Charles Edward Bateman FRIBA (8 June 1863 – 5 August 1947) was an English

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

, known for his

Arts and Crafts The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

and Queen Anne-style houses and commercial buildings in the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

area and for his sensitive vernacular restoration and extension work in the

Cotswolds The Cotswolds ( ) is a region of central South West England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper River Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and the Vale of Evesham. The area is defined by the bedroc ...

Life and career

Bateman was born in Castle Bromwich, the son of architect John Jones Bateman and Mary Margaret Culbard (1825-1869), and educated at St Marylebone Grammar School and Grange School Eastbourne. In 1880 he was articled as a trainee in his father's practice before spending two years in the offices of London architects ''Verity and Hunt''. Verity and Hunt also had offices in

Evesham Evesham () is a market town and Civil parishes in England, parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, England, Worceste ...

, and it was while working here that he developed an interest in the traditional vernacular architecture of the South Midlands that was to be a lifelong preoccupation. On returning to Birmingham as a qualified architect in 1887, Bateman entered into partnership with his father as ''Bateman and Bateman''. As part of a well-established practice work was readily available, and he was able to move away from the gothic styles of his father towards a style that incorporated both the simplicity of the

Arts and Crafts movement The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and America. Initiat ...

and the late English Renaissance styles of Richard Norman Shaw. Bateman was an early pioneer of the

style in Birmingham and built a series of large suburban properties, with particular concentrations in King's Heath, Four Oaks and his native Castle Bromwich, along with more urban offices, factories and townhouses in Birmingham City Centre. His love of the

also led to a reputation for the sensitive design of country houses and series of projects conserving significant historic Cotswold structures such as the Lygon Arms in Broadway. Bateman became a pillar of Birmingham's architectural establishment. Elected a fellow of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

in 1898 he went on to serve three terms as President of the Birmingham Architectural Association (which had been founded by his father) and become a senior lecturer in architecture at the Birmingham School of Art. He was also a major figure in local

Freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

, becoming Provincial Grand Deacon of the Province of

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

. Bateman died in 1947 in retirement in Bourton-on-the-Hill.

Major built works

*4 and 6, Stanley Road, King's Heath, Birmingham 1894-95 *254, Vicarage Road and 2 Cartland Road, King's Heath, Birmingham 1895 (Illustrated in '' Das englische Haus'' by H Muthesius) *Millbrick and Burnham, Rectory Lane, Castle Bromwich ( built for himself and his father ) 1896 * The Homestead, 25 Woodbourne Road,

Edgbaston Edgbaston () is a suburb of Birmingham, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It lies immediately south-west of Birmingham city centre, and was historically in Warwickshire. The Ward (electoral subdivision), wards of Edgbaston and Nort ...

1897 (Listed Grade I) *Westley Richards Gun Factory, Grange Road, Selly Oak 1898 *Birmingham and District Bank, 78 and 79 Broad Street, Birmingham 1898 *George Jones and Sons Printworks, Cornwall Street, Birmingham 1899 (Demolished) *The Cannon Street Hotel, Birmingham 1899 *12 Mulroy Road, Birmingham ca. 1900 *Thomas Smith & Sons Factory, Adderley Road, Saltley 1901 *Carhampton House, 11, Luttrell Road, Birmingham 1901-02 *Redlands, 1 Hartopp Road, Four Oaks, 1903 *

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

, Queen Victoria Road, Wycombe 1903-04 (with Alfred Hale) *89 & 91 Cornwall street,

1904. Offices for J. Mountford (Listed Grade II*) *The Red Lion public house, Vicarage Road, King's Heath,

1905 (Listed Grade II) *Free Library, Church Road, Northfield 1905 *St James' Church, Mere Green Road, Birmingham 1906-08 East end. * Lygon Arms Hotel, Broadway 1910 extensions *The Rectory, Rectory Lane, Castle Bromwich 1911 *Vicarage, St James' Church, Edgbaston 1911-12 *Vicarage, St Peter's Church, Maney Hill Road, Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham 1911-12 *St Paul's Mission Church, Finnemore Road, Bordesley 1913 * Asthall Manor, Oxfordshire 1916 (extensions) * Lichfield War Memorial,

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, 1920, Listed Grade II* *Moreton-in-Marsh Cottage Hospital 1925 extensions *St Chad's Church, Walmley 1925-27 *National Provincial Bank, Bennetts Hill, Birmingham 1927 addition of two bays * St Agnes' Church, Moseley 1931-32 tower *Birmingham Law Society, 8 Temple Street, Birmingham 1933 *Cleeve House, Cleeve Prior, Worcestershire for William Heaton, 1933

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bateman, Charles Fellows of the Royal Institute of British Architects People from Castle Bromwich 1863 births 1947 deaths Architects from Birmingham, West Midlands People educated at St Marylebone Grammar School