The year 1840 in architecture involved some significant architectural events and new buildings.

Events

27 April Events Pre-1600 * 247 – Philip the Arab marks the millennium of Rome with a celebration of the ''ludi saeculares''. * 395 – Emperor Arcadius marries Aelia Eudoxia, daughter of the Frankish general Flavius Bauto. She becomes one of ...

– The

foundation stone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over t ...

of the new

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

is laid as its reconstruction to a design by

Charles Barry Sir Charles Barry (23 May 1795 – 12 May 1860) was a British architect, best known for his role in the rebuilding of the Palace of Westminster (also known as the Houses of Parliament) in London during the mid-19th century, but also responsi ...

following a fire in 1834 begins (completed in 1860). *

30 September Events Pre-1600 * 489 – The Ostrogoths under Theoderic the Great defeat the forces of Odoacer for the second time. *737 – The Turgesh drive back an Umayyad invasion of Khuttal, follow them south of the Oxus, and capture their b ...

– Foundation of

Nelson's Column Nelson's Column is a monument in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, Central London, built to commemorate Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson's decisive victory at the Battle of Trafalgar over the combined French and Spanish navies, during whi ...

, designed by

William Railton William Railton (1800–77) was an English architect, best known as the designer of Nelson's Column. He was based in London, with offices at 12 Regent Street for much of his career. Life He was born in Clapham (then in Surrey) on 14 May 1800, ...

, laid in London,

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commem ...

being laid out and paved around it during the year.

Buildings and structures

Buildings opened

Bristol Temple Meads railway station train-shed engraving

11 May Events 1601–1900 *1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons. *1813 – William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth discover a route across t ...

–

Wingfield railway station Wingfield railway station served a rural area of Derbyshire, England between 1840 and 1967. History It was built in 1836-40 by the North Midland Railway (NMR) on its line between Derby and Leeds, close to the road between South Wingfield and ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, designed by

Francis Thompson Francis Joseph Thompson (16 December 1859 – 13 November 1907) was an English poet and Catholic mystic. At the behest of his father, a doctor, he entered medical school at the age of 18, but at 26 left home to pursue his talent as a writer ...

, is opened. *

31 August Events Pre-1600 *1056 – After a sudden illness a few days previously, Byzantine Empress Theodora Porphyrogenita (11th century), Theodora dies childless, thus ending the Macedonian dynasty. *1057 – Abdication of Byzantine Emperor Mi ...

–

Bristol Temple Meads railway station Bristol Temple Meads is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is located away from London Paddington. It is an important transport hub for public transport in the city; there are bus services to many parts of the city ...

in England, designed by

Isambard Kingdom Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "one ...

, is opened. *

July Column The July Column (french: Colonne de Juillet) is a monumental column in Paris commemorating the Revolution of 1830. It stands in the center of the Place de la Bastille and celebrates the — the 'three glorious' days of 27–29 July 1830 th ...

Place de la Bastille The Place de la Bastille is a square in Paris where the Bastille prison once stood, until the storming of the Bastille and its subsequent physical destruction between 14 July 1789 and 14 July 1790 during the French Revolution. No vestige of the ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

, designed by

Jean-Antoine Alavoine Jean-Antoine Alavoine (4 January 1778 – 15 November 1834) was a French architect best known for his column in the Place de la Bastille, Paris (1831–1840), the July Column to memorialize those fallen in the Revolution of 1830. The column, cons ...

and

Joseph-Louis Duc Joseph-Louis Duc () (25 October 1802 – 22 January 1879) was a French architect. Duc came to prominence early, with his very well received work at the July Column in Paris, and spent much of the rest of his career on a single building complex, ...

, erected, incorporating

Auguste Dumont Augustin-Alexandre Dumont, known as Auguste Dumont (4 August 1801, in Paris – 28 January 1884, in Paris) was a French sculptor. Biography He was one of a long line of famous sculptors, the great-grandson of Pierre Dumont, son of Jacques-Edme ...

's ''Génie de la Liberté'' and

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s by

Antoine-Louis Barye Antoine-Louis Barye (24 September 179525 June 1875) was a Romantic French sculptor most famous for his work as an ''animalier'', a sculptor of animals. His son and student was the known sculptor Alfred Barye. Biography Born in Paris, France, Bary ...

and others. *

Khaplu Palace Khaplu Palace ( ur, ; bft, ), locally known as Yabgo Khar, is an old fort and palace located in Khaplu, a city in Gilgit−Baltistan, Pakistan. The palace, considered an architectural heritage site and a significant tourist attraction, w ...

built. *

Old Patent Office Building Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England * Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, M ...

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

completed by Robert Mills. * Forglen House,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

, designed by

John Smith John Smith is a common personal name. It is also commonly used as a placeholder name and pseudonym, and is sometimes used in the United States and the United Kingdom as a term for an average person. It may refer to: People :''In chronological ...

, is completed at about this date.

Awards

Grand Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

, architecture:

Théodore Ballu Théodore Ballu (8 June 1817 – 22 May 1885) was a French architect who designed numerous public buildings in Paris . He is the grandfather of the industrialist and politician Guillaume Ballu. Winning the Prix de Rome In 1840, Théodore Ballu ...

Births

January 11 Events Pre-1600 * 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence. * 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muham ...

– Robert Chisholm, English-born architect working in British India; proponent of the Indo-Saracenic style (died

1915 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January *January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction". *January 1 ...

) * J. M. Brydon, Scottish-born architect working in London (died

1901 Events January * January 1 – The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton becomes the first Prime Min ...

)

Deaths

February 18 Events Pre-1600 * 1229 – The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, signs a ten-year truce with al-Kamil, regaining Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Bethlehem with neither military engagements nor support from the papacy. *1268 &nd ...

– Sir

Jeffry Wyatville Sir Jeffry Wyatville (3 August 1766 – 18 February 1840) was an English architect and garden designer. Born Jeffry Wyatt into an established dynasty of architects, in 1824 he was allowed by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV to ...

, English architect and garden designer (born

1766 Events January–March * January 1 – Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie") becomes the new Stuart claimant to the throne of Great Britain, as King Charles III, and figurehead for Jacobitism. * January 14 – Chr ...

) *

May 4 Events Pre-1600 *1256 – The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull ''Licet ecclesiae catholicae''. *1415 – Religious reformers John Wycliffe and Jan Hus are ...

–

Carl Ludvig Engel Carl Ludvig Engel, or Johann Carl Ludwig Engel (3 July 1778 – 14 May 1840), was a German architect whose most noted work can be found in Helsinki, which he helped rebuild. His works include most of the buildings around the capital's monumental ...

, German Empire style architect (born

1778 Events January–March * January 18 – Third voyage of James Cook: Captain James Cook, with ships HMS ''Resolution'' and HMS ''Discovery'', first views Oahu then Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands of the Pacific Ocean, which he ...

)

References

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Architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

Years in architecture 19th-century architecture