Edward I'Anson
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Edward I'Anson (25 July 1812 – 30 January 1888) was an English architect who was president of both 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 ...
and the Surveyors' Institution. He was a leading designer of commercial buildings in the City of London.


Life

Born in St. Laurence Pountney Hill in the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
, he was the eldest son of the
surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...
and architect Edward P. I'Anson (1775–1853). He was educated at the Merchant Taylors' School and at the College of Henri IV in France, and articled to his father at an early age. Subsequently, he entered the office of John Wallen, principal
quantity surveyor In the construction industry, a quantity surveyor (QS) is a professional with expert knowledge of construction costs and contracting. Qualified professional quantity surveyors can be known as Chartered Surveyors (Members and Fellows of RICS) i ...
at that time in the City. At the close of his indentures I'Anson travelled for two years, extending his tour as far as
Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...
. On his return in 1837 he entered into practice, both as assistant to his father and as an independent architect. In 1823, the I'Anson family bought 9, St Laurence Pountney Lane, the house neighbouring their own. The firm of Edward I'Anson and Sons operated from there from 1850. I'Anson made various changes to the property, including a new roof, and some Venetian-inspired windows. He also acquired the adjoining disused churchyard for use as a garden. In 1861, I'Anson and his wife, Catherine Blakeway, purchased land at
Grayshott Grayshott is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is on the Hampshire / Surrey border northwest of Haslemere by road, and southwest of central London. The nearest rail link is Haslemere railway st ...
in Surrey, a village then part of Headley. The family provided a site for the National School established there in 1871, and maintained a close connection to the area. I'Anson's son Edward Blakeway made funds available for the construction of the church, and many of his family are buried and memorialised in its churchyard.


Works

His first important building in the City was the Royal Exchange Buildings, designed for Sir Francis Graham Moon in 1837. There he made use of concrete for the internal works, an early example of this modern construction method that had previously only been used in experimental or minor projects. This brought him into repute, and obtained for him the chief practice as architect in the City. I'Anson developed a career as a pioneering designer of purpose-built commercial buildings in the City. Those executed by him in the Italian style, such as the buildings of the
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at 146 Queen Victoria Street (1866–8) were the most successful. His designs in the
Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...
style included the school of the
Merchant Taylors' Company The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 111 livery companies of the City of London. The Company, originally known as the ''Guild and Fraternity of St John the Baptist in the City of London'', was founded prior to 1300, first in ...
at the Charterhouse. I'Anson was surveyor to the Merchant Taylors for many years, and also to
St. Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by Ra ...
, for which he designed a new museum and library. He was responsible for the remodelling of
Fetcham Park Fetcham Park House is a Queen Anne mansion designed by the English architect William Talman with internal murals by the renowned artist Louis Laguerre and grounds originally landscaped by George London. It is located in the parish of Fetcham ...
, Leatherhead, and the restorations of the Dutch Church in Austin Friars and of St. Mary Abchurch. I'Anson was 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 1840, and was chosen president in 1886. He contributed numerous papers to the ''Transactions'' of the institute. He was also a fellow of the
Geological Society The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe, with more than 12,000 Fellows. Fe ...
, and in 1886 became president of the Surveyors' Institution. He was a frequent traveller on the continent, and in 1867 visited Russia. In many of his numerous duties as surveyor, and in some of his architectural works, notably the new
Corn Exchange A corn exchange is a building where merchants trade grains. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal grains, such as wheat and barley; in the United States these buildings were called grain exchanges. Such trade was common in towns ...
in Mark Lane, he was assisted by his eldest son, Edward Blakeway I'Anson.


Death

I'Anson died unexpectedly on 30 January 1888, and was buried at All Saints church in
Headley, East Hampshire Headley is a village, civil parishes in England, civil parish and Anglican parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 1.8 miles (2.9 km) east of Bordon on the B3002 road. The nearest railway station is south of the ...
. A portrait of him will be found in the ''Builder'', xxix. 1006. Edward Blakeway I'Anson continued the practice at St Lawrence Pountney Hill.


References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Ianson, Edward 1812 births 1888 deaths People from the City of London 19th-century English architects People educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood Presidents of the Royal Institute of British Architects Architects from London People from Grayshott