Thomas Alfred Cobden (1794 – 1842) was an English architect, best known for designing many buildings in south-east

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, such as

Cathedral of the Assumption, Carlow The Cathedral of the Assumption is both the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Kildare and Leighlin and the parish church for the cathedral parish. Located in Carlow town, the cathedral was dedicated to the Assumption of the Blesse ...

Duckett's Grove Duckett's Grove ''( Irish: Garrán Duckett)'' is a ruined 19th-century great house and former estate in County Carlow, Ireland. Belonging to the Duckett family, the house was formerly the focal point of a estate, and dominated the local lan ...

and Browne-Clayton Monument.

Life

Cobden was born in

Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...

on 13 April 1794, the son of a builder Thomas Cobden and Mary Camp. Cobden had many siblings, as Thomas Cobden was a widower when he married Camp. Thomas Cobden the elder built Chichester Market House in 1807 with William Brooks, under the direction of John Nash. Nothing is known of Cobden's education, but it would appear he began in his father's trade as early as 1813. Cobden married Ann Fleming at

Westminster St James Westminster St James (or St James Piccadilly) was a civil parish in the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish followed the building of the Church of St James, Piccadilly, in 1684. After several failed attempts, the ...

14 September 1821, with whom he had at least five children. Due to his work in the area, Cobden lived in Carlow for some time, building a house on College Street. He lived in London from 1832, and was living in 14 Upper Clapton Terrace, Hackney when he died 27 November 1842. His cause of death was recorded as "

consumption Consumption may refer to: * Eating *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically known as consumption * Consumer (food chain), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of n ...

". Cobden is buried in Abney Park Cemetery, Stoke Newington, Middlesex.

Works

It has been suggested that it was through his father's connections to Nash that Cobden began to get commissions in Ireland from the early 1810s. Cobden's work began with designs for Gurteen le Poer,

County Waterford County Waterford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is named after the city of Waterford. ...

, for John William Power, and Wells House,

County Wexford County Wexford () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was ba ...

, for Robert Doyne. From 1835 to 1842, Cobden exhibited designs at

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the natural sciences, arts, literature, and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned society and one of its le ...

and the

Royal Hibernian Academy The Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts (RHA) is an artist-based and artist-oriented institution in Ireland, founded in Dublin in 1823. Like many other Irish institutions, such as the Royal Irish Academy, the academy retained the word "Royal" after mo ...

. For the majority of his career, Cobden's work was in

County Carlow County Carlow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county located in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region of Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Carlow is the List of Irish counties by area, second smallest and t ...

and Wexford, with many of his clients being members of the landed gentry. Some of the resultant buildings were Braganza built for Sir Dudley Hill,

, Russellstown Park, and the Tudor-revival Ballykealy House. In 1829, Cobden succeeded Joseph Lynch in overseeing the construction of the Cathedral of the Assumption in Carlow town. Cobden took much of his inspiration from Europe, in particular the Beffroi Tower in

Bruges Bruges ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders, in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is in the northwest of the country, and is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amoun ...

. This was just one of many churches Cobden was involved in designing, others include a Catholic church at

Killeshin Killeshin () is a village in County Laois, Ireland on the R430 regional road. Killeshin is a small rural community situated five kilometres west of Carlow town and overlooks the picturesque Barrow Valley. The church at the foot of Slievemargy ...

, and the Presbyterian church 'Scots' church' in Carlow town.

References

External links

List of Cobden's known worksConservation of the Browne Clayton Monument
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobden, Thomas 1794 births 1842 deaths Architects from Sussex Irish ecclesiastical architects People from Chichester Burials at Abney Park Cemetery