Where to go on architecture trip in south England?

Posted by matildebrintoverilte@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 34 comments

Hi! I am arranging a roadtrip with my university (academy of architecture) and we have decided traveling to south England. We want to explore interesting architecture and eras such as ‘arts and crafts’, the Victorian era, Georgian era etc. in interesting and authentic cities. Do anyone have recommendations? Our trip is in autumn and we are around 15-20 people attending.
Thanks in advance,
Matilde

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Iscan49er@reddit

Brighton has a whole range of interesting architecture, not least the Royal Pavilion built for George lV in the early 1800s

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Fun_Formal2435@reddit

could tie it in with a trip to Lewes!

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crgoodw@reddit

I came here to suggest the Pavilion, it is wonderfully bonkers in the middle of all the Regency stuff.

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JLAshbourne@reddit

That’s the one that periodically appears on reform tweets about “mosques everywhere. Hilarious stuff.

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hoverside@reddit

Leicester is only about an hour from London on the train and has a bunch of Arts and Crafts-style houses in the Oadby suburb. Close to the center there's an interesting Georgian pedestrian road called New Walk, and lots of Victorian and Edwardian buildings surrounding that area (including a small but distinctive old synagogue). Then by the University campus you've got an Edward Lutyens war memorial and the famous Stirling designed Engineering building. De Montfort University also some interesting Post-modern architecture on its campus.

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Upbeat_Branch_4231@reddit

Also, Newcastle and Guildford. They both have some nice old architecture.

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Upbeat_Branch_4231@reddit

New Alresford (near Winchester) where I live has LOTS of Georgian architecture. The town is used by the BBC to shoot period dramas.

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hallouminati_pie@reddit

My favourite era is Georgian and Bath is an obvious suggestion (and a great city). I'd say better suggestion is actually in London which on the whole has the best collection of Georgian architecture anywhere in the world.

Check out Bloomsbury, the oldest bits of Kensington, Canonbury, Soho, Marylebone, Fitzrovia, Hampstead, Richmond, Kings Cross, Westminster (around Parliament), Temple, Holborn, Barnsbury, Islington, Camberwell, and Greenwich to name a few places with excellent stretches of Georgian architecture.

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hallouminati_pie@reddit

One of the best guides you will never read in England comes from Pevsner. Pick up a secondhand copy of one that covers the south of England and you will not be disappointed.

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Kooky_Writing_7780@reddit

Bath & Oxford would be a must

Leamington Spa/Warwick, Chichester, Canterbury, Salisbury, Exeter, Stratford, Cheltenham & Windsor are also lovely for architecture.

Londons obviously got loads of it as I'm sure you're aware. Kensington, Chelsea, Greenwich etc etc

A lot of places in the Cotswolds too (Cirencester, Stow on the Wold, Chipping Campden) but they're all small places.

Brighton & Bristol have some good Victorian and Georgian architecture but both are big, busy, hip, rough round the edges etc so I don't think they'd meet the mark.

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JLAshbourne@reddit

Salisbury Cathedral attracts international visitors with its 123m spire.

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SonOfGreebo@reddit

Tallest spire in Europe, comrade!

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Odd-Paramedic-3826@reddit

the tallest cathederal used to be lincoln but the spires fell off

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JLAshbourne@reddit

Central gave me a ~~briefing~~ brochure about it.

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parabolicuk@reddit

If you're headed towards Brighton for the Pavilion and the Dome, maybe a side trip to the De Le War pavilion in Bexhill, coming back along the coast via the Saltdean Lido for an Art Deco hit.

Also, check out the National Trust, there are a wide variety of properties in the area - I'm thinking Standen, near east grinstead, has strong links to Wm Morris, for example.

London has a bit of everything, and the Museum of London is good for an overview, but you may need to narrow the focus a bit to get the best out of your trip. Even just walking the streets and looking up at the different building styles tells a story.

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The-foureyes@reddit

I would recommend a guided tour (especially a tower tour) of a cathedral as they tend to give details of the construction of them which is fascinating - the one at Salisbury was really good.

-Brighton is great for Victorian and regency excess. Lewes and Rye in Sussex are great if you like medieval/tudor/timber framed buildings

-Bath is great for Georgian stuff. Wells has a great cathedral too and isn’t too far away

-Any smallish cathedral city (Salisbury, Winchester, Ely, Wells, etc) will have plenty of interesting architecture

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coffeewalnut08@reddit

Bath, Wells.

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Lammtarra95@reddit

Look up Pevsner in your academic library. It's a multi-volume guide to buildings and architecture in Britain.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pevsner_Architectural_Guides

Or just walk aimlessly round central London for a couple of days and keep your eyes open.

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Opening-Fortune4@reddit

William Morris’s house - Red House - is open to the public and has a lot of original furniture so if you’re looking for arts and crafts it’s the jackpot https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/london/red-house

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Sea-Still5427@reddit

London is a network of villages that were overtaken by the city, and anything that still has 'village' in its name will usually have a Georgian centre, encircled by Victorian and Edwardian and Arts and Crafts developments, with Victorian cemeteries. Dulwich, Hampstead and Highgate are all fine examples. I used to live in an arts and crafts cottage in Dulwich.

In Suffolk, where I live now, towns like Lavenham re largely medieval, with Georgian and later additions. Bury St Edmunds has a medieval grid, and many houses have a Georgian, Queen Anne or Victorian front slapped on a medieval interior. Some reuse stones from the abbey whose ruins you can visit.

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Sad-Grade6972@reddit

Strawberry Hill house in Twickenham is well worth a visit. It was built by writer and Whig politician, Horace Walpole, and is a pioneering example of gothic revival long before it was even a thing. It's absolutely stunning and the whole area around Kingston, Twickenham, Richmond etc, is pretty well afforded with interesting architecture of multiple styles and eras!

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BlondBitch91@reddit

Bath obviously, as it is a monument to Georgian grandeur.

Letchworth Garden City is full of Arts and Crafts buildings.

Canterbury for the ancient Cathedral (A former abbey)

Quite a few National Trust properties will be of interest.

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elaine4queen@reddit

Barbican and Golden Lane have some pretty good innovative features. It’s also walking distance to the Tate Modern which is a pretty exciting building with views from the cafe back over from where you’ve come from. You’ll see parts of the original Roman wall on the way.

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Relevant_Swimming511@reddit

Defo milton keys, that's a great city
/s

Bath is a great place for Roman architecture . London's West End has a bit of Victorian. Bradford-on-Avon is a great town, Georgian ish

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Brickie78@reddit

You joke, but while MK isn't particularly pretty to look at, I would imagine it might hold a lot of interest for architecture students, particularly if urban planning is also being studied.

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Relevant_Swimming511@reddit

Tbh yea I was thinking it would be good to see, epecially how its split apart but if one can shit on MK they must

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Blackmore_Vale@reddit

Rochester is amazing for its architecture. You have the cathedral and the tallest castle in England. You’ve got the ancient high street with a great mixture of period architecture.

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neilm1000@reddit

Might be worth looking at Pevsner's Buildings of England if your university has them: some are available online as well.

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morgennebelimgebirge@reddit

Was going to suggest this too. Pevsner's guides are excellent!

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StrangeWall9943@reddit

In terms of cities you have bath with the baths and other notable places, you have Salisbury with the cathedral.

Don’t know if stately homes would be relevant but off the top of my head longleaf open theirs up for tours and you have the zoo attached to it

Also consider looking into the national trust as they tend to take care of a lot of older and listed buildings

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