Talks, Outings & Events
|
|
St Stephens Cloisters the topic of this year's AGM talk
Society members are invited to attend this year's AGM, Saturday December 15th at the Art Workers’ Guild, Queen Square, London WC1N 3AT. The speaker at this year’s AGM will be Dr Elizabeth Hallam Smith FSA, former director of Information Services and Librarian at the House of Lords, who will talk on The ‘Gothic Slum’? The chequered history of St Stephen’s cloisters, Palace of Westminster, 1510-2017
A lavish building - perhaps part-funded by King Henry VIII - St Stephen’s cloisters at Westminster are a strong stylistic match with the nearby Henry VII chapel at Westminster Abbey. Yet they met their original religious and ceremonial purposes for little more than 20 years, and this illustrated talk will trace the subsequent fate of this little-known survival of the old Palace of Westminster.
The proximity of this fragile fragment to the House of Commons and to central government has always shaped its destiny. Since 1548 when St Stephen's College was dissolved and its chapel allocated to the Commons, its cloisters have suffered from neglect, flooding and subsidence, and from two major episodes of fire and bomb damage. They have over the centuries also been used in many unsuitable ways - from a store for fuel to a party venue, from a kitchen to cloakrooms and offices for MPs. Yet they have also been a source of great inspiration to antiquaries and to their notable restorers, from James Wyatt to Giles Gilbert Scott - via Charles Barry and Pugin himself. Despite all the vicissitudes and indignities to which they have been subjected, much of the original design of the cloisters and even some original fabric survives; and their upcoming restoration should allow the Houses of Parliament to draw on past experience to shape their future.
Dr Hallam Smith is now a Leverhulme Trust Emeritus Research Fellow, based at the Houses of Parliament and the University of York. She is researching the history of St Stephen's cloisters and St Mary Undercroft, 1348-2020, and has published widely on a variety of topics including the Chapter House at Westminster and the history of Domesday Book.
This year’s AGM will include a presentation to Father Marcus Holden, until recently rector at St Augustine’s, Ramsgate, where he led an eight year £2million restoration of the church Pugin once described as “my own child”.
The AGM will start at 12.00, followed by the talk and a buffet lunch with wine. Tickets for the lunch, which must be bought in advance, are £32.
Send cheque, made payable to the Pugin Society, to Professor Julia Twigg, 9 Nunnery Road, Canterbury, Kent CT1 3LS, with either SAE or email for ticket.
Society members are invited to attend this year's AGM, Saturday December 15th at the Art Workers’ Guild, Queen Square, London WC1N 3AT. The speaker at this year’s AGM will be Dr Elizabeth Hallam Smith FSA, former director of Information Services and Librarian at the House of Lords, who will talk on The ‘Gothic Slum’? The chequered history of St Stephen’s cloisters, Palace of Westminster, 1510-2017
A lavish building - perhaps part-funded by King Henry VIII - St Stephen’s cloisters at Westminster are a strong stylistic match with the nearby Henry VII chapel at Westminster Abbey. Yet they met their original religious and ceremonial purposes for little more than 20 years, and this illustrated talk will trace the subsequent fate of this little-known survival of the old Palace of Westminster.
The proximity of this fragile fragment to the House of Commons and to central government has always shaped its destiny. Since 1548 when St Stephen's College was dissolved and its chapel allocated to the Commons, its cloisters have suffered from neglect, flooding and subsidence, and from two major episodes of fire and bomb damage. They have over the centuries also been used in many unsuitable ways - from a store for fuel to a party venue, from a kitchen to cloakrooms and offices for MPs. Yet they have also been a source of great inspiration to antiquaries and to their notable restorers, from James Wyatt to Giles Gilbert Scott - via Charles Barry and Pugin himself. Despite all the vicissitudes and indignities to which they have been subjected, much of the original design of the cloisters and even some original fabric survives; and their upcoming restoration should allow the Houses of Parliament to draw on past experience to shape their future.
Dr Hallam Smith is now a Leverhulme Trust Emeritus Research Fellow, based at the Houses of Parliament and the University of York. She is researching the history of St Stephen's cloisters and St Mary Undercroft, 1348-2020, and has published widely on a variety of topics including the Chapter House at Westminster and the history of Domesday Book.
This year’s AGM will include a presentation to Father Marcus Holden, until recently rector at St Augustine’s, Ramsgate, where he led an eight year £2million restoration of the church Pugin once described as “my own child”.
The AGM will start at 12.00, followed by the talk and a buffet lunch with wine. Tickets for the lunch, which must be bought in advance, are £32.
Send cheque, made payable to the Pugin Society, to Professor Julia Twigg, 9 Nunnery Road, Canterbury, Kent CT1 3LS, with either SAE or email for ticket.
|
Tuesday 31 July – Friday 3 August
This year's study tour to Liverpool and the Wirral is now complete. View photos and details HERE, and watch this space for details about additional upcoming events. |
|
Booking: please send cheques payable to The Pugin Society, and enclosing a SAE or email address for confirmation, to Professor Julia Twigg, 9 Nunnery Road, Canterbury, CT1 3LS |
Cancellation policy: we regret that refunds cannot be made less than 14 days before an event. There is a handling charge of £5. In the case of overnight events where accommodation may have been booked, there may need to be an additional charge to cover losses to the Society. |
