that he had had a rather wild personality as a boy; others described him as outgoing and ambitious, even in his youth—traits that characterized him throughout his life.

Shortly after finishing his apprenticeship, Nash married Jane Elizabeth Kerr on April 28, 1775, just outside London. Theirs was not a happy union; Jane spent money much more quickly than her husband could earn it. In the first years of their marriage, Nash was struggling to find a place in London as a builder. At the age of twenty-five, he was contracted by John Rushout to refurbish eight old houses on the northwest corner of Bloomsbury Square, London. Nash, however, had problems finding renters for these houses (part of his contractual duties). He had sent Jane to live temporarily in South Wales in June of 1778, in order to prevent her from incurring more debts in London, but by 1782, he owed a considerable amount of money to both Rushout and his wife’s creditors.

Also in 1782, Nash began divorce proceedings against her, but the process during that period was extremely complex and lengthy, so he had no great hope of resolving his financial and marital problems soon. On September 30, 1783, court records show that Nash had declared himself bankrupt; his London property was sold to pay off his bills.

Life’s Work

The next report of Nash finds him residing in Carmarthen, Wales, in early 1784. There he temporarily worked with a young architect, Samuel Simon Saxon. The two men reroofed a local church, St. Peter’s, in 1785. Nash, now slightly known as an architect in Carmarthen, became an adviser for the planning of a new jail. In late 1792, he was the architect chosen to build this jail in Carmarthen; it was his first public building. Nash at this time became affiliated with the Whig Party, whose candidate, John Vaughan, was elected to sit in Parliament from 1779 to 1784.

Probably through Vaughan’s influence, Nash received his next jobs; he planned and built the jail at Cardigan in 1793 and another in Hereford, England, finished in 1796. By the time this last jail was completed, Nash was again living in London. During the early 1790’s, Nash’s other public-works projects included at least three bridges, two of stone and an innovative one of iron. Iron was a medium in which Nash was a pioneer builder; almost no one had used iron in public construction prior to his work with it.

Nash also gained his early reputation as a builder of villas, or country houses. They were a departure from the farmhouse-type residences built in the previous centuries in the English countryside. Nash completed twelve houses of this kind in England and Wales early in his career (prior to 1800). Through Thomas Johnes in Cardiganshire, one of his clients, Nash met two men who would greatly influence his future tastes in architecture, Uvedale Price and Richard Payne Knight.

Both Price and Knight were leading advocates of a concept of artistic, landscape, and house design known as the picturesque. This aesthetic theory affirmed that buildings should be designed and constructed so as to fit comfortably and beautifully with their natural surroundings. When Nash designed a small triangular house for Price in 1797 at Aberystwyth, the architect clearly saw how advantageous picturesque planning could be. This house, called Castle House, had three distinct views from each of its three windows: One faced the ocean, another faced a range of cliffs, and the third faced a ruined castle.

On December 17, 1798, his first wife having died, Nash married Mary Anne Bradley, the daughter of a coal merchant. This marriage seems to have been more felicitous for Nash. He and Mary Anne socialized easily and frequently entertained his professional friends at home. The couple would have no children, but a wide circle of friends and relatives would remain devoted to them throughout their lives. At the time of this marriage, Nash also purchased land at East Cowes on the Isle of Wight; there he would build for himself a small but comfortable Gothic-style country home near the sea. In addition, he and his wife maintained a London home during his active years as an architect.

When Paul Cobb Methuen in Wiltshire wished to enlarge his Elizabethan era house, he hired Nash, along with Humphry Repton, to do the landscaping. Repton, a reputable landscaper in the picturesque tradition, was to work on several houses with Nash in the next five years. One of their greatest successes together was completed in 1799—Luscombe Castle, Devon. The varied elements Nash designed for this house combined picturesque traits with a Gothic influence. An outstanding feature of this house was its octagonal tower; another, which was also a typical feature of Nash’s houses, was a plain interior. Nash seemed least interested in the interior decoration of his buildings; he is also regarded as a much better designer than a builder. He could be hasty and careless in the actual construction of buildings, while meticulously careful with their initial designs. Designing was clearly where his enthusiasm was centered.

As the nineteenth century opened, Nash was beginning to enjoy a rather solid reputation as an architect, particularly of country houses for the wealthy classes. His success may in part be attributed to his social affability; he got along well with his clients.

Nash did not cut a prepossessing figure; he was a short man with a stocky shape. He also had a round head with a bulbous nose and small eyes. He was, however, a charming and generous man, who made a good impression on the people he met. He was not afraid to take large financial risks in order to finance some of his more speculative building projects. His enthusiasm for his projects also encouraged investors to back these costly architectural works.

One of the projects about which Nash was most excited at this point in his career was the construction of Blaise Hamlet, a picturesque grouping of nine old-fashioned thatched-roof cottages for the retired servants of John S. Harford of Blaise Castle, Bristol. Each cottage had a unique design, and each was carefully executed for beauty and comfort. These innovative cottages were constructed between 1809 and 1811. They mark an end in Nash’s career, for he soon turned from private residences to public building and planning in London.

Marylebone Park in London, the property of the monarchy, was to be redesigned as an integral unit. Several wealthy investors had hoped to buy sections of the park for their own use, and the English government wished to stifle such speculation. As requested by the government agencies involved, Nash submitted his designs for the development of Marylebone Park, as well as for a new street that would connect it to Charing Cross. Nash’s report of 1811 is a convincing document; it shows that he had thoroughly studied the area to be developed, had a great command of design, and was compelling when he promised the future success of his ideas for the area. In August of 1811, Prime Minister Spencer Perceval somewhat modified Nash’s plan by suggesting that fewer country villas be built on the park land and more open space be left. Nash incorporated Perceval’s ideas into his designs, and he limited the number of villas to fifty.

In June of 1812, the plan for the new park and its connecting street were made public. It was clear that the new street would create a large highway through northwest London. Many present dwellings would have to be demolished to make room for the new road; shrewdly, Nash had designed this highway so that of the 741 houses to be bought and removed, 386 already belonged to the Crown.

Parliament and its agencies fully supported Nash and his visions for the new park and street. Two builders, Samuel Butler and James Burton, also came forward to help Nash develop his grand designs into actual buildings. Burton especially invested his time and services heavily in building seventy-four houses, or about one-quarter of all the houses on the new street. As work progressed on the new highway, it was officially named Regent Street in January of 1819. On this immense project Nash himself fulfilled many functions: He worked as a surveyor, an engineer, and a financial manager, in addition to his duties as architect.

During the construction of Regent Street, Nash was officially in the employ of the prince regent (later to become King George IV). The prince liked Nash and admired his hard work. After the death of the prince’s personal architect, Henry Holland, in 1806, Nash gradually assumed his duties.

Holland had designed the royal residence at Brighton, which became known as the Royal Pavilion. In 1818 and 1819, Nash added to the exterior of this as yet incomplete building. By 1823, when all of his exterior designs were in place, the result was an exotic palace that combined elements of Indian, Chinese, and Gothic styles of architecture. It was a versatile piece of work on Nash’s part with a splendid picturesque effect.

At about this same time, Nash and his investors were completing the first villas inside the new London park, named Regent’s Park. In 1818, Burton constructed his own house and moved in the next year. Other homes in and around the park were built in attached rows called terraces, usually having one unifying facade designed by Nash. From 1822 to 1823, J. M. Aitkens built Hanover Terrace. In 1824, Cambridge Terrace was begun by Richard Mott and Chester Terrace by Burton. In 1826, William Nurse built Cumberland Terrace, followed by William Smith’s Kent Terrace, completed in 1827. Despite all these houses, Regent’s Park retained a rural atmosphere with beautiful landscaping and sufficient open spaces to make it a comfortable place of residence. Between 1819 and 1823, Nash constructed his own home on the lower section of Regent Street.

After Nash’s outstanding success on the ambitious Regent’s Park and Regent Street project, he was still to redesign and rebuild another major London monument. In June of 1825, at the age of seventy-two, Nash began to reconstruct Buckingham Palace for King George IV. It was a laborious assignment, and Nash had to work hastily because the aging king wished to move into his new residence. Architectural critics often assert that Buckingham Palace was a case in which Nash’s designs were clearly not well executed when built.

The beautiful concepts that Nash put on paper did not translate well to the palace itself. By 1829, Parliament was upset by the large costs Nash had accumulated in redesigning the palace; Nash, at the behest of the king, had spent considerably more money than the government had officially appropriated for his work. The allotted price of improvements to Buckingham Palace was set by law at œ252,690 in 1826. By 1830, the money spent had risen to œ613,269, and more work remained to be done. Nash was greatly disheartened by the death of the king on June 26, 1830. Nash now had no royal patron, and a parliamentary committee was investigating his work on the palace. The committee found him to be innocent of any wrongdoing, but he was hurt by the adverse publicity.

Also in 1830, Nash suffered a minor stroke that left him afflicted by headaches and giddiness for the remainder of his life. He retired to his Gothic-style castle at East Cowes, where he entertained his friends and family in his declining years. He died at his home on May 13, 1835.

Significance

John Nash was the premier architect of the Regency period in English history. He left a legacy of villas and refurbished estates in several areas throughout England, Ireland, and Wales. Among his most celebrated and photographed houses is Cronkhill near Shrewsbury in Shropshire, which Nash designed and built in 1802. It is considered to be the first Italianate villa erected on English soil. The design cleverly and neatly combines one round tower, one square tower, and a colonnade into a charming, integral whole.

Other of Nash’s significant buildings influenced architects and city planners long after his own era. In 1816, he produced in England the first covered shopping arcade, the Royal Opera Arcade in Pall Mall; in this he may have been inspired by similar structures in Paris. Also in London is Nash’s United Service Club Building of 1826, a stately piece of work that initiated the concept of one unit to house a major club in the city; many other architects would follow Nash’s example in the decades to come.

John Nash was an innovative English architect whose imagination and skill in building design and city planning will long be appreciated. Above all, his versatility in combining several architectural styles in his work will be remembered.

Bibliography

Betjeman, John. A Pictorial History of English Architecture. New York: Macmillan, 1972. The twelve essays in this source first appeared in a series in a London newspaper. The section on the Regency period contains detailed information on Nash. Readable and engaging. The many color photographs are beautiful.

Evans, Tony, and Candida L. Green. English Cottages. New York: Viking Press, 1982. Nash’s work on cottages is found here in the section on picturesque cottages. The authors consider him a pioneer in that field of building, and they focus attention on his Blaise Hamlet. The illustrations are striking, and captions are ample and informative.

Mansbridge, Michael. John Nash: A Complete Catalogue. Oxford, England: Phaidon, 1991. A chronological inventory of the buildings, bridges, and monuments designed and built by Nash in Great Britain and Ireland. Mansbridge summarizes the details of each project and its architectural significance. Also includes an introduction by John E. Summerson, a noted Nash authority.

Muthesius, Stefan. The English Terraced House. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1982. Discusses Nash’s terraced houses of the early and mid-1820’s. The variety of the terraces on Regent Street is highlighted and explained in detail. Readable and well researched. Nearly 250 illustrations are included.

Pilcher, Donald E. Regency Style, 1800-1830. London: B. T. Batsford, 1947. Another well-illustrated book, which includes some of Nash’s finest buildings in London. Pilcher’s scholarship is impeccable, and his style is entertaining. A valuable book.

Richards, J. M. The National Trust Book of English Architecture. New York: W. W. Norton, 1981. Richards describes and praises Nash’s brilliant planning of Regent Street and its varied architecture. Some details are provided on Nash’s private life. Richards also discusses Nash’s other London landmarks as well as his country houses. An accessible study, intended for the general reader.

Summerson, John E. Architecture in Britain, 1530 to 1830. New York: Penguin Books, 1977. Summerson devotes much space to an analysis of Nash’s career as an architect. He also places Nash in perspective among other famous English architects. The two hundred illustrations include both photographs and building plans. A helpful bibliography accompanies each chapter.

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. The Life and Work of John Nash, Architect. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1980. Summerson is the preeminent authority on Nash, and his book devotes ample space to Nash’s private life as well as to his professional career. Detailed, scholarly—an invaluable source, although there are relatively few illustrations.