DESIGNS 
 
 FOR 
 
 THE PAVILLON 
 
 AT 
 
 BRIGHTON. 
 
 HUMBLY INSCRIBED TO 
 
 HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS 
 
 THE PRINCE OF WALES. 
 
 By H. REFT ON, Esq. 
 
 WITH THE ASSISTANCE OE HIS SONS, 
 
 JOHN ADEY REPTON, F.S.A. AND G. S. REPTON, ARCHITECTS. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED FOR J. C. STADLER, N” 15, VILLIERS STREET, STRAND; 
 
 AND SOLD BY 
 
 ROYDELL AND CO. CHEAPSIDE; LONGMAN, HURST, REES, AND ORME, PATERNOSTER ROW; WHITE, FLEET STREET: 
 CADELL AND DAVIES, STRAND; PAYNE AND MACKINLAY, STRAND; PAYNE, 8G, PALL MALL; 
 
 MILLER, ALBEMARLE STREET; AND TAYLOR, HOLBORN. 
 
 1808. 
 
 , i 
 
 THE LETTER PRESS BY T. BENSLEY, BOLT COURT, FLEET STREET. 
 

 
TO 
 
 HIS HOYAL HIGHNESS 
 
 THE PRINCE OF WALES, 
 
 Sjc. Sf'c. Sjc. 
 
 1 he Approbation Your Royal Highness 
 was pleased to express of the general Outline of an 
 Opinion I had the honour to deliver concerning- the 
 Gardens ot the Pavillon, induces me to hope that 
 this W ork will meet with the same Gracious Recep- 
 tion, as it contains the Reasons on which that Opinion 
 was founded. 
 
 I have the Honour to be, 
 
 With the most profound Respect, 
 Your Royal Highness’s 
 Most faithful and most obedient humble Servant, 
 
 Hare Street, near Rumford, Essex, 
 February 1806. 
 
 H. REPTON. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
PREFATORY OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 In a small Work published in 1806,“ it was mentioned (page 4l), “ That 
 “ we were on the eve of some great change in Landscape Gardening 
 “ and Architecture, in consequence of our having lately become better 
 “ acquainted with Scenery and Buildings in the interior provinces of 
 “ India it was also mentioned, that “ my opinion had recently been 
 “ required in some great works of this style, then in too early a stage 
 “ of progress to be referred to.” This was in allusion to my having at 
 that time completed the original MS. of which the following Work is 
 an exact copy. 
 
 As many parts of this volume may appear to recommend a degree 
 of novelty, to which I have frequently objected in former publications, 
 it will perhaps subject me to some severity of criticism. I must there- 
 fore plead for candid and indulgent hearing, while I explain the origin 
 of the following work, and endeavour to justify its intentions. 
 
 At a time when the wealth of individuals has been increasing in this 
 country beyond the example of all former periods, it would not be an 
 uninteresting subject of enquiry, to consider how far the more general 
 diffusion of good taste has kept pace with the increased wealth of 
 individuals ; or rather, the effect which that increased wealth has pro- 
 duced on the taste of the country generally. b But in the following 
 
 pages I shall confine my observations to the united Arts of Landscape 
 Gardening and Architecture. 
 
 The natural effect on the human mind of acquired wealth, is either 
 an ostentatious display of its importance to others, or a close applica- 
 tion of it to selfish and private enjoyment; and very frequently both 
 in the same individual. And this effect may be traced in the modern 
 
 * An Enquiry into the Changes of Taste in Landscape Gardening and Architecture; printed for J. Taylor, 
 59, Ilolborn, octavo. 
 
 b Amongst the most obvious effects of sudden wealth in the country, is the change of property from the 
 hereditary lords of the soil to the more wealthy sons of successful Commerce, who do not always feci the same 
 respect for the antiquity or dignity of venerable Mansions; and although some may have sufficient taste to pre- 
 serve the original character of such places, yet in general the display of recent expence in the newness of improve- 
 ment is too prevalent. Hence we have continually to regret the mutilation of the old Halls and Manor Houses ; 
 where the large bay windows, the lofty open chimneys, and picturesque gables of Queen Elisabeths time, give 
 place to the modern sashes and fiat roofs, with all the garish frippery of trellis, and canvass, and sharp pointed 
 pea green Gothic porches, or porticos of Grecian columns reduced to the size of bedposts. 
 
 b 
 
ii 
 
 practice of what is called improving both Houses and Palaces. In the 
 former, if the inside display of magnificence or comfort be accomplished, 
 the external Architecture is little attended to; while in Gardening the 
 perfection of improvement seems to consist in the extent of ground 
 appropriated to the private enjoyment of the possessor and his friends. 
 It has frequently been observed, “ that England would in time become 
 the Garden of Europe, by the continual increase in the number and 
 extent of its improved places:” but the improvement of individual places 
 has rather injured than benefitted the traveller, because all view is totally 
 excluded from the highways by the lofty fences and thick belt with which 
 the improver shuts himself up within his improvement. This arises from 
 the seclusion which is perhaps in some cases necessary; but which in 
 the course of long practice I have generally observed to be carried too 
 far, and has introduced the fashion, that in all places, whether of five 
 acres or of five thousand, the first step is, to inclose with a wall or 
 pale, and the next, to cover that boundary with a belt or 1 plantation. 
 This gratifies the desire of seclusion and private enjoyment, while that 
 of displaying great possessions has introduced the fashion of considering 
 the importance of a place by its extent, rather than by its variety; and 
 describing it rather by its number of acres, than of its beauties ! ! 
 
 I his same false principle of mistaking greatness of dimensions, for 
 greatness of character, has of late extended itself to the arts of every 
 kind . . . the Statuary surprises by the immense blocks of marble which 
 fill the Abbey and St. Paul’s ! . . . the Painter by an expanse of canvass 
 too large for any private houses ! . . . the Jeweller, by large masses of 
 amber and aqua marina, which by their size outweigh, though they 
 cannot outshine the diamond and the ruby ! . . . while in Architecture, 
 the first question concerning a house is, What are the dimensions 
 of the rooms ?... Indeed every thing is swelled out in the same pro- 
 portion. Thus we continually see, in modern houses, Windows too large 
 to be glazed . . . Doors too large to be opened . . . Furniture too large to be 
 moved . . . and even Beds too lofty to be reached without a ladder ! ! ! 
 
 T remar V''.' ! be ™° re sinking, when exemplified bj a comparison between a new place and an old one 
 the ,d,n" T r ’ “ b ,j' Ck T c paling is put so near the road as to leave no margin of waste land, while 
 the old hcdgeiow thorns and pollard trees are taken away, to make room for young plantations of firs and larch, 
 ZiTtl I poplars. How different from the ancient manorial domains! where the public road has a broad 
 3 j® c ’ e “ nclled 'T' 1 tho , ms “d spreading timber, under whose twisted branches the rough and 
 F,“‘ m f “ Vle ' V * ' e '“‘T ' vl, . cre ron,ail tic and decaying oaks denote the old proprietor's taste and 
 pieteiencc for picturesque objects, rather than for the intrinsic value of his timber: while, on the contrary, the 
 T ’ " '° has perhap f. ale,J ’ pald dear, y tor 11* timber, is too often anxious to realise the value of his 
 purchase, by converting to profit every tree that has ceased to grow, and is therefore deemed ripe for the axe. 
 
iii 
 
 Having long regretted the prevalence of this mistaken fashion, I was 
 rejoiced to receive his Royal Highness’s commands to deliver my opinion 
 concerning a place which was deemed by every body too small to admit 
 of any improvements; and indeed such it actually was, according to the 
 modern system, which required unconfined extent within itself, 
 
 AND ABSOLUTE EXCLUSION FROM ALL WITHOUT. 
 
 On my arrival at Brighton, I found the same system already begun 
 by the preparation for a belt of shrubs close to the garden wall : and, in 
 conformity to another fashion of modern gardening, there was to have 
 been a coach-road, to enter by a pair of lodges, and to proceed to the 
 house through a serpentine line of approach, as it is called. The prin- 
 ciple on which this plan was suggested arose from confounding the 
 character of a Garden" with that of a Park; and it is hardly possible 
 to give a more striking example of the absurdity of applying a general 
 system to every situation. It is not therefore to be wondered at, that 
 the acknowledged good taste of his Royal Highness should see the 
 necessity of having recourse to new expedients; what these are, will 
 appear in the following pages: but I shall candidly acknowledge, that 
 for many of them I am indebted to the elegance and facility of the 
 Prince’s own invention, joined to a rapidity of conception, and correct- 
 ness of taste, which I had never before witnessed. 
 
 It was evident in the present instance, that every attempt to increase 
 the apparent extent of ground on these- principles must have betrayed 
 its real confinement; while, on the contrary, I trust it will appear that, if 
 there were a thousand acres attached to the Pavilion, such a Garden as 
 is here described would not reasonably occupy more than five or six. 
 
 Although it may at first appear that the following observations are 
 more especially applicable to the Garden of a Palace, under peculiar 
 circumstances of confinement, yet they may be extended to every other 
 place, from the ornamented Cottage to the most superb Mansion ; since 
 every residence of elegance or affluence requires its Garden Scenery; 
 the beauty and propriety of which belong to art, rather than to nature. 
 In Forest Scenery we trace the sketches of Salvator and of Ridinger; 
 
 J This error is so common, lhat there are few places in which the character of a Garden is preserved near the 
 house ; and therefore a detached place called the Flower Garden has been set apart occasionally at such an 
 inconvenient distance that it is seldom visited. Among those few in which the Garden Scenery has been admitted 
 to form part of the landscape from the windows, I can only mention. Wilderness, Earl Camden; Bromley Mill, 
 the Right Hon. Charles Long; St. Leonard's Hill, General Harcourt; Longleat, Marquis of Bath; and Ashridge, 
 Earl Bridgewater. Out of some hundred places, these are all I can recollect where the views from the windows 
 consist rather of Garden than of Park Scenery. 
 
IV 
 
 in Park Scenery we may realise the landscapes of Claude and Poussin: 
 but in Garden Scenery we delight in the rich embellishments, the blended 
 graces of Watteau, where nature is dressed, but not disfigured by art, 
 and where the artificial decorations of Architecture and Sculpture are 
 softened down by natural accompaniments of vegetation. In the Park 
 and Forest, let the Painter be indulged with the most picturesque objects 
 for his pencil to imitate; let the sportsman be gratified with rough 
 coverts and impenetrable thickets ; let the active mind be soothed with 
 all the beauty of Landscape, and the contemplative mind roused by all 
 the sublimity of Prospect that nature can produce; but we must also 
 provide artificial scenes, less wild, though not less interesting, for 
 
 “ Retired Leisure, 
 
 “ That in trim Gardens takes his pleasure.” Milton. 
 
 For these reasons I cannot too strongly recommend a due attention 
 to the following circumstances, which will be deemed innovations in the 
 modern system, by those who contend that Landscape forms the basis 
 of Landscape Gardening, viz. First, To reduce the size of the pleasure 
 ground, as it is called, within such limits that it may be kept with the 
 utmost artificial neatness. Secondly, Not to aim even at the appearance 
 of extent in Garden Scenery, without marking its artificial boundary or 
 separature from the natural Landscape. Thirdly, When the dressed 
 ground forms part of the view from the windows, especially those of 
 the principal rooms, let it be artificial in its keeping, and in its embel- 
 lishments; let it rather appear to be the rich frame of the Landscape, 
 than a part of the Picture. Fourthly, Whether the dressed Garden be 
 seen from the windows, or in a detached situation, let it be near the 
 house, and if possible, connected with it by a sheltered, if not a covered 
 way. And lastly, As the winter of England extends from November to 
 May, it is highly desirable to provide a Garden for those months, and 
 thereby artificially to prolong our summers beyond the natural limits of 
 our precarious climate. 
 
 In the summer every field is a Garden, but in the winter our open 
 Gardens are bleak, unsheltered, dreary fields. Where the walks are 
 extended to the lengths which too commonly prevail, we find that no 
 one uses them except the nursemaid and children, who are compelled 
 to do so; or the unfortunate visitor, who is not less compelled to walk 
 round the place on the first day of his visit, and who ever afterwards 
 
■V 
 
 makes his escape into the neighbouring lanes or inclosures to enjoy the 
 country; while in the artificial Garden, richly clothed with flowers, and 
 decorated with seats and works of art, we saunter or repose ourselves, 
 without regretting the want of extent, any more than while we are in 
 the saloon, the library, or the gallery of the mansion. 
 
 The luxury of a Winter Garden has of late been in some degree sup- 
 plied by adding large conservatories to the apartments of a house; but 
 this is not in all cases practicable, nor in some advisable; yet in most 
 situations it is possible to obtain a covered line of connexion with the 
 Green-house, and other appendages of a Winter Garden, at a little dis- 
 tance from the house.' 
 
 If by the various expedients suggested, I have succeeded in length- 
 ening the summers, by shortening the walks; or if I have increased the 
 comforts or pleasures of a Garden, by diminishing what is too often 
 miscalled the Pleasure Garden, I shall not have exercised my profession 
 in vain; since I hope it will tend to curtail the waste of many thousand 
 acres, which may be more profitably employed. 
 
 I shall now proceed to explain the reasons for recommending in the 
 present instance a departure from the styles of Architecture hitherto 
 used in this country. It happened that a little before my first visit to 
 Brighton, I had been consulted by the proprietor of Sesincot, in Glouces- 
 tershire, where he wished to introduce the Gardening and Architecture 
 which he had seen in India/ I confess the subject was then entirely 
 new to me; but from his long residence in the interior of that country, 
 and from the good taste and accuracy with which he had observed and 
 pointed out to me the various forms of ancient Hindu Architecture, a 
 new field opened itself; and as I became more acquainted with them, 
 through the accurate Sketches and Drawings made on the spot by my 
 ingenious friend Mr. T. Daniell, I was pleased at having discovered 
 new sources of beauty and variety, which might gratify that thirst for 
 
 ' The covered Walk and Corridor at Woburn Abbey is the most extensive of the kind in this country. It is a 
 shelter from rain at all seasons, and furnishes a line of connexion with the conservatory, flower-house, tennis- 
 court, stables, riding-house, &c. But this is not covered with glass. — Among those on a small scale, I may 
 mention the Flower Passage at Mr. Manning’s Villa at Totterige; the Corridor at Earl Sefton’s at Stoke Farm; 
 and the Winter Walk at the Hon. J. B. Simpson’s at Babworlh, Nottinghamshire: all which add great comfort 
 to the interior, while they contribute by their exterior to ornament the Garden Scenery. 
 
 1 Although I gave my opinion concerning the adoption of this new style, and even assisted in the selecting 
 some of the forms from Mr. T. Daniell’s collection, yet the architectural department at Sesincot ot course devolved 
 to the Brother of the Proprietor, who has displayed as much correctness as could be expected in a first attempt 
 of a new style, of which he could have no knowledge but from drawings, but who has sufficiently exemplified 
 in various parts of his building, that the detail of Hindi! Architecture, is as beautiful in reality as it appears in 
 the drawings, and does not shrink from a comparison with the pure Gothic in richness of effect. 
 
novelty, so dangerous to good taste in any system long established; 
 because it is much safer to depart entirely from any given style, than 
 to admit changes and modifications in its proportions, that tend to 
 destroy its character. Thus, when we are told, that “ a Pediment is 
 old fashioned, and a Doric Column too thick and clumsy,” the corrup- 
 tion of Grecian Architecture may be anticipated. And since the rage for 
 Gothic has lately prevailed, the sudden erection of spruce Gothic Villas, 
 threatening to vitiate the pure style of those venerable remains of 
 ancient English grandeur, which are more often badly imitated in new 
 buildings, than preserved or restored in the old. It is not therefore 
 with a view to supersede the known styles, that 1 am become an advo- 
 cate for a new one, but to preserve their long established proportions 
 pure and unmixed by fanciful innovations. 
 
 Immediately after I had reconciled my mind to the adoption of this 
 new style at Sesincot, I received the Prince’s commands to visit Brighton, 
 and there saw in some degree realized the new forms which I had ad- 
 mired in drawings. I found in the gardens of the Pavilion a stupendous 
 and magnificent Building, which, by its lightness, its elegance, its bold- 
 ness of construction, and the symmetry ot its proportions, does credit 
 both to the genius of the Artist, and the good taste of his Royal Em- 
 ployer. Although the outline of the Dome resembles rather a Turkish 
 Mosque than the Buildings of Hindustan, yet its general character is 
 distinct from either Grecian or Gothic, and must both please and sur- 
 prise every one not bigotted to the forms of either. 
 
 When therefore I was commanded to deliver my opinion concerning 
 the style of Architecture best adapted to the Additions and Garden 
 Front for the Pavilion, I could not hesitate in agreeing that neither the 
 Grecian nor the Gothic style could be made to assimilate with what 
 had so much the character of an Eastern building. I considered all the 
 different styles of different countries, from a conviction of the danger of 
 attempting to invent any thing entirely new. The Turkish was objec- 
 tionable, as being a corruption of the Grecian; the Moorish, as a bad 
 model of the Gothic; the Egyptian was too cumbrous for the character 
 of a villa; the Chinese too light and trifling for the outside, however it 
 may be applied to the interior; and the specimens from Ava were still 
 more trifling and extravagant. Thus, if any known style were to be 
 adopted, no alternative remained, but to combine from the Architecture 
 of Hindustan such forms as might be rendered applicable to the purpose. 
 
vii 
 
 After various experiments, the original MS. and Drawings of this present 
 work had the honour to receive his Royal Highness’s most flattering 
 approbation, with gracious permission to lay this Fac Simile before the 
 public. 
 
 However fruitless the attempt to avert the cavils of criticism, I must 
 not conclude these prefatory observations without endeavouring to anti- 
 cipate some of the objections that I suppose will be urged against this 
 novel application of the most ancient style of ornamented Architecture 
 existing in the world.® These objections may perhaps be classed under 
 the following heads: 
 
 I. The difference in the climate from whence this style is taken. 
 
 II. The brevity of remarks for so important a subject. 
 
 III. The want of positive data and accurate measurement. 
 
 IV. The want of space for its introduction at Brighton. 
 
 V. The costliness of its ornaments and decorations. 
 
 The first objection will obviously arise from the difference between 
 the climates of India and of England : but this would apply with equal 
 force against the adoption of Architecture from parts of Greece and 
 Italy , 11 which are hotter than those mountainous tracts of Hindustan, 
 where the climate differs less from that of England than in the southern 
 provinces near the sea coasts. 
 
 In answer to the second objection, I shall observe, that this work 
 was not intended as a detailed treatise on Hindustan Architecture, but 
 as an Essay describing the reasons for recommending that particular 
 style for a particular spot ; where the confinement of the place, the cha- 
 racter of the garden, and other circumstances, justify its adoption; and 
 it is now before the public to judge how far the beauties and advan- 
 tages of the same style may deserve to be extended to other places. I 
 may also observe, that, as there was no occasion to discuss more at 
 length the inapplicability of Grecian or Gothic forms, when both had 
 been previously rejected, it became my duty to compress the subject 
 into the narrowest possible compass. 
 
 It has frequently been remarked, that a spirit of party and prejudice 
 
 * Some of the forms here introduced are taken from the ornaments of the subterraneous and excavated 
 remains, which being worked in the hardest grey granite, were found by Mr. Danicll to be as fresh as if just 
 finished from the chisel of the sculptor; although they are of a date beyond all record, and are mentioned as 
 beino- found in the same slate at the time when Alexander the Great conquered India. 
 
 h °The Grecian style was introduced without any attention to the difference of climate; and so rare is the 
 combination of fashion with good taste, or the union of genius with common sense, that even to the present day 
 we see lofty porticos to shade the north side of houses, where the sun never shines; and ballustrades on the tops 
 of houses, where no one can ever walk, and where the slanting roof marks the absurdity. 
 
viii 
 
 is so natural to man, that it extends from religion and politics to the 
 arts and sciences of a country. Thus, in philosophy, in poetry, and in 
 all the liberal arts, a difference of opinion is supported or condemned 
 with all the zeal of party bigotry. The admirers of Grecian Architec- 
 ture, and those who have studied the ruins of ancient Italy, from the 
 time of Inigo Jones and Sir Christopher Wren to the Artists of the 
 present day, speak with contempt of all other styles, and reproachfully 
 call them Gothic ; while those who have directed their attention to the 
 variety and beauty of forms among the old English remains; glory in 
 changing the term Gothic to ancient English Architecture, as a 
 style doing honour to their country. Whatever is written in praise of 
 one style, will be condemned by the partisans of the other. What then 
 must an author expect, who dares to become an advocate of a style 
 totally different from either? especially where his opinions appear under 
 the high sanction with which the following pages have been honoured ! 
 
 So far, therefore, from regretting the brevity of this work, it may be 
 feared that I have said too much on a subject which few can under- 
 stand, and in which my own knowledge must have been derived from 
 the representations and drawings of others, and not from an actual view 
 of the existing models. This naturally leads to the third objection, viz. 
 That there are no certain data for the style recommended; that in our 
 knowledge of Grecian forms, we have the most minute admeasurements 
 of the detail of ancient buildings; that in the Gothic forms we can have 
 recourse to a thousand examples in the remains of various dates ; but in 
 that of Hindustan we have few or no details, and those from drawings 
 made by Artists who considered the subject as Painters, and not as 
 Architects.' This objection I shall answer by observing, that, although 
 the Grecian proportions are nearly reduced to fixed rules, yet such 
 occasional deviations may be discovered in every fragment remaining, 
 that no two writers on the subject exactly agree. Therefore in the 
 application of Grecian forms, both in modern Italy and in this country-, 
 the correct eye is continually offended by' false proportions to suit mo- 
 dern purposes of habitation ! But in India, the same forms are applied 
 
 1 Allhough the Works of Mr. Thomas Danicll hitherto published relate to the general forms and picturesque 
 effect of Hindft Buildings, yet he has measured many of them with such accuracy on the spot, and has collected 
 such ample materials for the detail of this style, that the Architects who have access to them can be at no loss 
 for the minutite. These he means to lay before the public; and after the unreserved manner in which lie has 
 permitted me to avail myself of his sketches, it would be unpardonable in me to do any thins; which might inter- 
 fere with his future views respecting the detail of Hindi! Architecture, of which my knowledge is chiefly derived 
 from his liberal communications. 
 
IX 
 
 to buildings of very different sizes, and therefore in adapting the Hindu 
 Architecture to the purposes of European houses, we have only to satisfy 
 the eye of the painter with pleasing forms of beauty, and the eye of the 
 mathematician with the safety of its construction; while that infinite 
 variety of proportions, which this new style admits, may be adapted to 
 every possible purpose, and every kind of material, unfettered by the 
 restraint which so painfully operates in the Grecian or Gothic propor- 
 tions . 11 
 
 The fourth objection, respecting the want of space, will in some 
 degree be answered by considering the expedients proposed; but this 
 objection arises chiefly from the absurd idea , 1 that every house requires 
 to be insulated and surrounded on all sides by its own territory. . If we 
 consider the Pavilion as a Palace in a large town, we shall find it con- 
 nected with its garden to the west, open to the Parade towards the 
 north, and to the Steyn towards the south east, and only contiguous to 
 the town by its offices towards the south. Since this degree of local 
 freedom is only interrupted by one or two adjoining houses, it is not 
 too much to suppose such a reasonable degree of accommodation, as 
 may remove every objection, and give the Pavilion all the space that a 
 Palace in a town can require. 
 
 The fifth objection which I propose to answer is founded on the 
 costliness of the ornaments that appear at first sight to belong to this 
 style. On a more minute investigation it will be found, that the Hindu 
 enrichments are much more simple than they appear, and far less costly 
 than either those of the Grecian or Gothic styles. 
 
 I trust it will not be contended, that all external ornaments and 
 enrichments in Architecture are to be abolished ; and that the Palaces 
 of our Princes are to resemble the villas of wealthy individuals, who 
 
 after having studied amidst the finest remains of the ancient world, 
 
 ig “TcJl liis'lVortatouid’idea, because I have so often witnessed the demolition of whole villages, that the 
 mansion may stand in the middle of its park or lawn, to give it imaginary 
 
 manv of our ancient Palaces derive true consequence and dignity from being contiguous to the ton n or it age, 
 rSSuence is supposed to extenl The same mistaken pmd.ahty tor jnsdatmn would per aps 
 extend to the demolition of Windsor, for being too near the Castle, and o 1 Pall Mall, lor bem a too neai fct. 
 
 lame, wnu vu» nine. v,c..>.n 6 , „ 
 
 stand in«- the general appearance of richness and magnificence in the outline. 
 
 d 
 
X 
 
 study only internal comfort and magnificence, neglecting all rules of 
 Architecture in the outside of their houses. This effect of combined 
 ostentation and oeconomy is exemplified in the vicinity of every wealthy 
 town; where large rooms, with sumptuous furniture, are “ boxed up” 
 under the direction of carpenters, builders, and surveyors, who may be 
 ingenious artisans, but who have no science as Architects. We are 
 therefore often led to regret that much bad taste is propagated by the 
 fanciful mixture of false Grecian with pseudo Gothic forms. 
 
 Every individual claims the right of indulging his own taste, in what 
 relates to himself; but in the Public Edifices of a country the honour of 
 the country should be considered. If we were to judge from the public 
 buildings of the metropolis, or from the unfurnished state of its Churches 
 and Theatres, we might suppose that there were no funds for their com- 
 pletion, or no Artists competent to the task of adding ornament to uti- 
 lity. But a very different cause must be acknowledged: so soon as such 
 building are in a state to receive the admission fees of their audiences, 
 their purpose is completed. They may be considered as manufactories 
 or warehouses for carrying on a species of traffic, and the external 
 appearance is neglected as useless. 
 
 In this commercial country, wealth is more generally diffused than 
 good taste; and private gratification more prevalent than national dignity. 
 While, therefore, the security of private property is the chief motive 
 for the only public buildings now erecting in the country, which are 
 prisons and workhouses, we cannot wonder that our Royal Mansions 
 should have more the appearance of workhouses and prisons, than of 
 Palaces worthy the residence of Royalty ! 
 
1 
 
 
 ! 
 
 FLORA'! 
 
 vrtiNTK.K 
 
 
 DESIGNS THAT ARE VAST^ 8 
 ^ W ONLY P THEIR DIMENSIONS, ARE •‘■*’8 
 W THE SWN’OF A COMMON AND LOW iMAGIMATfO^ 
 NO WORK OF f AftT CAN BE GREAT 3VT AS IT SEC-E IV| 
 TO BE OTHERWISE IS THE PREROGATIVE or J 
 
OF 
 
 THE SITUATION, CHARACTER, 
 
 AND 
 
 CIRCUMSTANCES. 
 
 T-HE Pavillon, originally erected on a small scale, with very little 
 adjoining territory, is now become surrounded by houses on every side; 
 and what was only a small fishing town, is now become equal to some 
 cities in extent and population. Such must ever be the influence of a 
 Royal Residence, which cannot long exist in solitude. The situation 
 of the Pavilion is therefore that of a Palace surrounded by other houses, 
 to which great extent of garden is neither possible nor desirable: yet 
 the ground on which the Pavilion is built (including its offices and 
 gardens) occupies more space than generally belongs to houses built in 
 towns, and includes as much ground as is necessary for a garden so 
 situated. This supposes the proper distinction to be made between 
 Garden and Park Scenery, which have of late been confounded : the 
 Park may imitate nature in its wilder forms, but the Garden must still 
 be an artificial object. The Park, by its formal clumps, its sweeping 
 plantations, and meandring gravel roads, has of late become an over- 
 grown and slovenly garden; while the Garden, by its naked lawn, and 
 its invisible boundary, has become a mere grass field, without interest 
 or animation. The magnificent terraces of former times have been 
 sloped to unite with the adjoining pasture; while shrubs and flowers, 
 and all the gay accompaniments of a garden, are banished from the 
 
 windows of the Palace, that it may appear to stand in the middle of a 
 
 B 
 
2 
 
 lawn, less cheerful than a cottage on a naked common. This defect in 
 modern gardening is to be attributed to the misapplication of the sunk 
 fence, which gives freedom in appearance, but in reality confinement. 
 Fortunately the sunk fence cannot be applied to the Gardens of the 
 Pavilion; we cannot blend the surface of the grass with adjoining streets 
 and parades ; we cannot give great ideal extent by concealing the actual 
 boundary ; we cannot lay open the foreground of the scene to admit 
 distant views of sea or land, while impeded by intervening houses ; and 
 therefore both the character and situation of the Pavilion render these 
 common rules of Landscape Gardening totally inapplicable. 
 
3 
 
 GENERAL OUTLINE 
 
 OF 
 
 THE PLAN. 
 
 Since therefore the real extent of this Garden cannot be increased by 
 uniting it with surrounding objects, the imagination can only be deceived 
 by such variations in the surface of the ground, and such a position of 
 intervening embellishments, as may retard the eye in its too rapid pro- 
 gress, and amuse by the richness, the variety, and intricacy of the scene. 
 This will produce greatness of character, without greatness of dimension; 
 and will delight by its beauty, where it cannot surprise by its extent: 
 such is the general outline of the Plan as it relates to Nature. As a 
 work of Art, the Garden of the Pavilion is further to be considered. 
 
 It has been beautifully observed by Lord Bacon, ‘ That in the Royal 
 ‘ ordering of gardens, there should be a garden for every month in the 
 ‘ year but in my humble endeavours to gratify the Royal commands, it 
 would be my pride to make a Garden which should not be affected by 
 any variations of season, or soil, or weather, or situation ; and thus form 
 a perpetual garden, enriched with the production of every climate. 
 
 Hie Ver assiduum atque alienis mensibus tEstas.’ 
 
4 
 
 REMARKS 
 
 ON 
 
 THE GENERAL PLAN. 
 
 To accomplish the great object of a perpetual garden, it will be neces- 
 sary to provide for a regular succession of plants ; and the means of 
 removing and transplanting. It will also require certain space for various 
 other uses;' yet as the present area cannot be increased, we can only 
 obtain such useful space by contracting the limits of that which is 
 merely ornamental. The parts so intended to be thrown out are dis- 
 tinguished by a pale wash of purple, and the ornamental limits by a red 
 line of corridors, & c. This boundary is supposed to be disguised by 
 various expedients; where the aspect will admit any sunshine (although 
 not always to the south),, a conservatory, or a green-house, may be most 
 advisable; because they will draw off the attention from the interior of 
 the garden to the interior of the conservatory, a circumstance which 
 constitutes the most interesting part of the garden in summer by its 
 exotic productions, and in winter by the permanency of its vegetation; 
 each of these, from the diversity of their plants, the studied contrivance 
 in their arrangements, and the contrasted forms and character of their 
 embellishments, will arrest the attention, and increase the imaginary 
 extent of the area. 
 
 These different stations may be connected with each other, and with 
 the house, by corridors or flower passages; in some places under cover, 
 in others occasionally covered with glass in winter, which in summer 
 may be taken away, leaving only such standards of wood or cast iron, 
 as may serve to trail climbers and creeping plants. 
 
 Such as the stowage of frames, glasses, coals, wood, mould, garden pots, and all the unsightly appendages 
 of a working garden. 
 
BNRKOW 
 
 >heasakt&* 
 
 fa, MOT.U. P 
 WORKING 
 
 llOl'SEl 
 
 Y*RP 
 
 OIUUD 
 
 great 
 
 TOOT ENTRANC 
 
 FROM THE TOWN 
 
 BACK. YARB fc<* 
 
 CVtlOSKI 
 
 NjKRSP OR. 
 
 CORRIDOR 
 
 prop os >: j 
 
 OFFICES A- 
 
 Outer Court 
 
 Office Covers tec 
 
 THE PRESENT SUITE. 
 
 vOF CB.UNF.SE ROOMS 
 
 OFFICES 
 
 Chinese Garden 
 
 THE PARADE 
 
 OK 
 
 NORTH STEYN 
 
 stable 
 
 courts 
 
 be 
 
 
 NNEE. COURT 
 
 L 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 , 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 
 
 SHAPE OF GROUND. 
 
 There is so little inequality of surface, that the ground may be almost 
 described as perfectly flat, except that the stables are placed rather higher 
 than the general level : this alone would render it necessary to form a 
 small valley or hollow betwixt the stables and the house, to prevent the 
 latter from being oppressed by the former . 11 Every valley in nature has 
 a fall in some one direction, generally serving as a drain for the surface 
 water; and wherever this is interrupted, either by natural or artificial 
 obstructions, water is formed into a lake in large valleys, and into a pool 
 in small ones. 
 
 The most natural shape for the surface will be a valley trending from 
 north to south. The great dome has been placed at the north end of 
 this valley, and an artificial obstruction from the adjoining town has 
 stopped the valley towards the south : this forms a dell or hollow bason, 
 which ought (if possible) to have a pool of water, however small it may 
 be; and as it is evidently caused by the interference of art, its form should 
 be artificial ; any attempt to make it natural would look like affectation. 
 
 In the Drawing N° 3 the slide represents the trees which have been 
 removed, not only because they stood in a line through the middle of 
 the ground, and hid the dome, but also because the ground on which 
 they stood has been lowered to form the valley. 
 
 It may perhaps be deemed too great a refinement in taste, to say 
 that a pool is absolutely necessary in this place, because no Indian build- 
 ing is ever seen without ; it is not therefore to preserve the character of 
 such scenery that the pool is advisable ; but rather for its utility in sup- 
 plying the garden with water attempered by the air, and for its beauty 
 in reflecting the surrounding objects. 
 
 b Supposing tlie two objects lo be kept distinct: but as I should rather wish to consider them so connected, 
 as to form one magnificent whole, under the name of the Pavillon, I cannot treat them as distinct objects, but 
 as different parts of the same scenery. 
 
VIEW OF THE STABLE FllONT. 
 
 SEEN PROM THE GARDEN. 
 
 The pool is proposed to be square, rather than round, for the following 
 reasons : 
 
 first, That a small square pool will appear larger than a round one 
 of the same dimensions, because the eye is checked in its progress, and 
 the angles being seen perspectively, it varies its shape with the position 
 of the spectator; while the round pool is always seen in the same point 
 of view. 
 
 Secondly, lhat the inverted picture formed by the reflection of its 
 margin is larger and more varied. 
 
 And lastly, that such pools in India are generally of this shape. 
 
9 
 
 ARTIFICIAL CHARACTER. 
 
 The magnificent building which by its situation and magnitude must 
 form the leading feature of the place, ought therefore to extend its 
 influence over the scenery: at present its character is contrasted with 
 all the surrounding objects of Art, and its great dimensions withdraw 
 the eye from all the surrounding objects of Nature: hence it becomes 
 separated from, or rather contrasted to the scenery; and being thus in 
 a manner isolated and detached, we are apt to suppose it too large for 
 its situation. 
 
 If the same character be extended throughout the gardens, and the 
 whole scene be enriched by buildings of the same style, this large dome 
 will cease to be unconnected, it will in a manner blend with them, 
 although it will always form the leading feature of the scenery . 0 There 
 might be some reason for objecting to a multiplicity of buildings, if they 
 were all merely introduced as ornaments, like a public garden crowded 
 with seats ; but if each object has a separate use, and each contributes 
 to the comfort as well as the magnificence of the scene, it is hardly 
 possible to make it too rich. 
 
 • Another objection to this building as a separate object, arises from its uses. We are in the habit of sup- 
 posing that the house should be a more lofty object than its stables or offices, and are apt to annex dignity to 
 loftiness. For this reason, at Chatswortli, at Hardwick, and some other palaces, the principal apartments were 
 at the top of the house; yet we do not object in St. Paul's, or St. Peter's at Rome, that the choir, or most digni- 
 
 fied part of the building, is not placed immediately under the dome. 
 
11 
 
 THE 
 
 GARDEN ENTRANCES. 
 
 The central view of the great Dome is doubtless the most striking, 
 and it is therefore proposed to make an Entrance from the town at the 
 spot from whence the sketch N° 3 is taken. Another Entrance to the 
 Garden will be very striking from the stable-yard; the long perspective 
 through the several arches requires an appropriate termination for the 
 centre of the vista; this same porch or entrance forms also the central 
 object from the windows of the Pavilion. On one side of the pool is 
 also represented the Orchestra or platform for a band of music, which 
 is an essential part of the state and pleasure of such a Garden, and to 
 which some central spot must be appropriated : the cupola on the chapel 
 is not of the same character, and cannot be hid from the garden; the 
 appearance of this orchestra will divide the attention, and lessen its 
 influence, although it is fortunately not so correct a specimen of Gre- 
 cian Architecture as to do much injury by its intrusion. 
 
 In a Garden so surrounded by buildings, it is not to be expected that 
 all can be excluded by plantation only; and as in some places architec- 
 tural ornaments must be called in aid of vegetation, it becomes necessary 
 to determine what style such ornaments should assume, especially as 
 these buildings must have a reference to the style of the mansion, as well 
 as that of the stables: this naturally leads to the following Enquiry con- 
 cerning the various Styles of Architecture which have been at different 
 times introduced into England. 
 
' 
 

AN INQUIRY 
 
 INTO THE 
 
 CHANGES IN ARCHITECTURE, 
 
 AS IT RELATES TO 
 
 palaces anti Rouses tit Cnglanti. 
 
 INCLUDING 
 
 THE CASTLE AND ABBEY GOTHIC, 
 
 THE MIXED STYLE OF GOTHIC, 
 
 THE GRECIAN AND MODERN STYLES; 
 
 WITH 
 
 SOME REMARKS ON THE INTRODUCTION 
 
 or 
 
 INDIAN ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 E 
 
AN 
 
 INQUIRY, &c. 
 
 In obedience to the Royal Commands, “ That I should deliver my 
 
 “ OPINION CONCERNING WHAT STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE WOULD BE MOST 
 
 “ suitable for the Pavillon,” the following Inquiry into the Changes 
 which Architecture has undergone in this Country, will not, I hope, be 
 found irrelevant. 
 
 Architecture has been classed under two general characters, Gothic 
 and Grecian : d these have been jointly and separately discussed and ex- 
 plained in volumes without number; yet these discussions have furnished 
 no fixed standard for determining the question, of, which Style is most 
 applicable to a Palace? for such must always be the Residence of Royalty, 
 whether it be large or small, and wherever it be situated. 
 
 Until the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the large buildings in this country 
 had either been castles for security, or colleges and religious retreats; 
 many of these had been converted into palaces, or altered to adapt them 
 to Royal residences, by such changes in their original forms, as at length 
 introduced that mixed character, called Queen Elizabeth’s, or House 
 Gothic; which is in reality the only Gothic Style that can be made per- 
 fectly characteristic of a Palace. This assertion is confirmed by the 
 numerous attempts to revive the Gothic Style in modern-built houses, 
 which evidently shew how inapplicable are these ancient models for the 
 present purposes of habitation. 
 
 d The Grecian Style was introduced by Inigo Jones, under the auspices of his Royal Master, James the 
 First. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
17 
 
 THE 
 
 GOTHIC STYLE. 
 
 The Castle Character requires massive walls, with very small win- 
 dows, if any are allowed to appear externally. The correct imitation of 
 this in modern times must produce the effect of a prison. 
 
 The Abbey Character requires lofty and large apertures, almost 
 equally inapplicable to a house, although in some few rooms the excess 
 of light may be subdued by coloured glass. But in the Abbey Character 
 it is only the Chapel, the collegiate Church, the Hall, and the Library, 
 which furnish models for a Palace; all the subordinate parts were the 
 mean habitation of monks or students, built on so small a scale, and 
 with such low ceilings, that they cannot be imitated in a modern Palace, 
 without such mixture and modification, as tend to destroy the original 
 character: therefore it is necessary now (as it was formerly) to adopt 
 the mixed style of Queen Elisabeth’s Gothic for modern Palaces, if 
 they must be in any style of what is called Gothic. 
 
 Yet a mixed style is generally imperfect: the mind is not easily re- 
 conciled to the combination of forms which it has been used to consider 
 distinct, and at variance with each other : it feels an incongruity of cha- 
 racter, like an anachronism in the confusion of dates; it is like uniting 
 in one object infancy with old age, life with death, or things present 
 with things past. 
 
 F 
 
GRECIAN STYLE. 
 
 Under this character are included all Buildings in England, for which 
 models have been furnished from Greece, from Italy, from Syria, and 
 from other countries unmixed with the Gothic Style; for in all these 
 countries some intermixture of style and dates in what is called the 
 Grecian Character may be discovered: and we are apt to consider as 
 good specimens those Buildings in which the greatest simplicity prevails, 
 or in other words, those that are most free from mixture. Simplicity 
 is not less necessary in the Gothic than in the Grecian Style: yet it 
 creates great difficulty in its application in both, if no mixture of dates 
 is to be allowed in the respective styles of each. Thus the English 
 Antiquary will discover, and perhaps be offended at the mixture of Saxon, 
 Norman, and the several dates of subsequent Buildings called Gothic : 
 but the man of taste will discover beauty in the combination of different 
 forms in one great pile, or he must turn with disgust from every Cathe- 
 dral and Abbey in the kingdom. In like manner the traveller and con- 
 noisseur in Grecian Antiquities will not only object to more than one of 
 the five orders in the same buildings, but will detect the intermixture 
 of even the minutest parts in detail ; while the man of taste will discover 
 beauty and grace in combination of forms, for which there is not autho- 
 rity in the early, and therefore most simple edifices of those countries. 
 It is by such combinations only that the Grecian Style can be made ap- 
 plicable to the purposes of modern habitation. 
 
 The best models of pure and simple Grecian Architecture were 
 Temples, many without a roof, and all without windows or chimneys. 
 Such models might be imitated in our Churches or Public Edifices ; but 
 Houses built from such models would become inconvenient in proportion 
 
20 
 
 as this external simplicity is preserved. For this reason Inigo Jones, 
 and our early Architects in the Grecian style, took their models from 
 buildings of later date (chiefly Roman), where the different floors are 
 marked by different orders placed one over another. 
 
 As the taste for Grecian Architecture became more correct, and by 
 the works of Stuart and others, the more simple original models be- 
 came better known in England : various attempts have been made to 
 adopt it in modern houses ; but a Palace, or even a moderate sized resi- 
 dence, cannot be entirely surrounded by a peristyle, like a Grecian 
 Temple; and therefore the portico alone has been generally adopted.' 
 
 ' The difficulty of adapting any order of Columns to the windows of a house is evident from the portico being 
 sometimes confined to the ground floor only, sometimes extended through two or even three floors, and some- 
 times raised on a basement of arches, unknown to the Grecian character. A more classic expedient has been 
 devised by the ingenious Author of the Antiquities of Grecia Magna, in his Designs for Harford and Downham 
 Colleges ; but such lofty portion of windows, though allowable in a public building, would be inapplicable to 
 the purposes of a private house. 
 
21 
 
 THE 
 
 MODERN STYLE. 
 
 The numerous difficulties in reconciling the internal convenience of a 
 house to the external application of Grecian Columns of any order, at 
 length banished Columns altogether, and introduced a new style, which 
 is strictly of no character. This consists of a plain building, with rows 
 of square windows at equal distances; and it to these be added a Gie- 
 cian Cornice, it is called a Grecian Building: if instead of the Cornice 
 certain Notches are cut in the top of the wall, it is called a Gothic 
 Building. Thus has the rage for simplicity, the dread of mixing dates, 
 and the difficulty of adding ornament to utility, alike corrupted and 
 exploded both the Grecian and the Gothic Style in our modern build- 
 ings. 
 
 Without a bigotted attachment to either, every one must confess, 
 that there are a thousand beauties and graces in each, which deserve 
 our admiration, although they cannot without violence be made subser- 
 vient to modern residence. 
 
 In this Enquiry no mention has yet been made of the difference of 
 climate, and the influence it may be supposed to have on the different 
 styles, because grace and beauty of form in ornament and decorations 
 may be considered without always annexing ideas of utility; if they can 
 be blended, it is the perfection of art in every province; and in the 
 choice and adaptation of new forms to new uses, consists the genius of 
 the Artist. 
 
 But there is another consideration of greater importance, which re- 
 lates to the material of which the building is constructed. 
 
 The eye will not be pleased with that, to which the mind cannot 
 be reconciled: we must be satisfied that the construction is safe, and 
 
22 
 
 that the material is equal to its office. The resistance of iron is greater 
 than that of stone ; but if iron Columns be made to represent stone, they 
 will appear too light and weak. On the contrary, if stone Columns be 
 made to resemble metal, they will appear too heavy and massive : and 
 if either of those materials be made to imitate wood, not only the re- 
 lative strength of each must be considered, but also the Principles 
 of Construction, which are totally different in the Grecian and Gothic 
 Styles. 
 
 ' This remark is every day confirmed by the too slender groins of Gothic Arches, to imitate stone, in plaster 
 or cast iron, and the too slender Columns of Grecian Architecture in wood painted to imitate stone and marble. 
 
OF 
 
 GRECIAN CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 According to the law of gravitation, all matter at rest keeps its place 
 by its own weight, and is only to be removed by superior force acting 
 in a different direction. A perpendicular rock, or a solid upright wall, 
 will preserve the same position so long as their substance endures: On 
 this principle of perpendicular pressure, all Grecian Architecture is 
 founded. Hence have arisen the relative proportions and intercolumni- 
 ations in the different orders, from the heaviest Doric, to the most 
 graceful Corinthian, the distances being regulated by the strength of 
 the parts supporting and supported. 
 
 Although it is probable that the first buildings were of wood, and 
 that rude trees suggested the proportions of the Doric Order, yet the 
 origin of Grecian Architecture was doubtless derived from one stone 
 laid flat upon another, and the aperture or void between two upright 
 stones, was covered by a third placed across them ; thus the width of 
 the opening was limited by the length of the cross stone; consequently 
 
24 
 
 this mode of structure required large blocks of stone, when that mate- 
 rial was used. 
 
 The difficulty of procuring such large blocks as were required for 
 this mode of construction, suggested the idea of producing wide aper- 
 tures by a different expedient ; and this introduced the Arch. 
 
25 
 
 OP 
 
 GOTHIC CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 In every Arch, whether a segment of a circle, an ellipsis, or in the 
 pointed Arches called Gothic, there is a great lateral pressure. This 
 constitutes the leading principle of construction in Gothic Architecture, 
 which depends on its abuttals. An Arch may sometimes abut against a 
 rock, as in bridges; or against a pier of masonry, as in castles, &c. but 
 in light Gothic structures, the abuttals consist of buttresses to counter- 
 act the lateral pressure; and where such buttresses are not sufficiently 
 heavy, additional weight is used; under the various forms of pinnacles, 
 or finials, which have often been mistaken for mere ornaments, of no use 
 in the construction; and these are sometimes placed at a distance when 
 they are connected by what are called flying buttresses, like those at 
 Henry the Seventh’s Chapel. 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
27 
 
 INDIAN CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 Under the name of Indian Architecture may be included Hindus- 
 tan, Gentoo, Chinese, or Turkish; which latter is a mixture of the 
 other three. But this construction is distinct from the Gothic, in hav- 
 ing little or no lateral pressure; and from the Grecian, in having a dif- 
 ferent mode of applying the perpendicular pressure ; for although at 
 the first sight we might be led to suppose the Arches constructed on 
 a centre, like those of Europe ; yet on a closer examination they will 
 be found to consist of horizontal strata, supported by the process of 
 what is technically called ‘ corbelling out, or placing the materials 
 in such a position, that the aperture may be larger at the bottom than 
 the top, by each stratum of stone overhanging the other. From the 
 specimens discovered in the Indian excavations, there is no doubt but 
 the original idea was taken from those subterraneous caves or grottos. 
 
 The people who formed these awful wonders of antiquity, instead 
 of erecting buildings on the surface of the ground, began their opera- 
 tions by cutting away the foundation of a rock to obtain room below, 
 without endangering the superstructure ; and thus by degrees the Indian 
 Architecture seems to have grown from the rudest excavations of Tro- 
 glodite savages, to the most beautiful forms discovered in the Temples 
 of Salsetta, of Elora, and Elephantis. 
 
28 
 
 When these natural subterraneous vaults were imitated above ground 
 in buildings of later date, the same construction prevailed ; and there- 
 fore both in the Arches and Domes of the Indian style, we observe the 
 same principle of perpendicular pressure. 
 
■ 
 
 ■H 
 
 29 
 
 APPLICATION 
 
 OF 
 
 INDIAN ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 Having already shewn the difficulty of adapting either the Grecian or 
 Gothic styles to the character of an English Palace, this newly disco- 
 vered style of Architecture seems to present a new expedient for the 
 purpose, in the forms made known to this country by the accurate 
 Designs of Mr. Thomas Daniell, and other Artists, which have opened 
 new sources of grace and beauty. 
 
 To the materials of wood and stone, we have lately added that of 
 cast iron, unknown in former times, either in Grecian or Gothic Archi- 
 tecture, and which is peculiarly adapted to some light parts of the 
 Indian style. 
 
 In Grecian Architecture, the Artist is confined to five (or rather 
 only to three) different orders of Columns, so restricted in their relative 
 proportions, that they are seldom used externally with good effect in 
 modern houses, and are generally found too bulky for internal use. 
 Indian Architecture presents an endless variety of forms and propor- 
 tions of Pillars, from the ponderous supports of the cavern, to the 
 light airy shafts which enrich their corridors, or support their varan- 
 dahes. This alone would justify the attempt to adapt a style untried, 
 for the purpose to which other styles have been found inapplicable or 
 inadequate. 
 
 I 
 
i 
 
 30 
 
 It is difficult for an Artist at once to divest himself of forms he has 
 long studied : this will account for the confusion of Grecian and Gothic 
 in the Works of John of Padua, Inigo Jones, and others, about the 
 same date, which occasioned that mixture of style, condemned in after 
 times for the reasons already assigned. The same thing may be ob- 
 served in the first introduction of Gothic mixed with the Saxon and 
 Norman which preceded it: and the same will doubtless happen in many 
 instances during the introductory application of Indian Architecture to 
 English uses, while a false taste will both admire and condemn, without 
 any true standard, the various forms of novelty. 
 
 If I might humbly venture to suggest an opinion on the subject, I 
 .should recommend the use only of such Indian forms or proportions, as 
 bear the least resemblance to those either of the Grecian or Gothic style, 
 with which they are liable to be compared. If the Pillars resemble Gre- 
 cian Columns, or if the apertures resemble Gothic Arches, they will 
 offend, by seeming to be incorrect specimens of well known forms, and 
 create a mixed style, as disgusting to the classic observer, as the mix- 
 ture in Queen Elisabeth’s Gothic. But if, from the best models of 
 Indian Structures, such parts only be selected as cannot be compared 
 with any known style of English Buildings, even those whom novelty 
 cannot delight, will have little cause to regret the introduction of new 
 beauties. 
 
 On these grounds, therefore, I do not hesitate to answer the question 
 concerning which I am commanded to deliver my opinion, that the 
 Indian Character having been already introduced (in part) by the large 
 Edifice at the Pavilion, the House, and every other Building, should 
 partake of the same character, unmixed either with Grecian or Gothic; 
 and without strictly copying either the Mosques, or the Mausoleums, or 
 the Serais, or the Hill Forts, or the Excavations of the East, the most 
 
7 
 
 
 31 
 
 varied and graceful forms should be selected, with such combinations or 
 even occasional deviations and improvement, as the general character 
 and principles of construction will admit, for which purpose the follow- 
 ing Specimens are submitted for Consideration as general Hints, rather 
 than as finished Designs. 
 

 ■WEST- FRONT ©f tlie PAYIJLJLON 
 
33 
 
 INTERIOR. 
 
 In ancient Gothic Mansions, whether Castles or Abbeys, converted to 
 domestic purposes, or of the mixed style of Queen Elisabeth : the Rooms, 
 though long and large, consisted of such irregular shapes, or were so 
 broken by the deep recesses of windows, or enriched by the projection 
 of timber groins in the ceilings, that the eye was amused and entangled 
 by a degree of intricacy unknown in modern rooms. The rage for what 
 is called simplicity, and the common error of substituting greatness of 
 dimensions for greatness of character, have introduced plain walls with- 
 out the smallest break or projection, and plain ceilings without the 
 smallest enrichments of painting or sculpture ; while large windows, and 
 large piers, and doors too large for common use, have been made the 
 criterion of grandeur. On the contrary, these only tend to lessen the 
 apparent dimensions of space, because (as in the case of a large naked 
 plain) the eye is immediately led to the boundary, which is the only 
 object that arrests attention. To remedy this defect in modern rooms, 
 it has of late become the fashion to cover the ceilings with lustres, and 
 to crowd the floor with tables and sophas, and musical instruments, 
 which in some degree create separate compartments and recesses, although 
 the comfort and enjoyment of them can never be compared with the 
 deep bays, and retired cavities, observed in the galleries of some ancient 
 Palaces. The plainness, or simplicity (as it is called) in modern Houses, 
 has been extended to every room alike, and often causes in Dining Rooms 
 an excess of echo and noise which is intolerable. 
 
 In Italian Houses of the last century, an Enfilade was deemed 
 essential to the state of a suite of rooms; but it was always made through 
 
 K 
 
34 
 
 small doors, and seldom in the centre of the rooms. The modern fashion 
 of laying two or three rooms into one, by very large folding doors, is 
 magnificent and convenient, where the rooms can be used together : but 
 as great effect of Enfilade (north and south) is preserved in the Chinese 
 suite of rooms at the Pavilion, and may be also created in the attached 
 Corridors; and as magnificence of extent may be produced by intri- 
 cacy and variety, as well as by continuity, perhaps the Enfilade from 
 east to west may not be so desirable, the distance being comparatively 
 shorter. 
 
DINING ROOM. 
 
 In a Dining Room, as the number of guests may be different at different 
 times, some provision should be made for either enlarging it by Recesses 
 at the end, or on the side; and these Recesses might occasionally be 
 detached from the large room, for a small or select party. 
 
 In this sketch some Ornaments are introduced to enrich the Ceiling, 
 which from their novelty may appear too fanciful; but the difficulty of 
 reconciling the mind to new forms will operate at first against every 
 attempt to introduce them. These Ornaments of the Ceiling may be 
 subservient to the framing of the roof, and may also supply expedients 
 for ventilating the upper part of the room, which is apt, in Dining 
 Rooms especially, to retain the rarefied air and vapour that cannot 
 descend to the common apertures of doors, windows, or fire-places. 
 
37 
 
 OF 
 
 ORNAMENT S, &c. 
 
 The English language does not admit of a distinction between those 
 Ornaments which comprehend utility, and those which are merely orna- 
 mental, or rather Enrichments; thus Columns may be called Architectural 
 Ornaments, but the sculptured Foliage of the Capitals are Decorations 
 and Enrichments. In the progress of Sculpture we may trace it as an 
 imitative art ; from its origin in the rude mis-shapen blocks of granite in 
 Egypt, to its perfection in the Works of Greece, which are selected or 
 combined forms of beauty, ideal forms, surpassing those of nature. 
 We may afterwards trace its decline in the laboured exactness of imita- 
 tion, as in Chinese figures, where individual nature is so closely copied, 
 that even colour and motion are added to complete the resemblance. 
 
 Much has been said of late concerning the Study of Nature in all 
 Works of Art ; but if the most exact imitations of Nature were the cri- 
 terion of perfection, the man who paints a Panorama, or even a scene at 
 the theatres, would rank higher than Claude or Poussin. In that early 
 stage of Painting in England, when the Exhibitions were first opened, 
 they were crowded with portraits in coloured wax, artificial flowers and 
 fruits, and boards painted to deceive and surprise, by the exactness of 
 their resemblance; but they never excited admiration like the Marble 
 of Wilton, the Wood carved by Gibbon, or the animated Canvass of 
 Reynolds. Mr. Burke observes, that ‘ it is the duty of a true Artist to 
 put a generous deception on the spectators ;’ but in too close an imita- 
 tion of nature, he commits an absolute fraud, and becomes ridiculous, by 
 the attempt to perform impossibilities. If it is the mark of a low ima- 
 gination to aim at the Vastness of Nature, an endeavour to copy the 
 
 L 
 
38 
 
 Minutije of Nature is not less a proof of inexperience and bad taste, 
 since both are equally inimitable. 
 
 ■ Si la Nature est grande dans les grandes choses 
 f Elle est tres grande dans les petites.’ 
 
 The model furnishes hints, not portraits; yet such is the love of exact 
 imitation in common minds, that copies are made from copies without 
 end. 
 
 For this reason, houses are built to resemble Castles, and Abbeys, 
 and Grecian or Roman Temples, forgetting their uses, and overlooking 
 the general forms of each, while their minutest detail of enrichment is 
 copied and misapplied. In works of art we can only use the forms of 
 nature, not the exactness. Thus in Furniture, if we introduce the 
 head, or the foot of an animal, it may be graceful; but if we cover it 
 with hair or feathers, it becomes ridiculous. And in the parts taken 
 from the vegetable kingdom, to enrich the ornaments of Architecture, 
 imitation goes no farther than the general forms, since we scarcely know 
 the individual plant; although some writers have mentioned the Reed, 
 the Acanthus, and the Lotus. 
 
 It is a curious circumstance, that the general forms of Enrichments 
 may be thus classed: The GOTHIC are derived from the Bud or Germ, 
 the GRECIAN from the Leaf, and the INDIAN from the Flower; a 
 singular coincidence, which seems to mark, that these three styles are, 
 and ought to be, kept perfectly distinct. 
 

 
This sketch represents the perspective of the West Corridor, as supposed 
 to be seen from the Pavilion; and although in reality this conservatory 
 can only be about fifty feet long, the Enfilade is increased to an inde- 
 finite length, by a Mirror so placed as to reflect the whole of the North 
 Corridor, which goes off at a right angle. This deceptive ornament will 
 not only have a similar effect from the North Corridor, but in the sum- 
 mer, when the glasses are removed, the Garden itself will be repeated, 
 and doubled in extent. 
 
 N. B. In tlie sketch, a Gardener is represented at the angle, to shew the only spot where any moving object 
 can be reflected. In this respect it differs materially from the Mirrors commonly placed at the end of Enfilades, 
 where the spectator always sees his own image reflected. 
 
 COR RID OB. 
 
. 
 
A Ml v l, MM. 
 
The East .Front of the Pavilion is at present so much overlooked by the 
 opposite houses, that it seems advisable to inclose this small Garden by 
 a thick screen of Plantation, in which openings may afterwards be made, 
 if necessary: but the only object really worth preserving is the view to 
 the sea: the annexed Sketch represents that view, as supposed to be 
 taken from the future private apartments, the floor of which I should 
 propose to be elevated (four or live feet), to command a better view of 
 the sea towards the south, and of the Parade towards the north- and 
 also to prevent its being overlooked. With this intention, I propose the 
 Wall and the Ground to be raised (above the eye) from the Steyne, which 
 may hereafter furnish a Terrace Walk under a double row of trees. This 
 Skreen will preclude the necessity of making much alteration in the east 
 front, which may therefore retain the Chinese character externally, 
 in conformity with the interior fitting-up of this suite of Royal Apart- 
 ments. 
 

¥RO>’T OIK THK P&WILLOJV TOWAPJDS TP B GAMtlDK! l 9 
 

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