John Nash (18 January 1752 – 13 May 1835) was an English architect of the
Georgian and
Regency era
The Regency era of British history is commonly understood as the years between and 1837, although the official regency for which it is named only spanned the years 1811 to 1820. King George III first suffered debilitating illness in the lat ...
s. He was responsible for the design, in the
neoclassical and
picturesque styles, of many important areas of London. His designs were financed by
the Prince Regent and by the era's most successful property developer,
James Burton. Nash also collaborated extensively with Burton's son,
Decimus Burton.
Nash's best-known solo designs are the
Royal Pavilion,
Brighton
Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
;
Marble Arch; and
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...
. His best-known collaboration with James Burton is
Regent Street and his best-known collaborations with Decimus Burton are
Regent's Park and its terraces and
Carlton House Terrace. The majority of his buildings, including those that the Burtons did not contribute to, were built by James Burton's company.
Background and early career
Nash was born in 1752, probably in
Lambeth, south London. His father was a
millwright also called John (1714–1772). From 1766 or 1767, Nash trained with the architect Sir
Robert Taylor. The apprenticeship was completed in 1775 or 1776.

On 28 April 1775, at the now-demolished church of St Mary
Newington, Nash married his first wife Jane Elizabeth Kerr, daughter of a surgeon. Initially, he seems to have pursued a career as a
surveyor, builder and carpenter. This gave him an income of around £300 a year (~£49,850 in 2020 money). The couple set up home at Royal Row, Lambeth.
He established his own architectural practice in 1777 as well as being in partnership with a timber merchant, Richard Heaviside. The couple had two children, both were baptised at
St Mary-at-Lambeth, John on 9 June 1776 and Hugh on 28 April 1778.
In June 1778, Nash, "by the ill conduct of his wife found it necessary to send her into Wales in order to work a reformation on her." The cause of this appears to have been the claim that Jane Nash, "had imposed two spurious children on him as his and her own, notwithstanding she had then never had any child", and she had contracted several debts unknown to her husband, including one for milliners' bills of £300. The claim that Jane had faked her pregnancies and then passed babies she had acquired off as her own was brought before the
Consistory court of the
Bishop of London. His wife was sent to
Aberavon to lodge with Nash's cousin, Ann Morgan, but she developed a relationship with a local man, Charles Charles. In an attempt at reconciliation, Jane returned to London in June 1779, but she continued to act extravagantly so he sent her to another cousin, Thomas Edwards of
Neath
Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...
. She gave birth just after Christmas and acknowledged Charles Charles as the father. In 1781, Nash instigated action against Jane for separation on grounds of
adultery. The case was tried at
Hereford
Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...
in 1782. Charles, who was found guilty, was unable to pay the damages of £76 (~£13,200 in 2020 money) and subsequently died in prison. The divorce was finally read 26 January 1787.
His career was initially unsuccessful and short-lived. After inheriting £1000 (~£162,000 in 2020 money) in 1778 from his uncle Thomas, he invested the money in his first independent works, 15–17
Bloomsbury Square and 66–71
Great Russell Street in
Bloomsbury
Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...
. However, the property failed to let and he was declared bankrupt on 30 September 1783. His debts were £5000 (~£760,000 in 2020 money), including £2000 he had been lent by
Robert Adam
Robert Adam (3 July 17283 March 1792) was a British neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam (architect), William Adam (1689–1748), Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and train ...
and his brothers. A
blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...
commemorating Nash was placed on 66 Great Russell Street by
English Heritage
English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...
in 2013.
Wales

Nash left London in 1784 to live in
Carmarthen,
Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, where his mother had retired (her family was from the area). In 1785, he and a local man, Samuel Simon Saxon, re-roofed the town's church for 600
guineas
The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...
. Nash and Saxon seem to have worked as building contractors and suppliers of building materials. Nash's London buildings had been standard Georgian terraced houses.
In Wales, he matured as an architect. His first major work in the area was the first of three prisons he would design, Carmarthen 1789–92. This was planned by the penal reformer
John Howard and Nash developed this into the finished building. He went on to design the prisons at
Cardigan (1791–1796) and
Hereford
Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...
(1792–1796). It was at Hereford that Nash met
Richard Payne Knight, whose theories on the picturesque as applied to architecture and landscape would influence Nash. The commission for Hereford Gaol came after the death of
William Blackburn, who was to have designed the building. Nash's design was accepted after
James Wyatt approved of the design.
In 1789,
St Davids Cathedral was suffering from structural problems. Its west front was leaning forward by one foot, and Nash was hired to survey the structure and develop a plan to save the building. His solution, completed in 1791, was to demolish the upper part of the façade and rebuild it with two large but inelegant flying buttresses. In 1790, Nash met
Uvedale Price, of Downtown Castle, whose theories of the
Picturesque would influence Nash's town planning. Price commissioned Nash to design Castle House
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...
(1795). Its plan took the form of a right-angled triangle, with an octagonal tower at each corner, sited on the very edge of the sea.
One of Nash's most important developments were a series of medium-sized country houses that he designed in Wales, which developed the villa designs of his teacher Sir Robert Taylor. Most of these villas consist of a roughly square plan with a small entrance hall and a staircase offset in the middle to one side, around which are placed the main rooms. There is then a less prominent
servants' quarters in a wing attached to one side of the villa. The buildings are usually only two floors in height and the elevations of the main block are usually symmetrical. One of the finest of these villas is
Llanerchaeron, but at least a dozen villas were designed throughout south Wales. Others, in Pembrokeshire, include
Ffynone, built for the Colby family at Boncath, near
Manordeifi, and Foley House, built for the lawyer Richard Foley (brother of Admiral
Sir Thomas Foley) at Goat Street in
Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...
.
From 1796, Nash spent most of his time working in London; this was a prelude to his return to the capital in 1797. At this time, Nash designed the delicate
Gothic revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, 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 ...
gateway to
Clytha Park near
Abergavenny in
Monmouthshire
Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...
, and also his alterations in Gothic Revival style in 1794 to
Hafod Uchtryd for
Thomas Johnes at
Devil's Bridge
Devil's Bridge is a term applied to dozens of ancient bridges, found primarily in Europe. Most of these bridges are stone or masonry arch bridges and represent a significant technological achievement in ancient architecture. Due to their unusu ...
,
Cardiganshire
Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a county in the west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Ab ...
. Also in c. 1794–95 he advised on the paving, lighting and water supply in
Abergavenny and designed an elegant market building. Other work included
Whitson Court, near
Newport. After his return to London, Nash continued to design houses in Wales including Harpton Court in
Radnorshire, which was demolished, apart from the service wing, in 1956. In 1807 he drew up plans for the re-building of
Hawarden Castle with Gothic battlements and towers, but the plan appears to have been modified by another architect when it was carried out. In about 1808, he designed Monachty, near
Aberaeron, and later drew up plans for work at
Nanteos.
He met
Humphry Repton at
Stoke Edith in 1792 and formed a successful partnership with the landscape garden designer. One of their early commissions was at
Corsham Court in 1795–96. The pair would collaborate to carefully place the Nash-designed building in grounds designed by Repton. The partnership ended in 1800 under recriminations, Repton accusing Nash of exploiting their partnership to his own advantage. As Nash developed his architectural practice, it became necessary to employ
draughtsmen; the first in the early 1790s was
Augustus Charles Pugin, and later in 1795,
John Adey Repton, son of Humphry.
Return to London
In June 1797, Nash moved into 28
Dover Street, a building of his own design. He built a larger house next door at 29, into which he moved the following year. Nash married 25-year-old Mary Anne Bradley on 17 December 1798 at
St George's, Hanover Square. In 1798, he purchased a plot of land of at
East Cowes on which he erected 1798–1802
East Cowes Castle as his residence. It was the first of a series of
picturesque Gothic castles that he would design.
Nash's final home in London was 14 Regent Street which he designed and built 1819–23. Number 16 was built at the same time for the home of Nash's cousin
John Edwards, a lawyer who handled all of Nash's legal affairs. Located in lower Regent Street, near Waterloo Place, both houses formed a single design around an open courtyard. Nash's drawing office was on the ground floor, and on the first floor was the finest room in the house, the long picture and sculpture gallery; it linked the drawing room at the front of the building with the dining room at the rear. The house was sold in 1834, and the gallery interior moved to East Cowes Castle.
The finest of the dozen
country house
image:Blenheim - Blenheim Palace - 20210417125239.jpg, 300px, Blenheim Palace - Oxfordshire
An English country house is a large house or mansion in the English countryside. Such houses were often owned by individuals who also owned a Townhou ...
s that Nash designed as picturesque castles include the relatively small
Luscombe Castle Devon
Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...
(1800–04);
Ravensworth Castle (Tyne and Wear), begun in 1807 but only finally completed in 1846, which was one of the largest houses by Nash;
Caerhays Castle in
Cornwall
Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
(1808–10); and
Shanbally Castle,
County Tipperary
County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...
(1818–1819), which was the last of these castles to be built. These buildings all represented Nash's continuing development of an asymmetrical and picturesque architectural style that had begun during his years in Wales, at both Castle House Aberystwyth and his alterations to
Hafod Uchtryd.
This process would be extended by Nash in planning groups of buildings, the first example being
Blaise Hamlet (1810–1811). There a group of nine asymmetrical cottages was laid out around a village green.
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner (30 January 1902 – 18 August 1983) was a German-British art historian and architectural historian best known for his monumental 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, ''The Buildings of England'' (195 ...
described the hamlet as "the ''
ne plus ultra'' of the Picturesque movement". The hamlet has also been described as the first fully realized exemplar of the
garden suburb. Nash developed the asymmetry of his castles in his
Italianate villas. His first such exercise was
Cronkhill (1802), and others included
Sandridge Park (1805) and Southborough Place,
Surbiton
Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...
(1808).
He advised on work to the
buildings of Jesus College, Oxford, in 1815, for which he required no fee but asked that the college commission a portrait of him from Sir
Thomas Lawrence to hang in the college hall.
Architect to the Prince Regent
Nash was a dedicated
Whig and was a friend of
Charles James Fox through whom Nash probably came to the attention of the Prince Regent (later King
George IV). In 1806 Nash was appointed architect to the
Surveyor General of Woods, Forests, Parks, and Chases. From 1810 Nash would take very few private commissions and for the rest of his career he would largely work for the Prince. His employment by the Prince Regent enabled Nash to embark upon a number of grand architectural projects.
His first major commissions in (1809–1826) from the Prince were
Regent Street and the development of an area then known as
Marylebone Park. With the Regent's backing, Nash created a master plan for the area, put into effect from 1818 onwards, which stretched from St James's northwards and included
Regent Street,
Regent's Park (1809–1832) and its neighbouring streets, terraces and crescents of elegant townhouses and villas. Nash did not design all the buildings himself. In some instances, these were left in the hands of other architects such as
James Pennethorne and the young
Decimus Burton.
Nash went on to re-landscape
St. James's Park (1814–1827), reshaping the formal canal into the present lake, and giving the park its present form. A characteristic of Nash's plan for Regent Street was that it followed an irregular path linking
Portland Place to the north with
Carlton House, London (replaced by Nash's Carlton House Terrace (1827–1833) to the south. At the northern end of Portland Place Nash designed
Park Crescent, London (1812 and 1819–1821), this opens into Nash's
Park Square, London (1823–24), this only has terraces on the east and west, the north opens into Regent's Park.
The terraces that Nash designed around Regent's Park though conforming to the earlier form of appearing as a single building, as developed by
John Wood, the Elder, are unlike earlier examples set in gardens and are not
orthogonal
In mathematics, orthogonality (mathematics), orthogonality is the generalization of the geometric notion of ''perpendicularity''. Although many authors use the two terms ''perpendicular'' and ''orthogonal'' interchangeably, the term ''perpendic ...
in their placing to each other. This was part of Nash's development of planning, a most extreme example of this was found when he set out Park Village East and Park Village West (1823–34) to the north-east of Regent's Park, here, a mixture of detached villas, semi-detached houses, both symmetrical and asymmetrical in their design are set out in private gardens railed off from the street, the roads loop and the buildings are both classical and gothic in style. No two buildings were the same, and or even in line with their neighbours. The park villages can be seen as the prototype for the
Victorian suburbs.
Nash was employed by the Prince from 1815 to develop his Marine Pavilion in Brighton, originally designed by
Henry Holland. By 1822 Nash had finished his work on the Marine Pavilion, which was now transformed into the
Royal Pavilion. The exterior was based on
Mughal architecture
Mughal architecture is the style of architecture developed in the Mughal Empire in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries throughout the ever-changing extent of their empire in the Indian subcontinent. It developed from the architectural styles of ea ...
, giving the building its exotic form, the
Chinoiserie style interiors are largely the work of
Frederick Crace.
Nash was also a director of the
Regent's Canal Company set up in 1812 to provide a
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface ...
link from west London to the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
in the east. Nash's master plan provided for the canal to run around the northern edge of Regent's Park; as with other projects, he left its execution to one of his assistants, in this case
James Morgan. The first phase of the Regent's Canal was completed in 1816 and finally completed in 1820.
Together with
Robert Smirke and Sir
John Soane, he became an official architect to the
Office of Works in 1813 (although the appointment ended in 1832) at a salary of £500 per annum (£57,810 in 2020 money). Following the death in September of that year of
James Wyatt, this marked the high point in his professional life. As part of Nash's new position, he was invited to advise the Parliamentary
Commissioners
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a Wiktionary: commission, commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissi ...
on the building of new churches from 1818 onwards. Nash produced ten church designs, each estimated to cost around £10,000 (£1.2 million in 2020 money) with seating capacity for 2000 people; the style of the buildings were both classical and gothic. In the end, Nash only built two churches for the Commission: the classical
All Souls Church, Langham Place (1822–24), terminating the northern end of Regent Street, and the gothic
St. Mary's Haggerston (1825–27), bombed during
The Blitz in 1941.
Nash was involved in the design of two of London's theatres, both in
Haymarket. The King's Opera House (now rebuilt as
Her Majesty's Theatre) (1816–1818) where he and George Repton remodelled the theatre, with arcades and shops around three sides of the building, the fourth being the still surviving Royal Opera Arcade. The other theatre was the
Theatre Royal Haymarket (1821), with its fine hexastyle
Corinthian order portico, which still survives, facing down
Charles II Street to
St. James's Square, Nash's interior no longer survives (the interior now dates from 1904).
In 1820 a scandal broke, when a cartoon was published showing a half-dressed King George IV embracing Nash's wife with a speech bubble coming from the King's mouth containing the words "I have great pleasure in visiting this part of my dominions". Whether this was based on just a rumour put about by people who resented Nash's success or if there is substance behind is not known. Further London commissions for Nash followed, including the remodelling of Buckingham House to create
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...
(1825–1830),
and for the
Royal Mews (1822–24) and
Marble Arch (1828). The arch was originally designed as a
triumphal arch
A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...
to stand at the entrance to Buckingham Palace. It was moved when the east wing of the palace designed by
Edward Blore was built, at the request of
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...
whose growing family required additional domestic space. Marble Arch became the entrance to
Hyde Park and the Great Exhibition.
Work with James and Decimus Burton
The parents of John Nash, and Nash himself during his childhood, lived in Southwark, where
James Burton worked as an 'Architect and Builder' and developed a positive reputation for prescient speculative building between 1785 and 1792. Burton built the Blackfriars Rotunda in Great Surrey Street (now Blackfriars Road) to house the Leverian Museum, for land agent and museum proprietor James Parkinson (1730–1813), James Parkinson. However, whereas Burton was vigorously industrious, and quickly became 'most gratifyingly rich', Nash's early years in private practice, and his first speculative developments, which failed either to sell or let, were unsuccessful, and his consequent financial shortage was exacerbated by the 'crazily extravagant' wife whom he had married before he had completed his training, until he was declared bankrupt in 1783.
To repair his finances, Nash cultivated the acquaintance of James Burton, who consented to patronize him. James Burton responsible for the social and financial patronage of the majority of Nash's London designs, in addition to for their construction. Architectural scholar Guy Williams has written, "John Nash relied on James Burton for moral and financial support in his great enterprises. Decimus had showed precocious talent as a draughtsman and as an exponent of the classical style... John Nash needed the son's aid, as well as the father's".
Subsequent to the Crown Estate's refusal to finance them, James Burton agreed to personally finance the construction projects of Nash at
Regent's Park, which he had already been commissioned to construct. Consequently, in 1816, Burton purchased many of the leases of the proposed terraces around, and proposed villas within, Regent's Park and, in 1817, Burton purchased the leases of five of the largest blocks on Regent Street. The first property to be constructed in or around Regent's Park by Burton was his own mansion: The Holme, which was designed by his son,
Decimus Burton, and completed in 1818. Burton's extensive financial involvement 'effectively guaranteed the success of the project'. In return, Nash agreed to promote the career of Decimus Burton.

Nash was a vehement advocate of the neoclassical revival endorsed by
John Soane, although he had lost interest in the plain stone edifices typical of the Georgian style, and instead advocated the use of stucco. Decimus Burton entered the office of Nash in 1815, where he worked alongside
Augustus Charles Pugin, who detested the neoclassical style. Burton established his own architectural practice in 1821. In 1821, Nash invited Decimus Burton to design Cornwall Terrace in Regent's Park, and he was also invited by George Bellas Greenough, a close friend of the Prince Regent, Humphry Davy, and Nash, to design Nuffield Lodge, Grove House in Regent's Park.
Greenough's invitation to Decimus Burton was 'virtually a family affair', for Greenough had dined frequently with Decimus' parents and brothers, including Henry Burton (physician), the physician Henry Burton. Greenough and Decimus finalized their designs during numerous meetings at the opera. The design, when the villa had been completed, was described in ''The Proceedings of the Royal Society'' as, "one of the most elegant and successful adaptations of the Grecian style to purposes of modern domestic architecture to be found in this or any country."
Subsequently, Nash invited Decimus to design Clarence Terrace, Regent's Park. Such were Decimus Burton's contributions to the Regent's Park project that the Commissioners of Woods described Burton, not Nash, as 'the architect of Regent's Park'. Contrary to popular belief, the dominant architectural influence in many of the Regent's Park projects - including Cornwall Terrace, York Terrace, Chester Terrace, Clarence Terrace, and the villas of the Inner Circle, including The Holme and the London Colosseum attraction (the latter to Thomas Hornor (surveyor), Thomas Hornor's specifications) all of which were constructed by James Burton's company - was Decimus Burton, not John Nash, who was appointed architectural 'overseer' for Burton Jr.'s projects.
Decimus Burton, to Nash's chagrin, developed the Terraces according to his own style to the extent that Nash sought, unsuccessfully, to demolish and completely rebuild Chester Terrace. Decimus subsequently eclipsed his master and emerged as the dominant force in the design of
Carlton House Terrace, where he exclusively designed No. 3 and No. 4. He also designed some of the villas of the Inner Circle: his villa for the Marquess of Hertford has been described as, 'decorated simplicity, such as the hand of taste, aided by the purse of wealth can alone execute'.
Retirement and death
Nash's career effectively ended with the death of George IV in 1830. The King's notorious extravagance had generated much resentment, and Nash was now without a protector. The HM Treasury, Treasury started to look closely at the cost of Buckingham Palace. Nash's original estimate of the building's cost had been £252,690, but this had risen to £496,169 in 1829; the actual cost was £613,269 (~£69.5 million in 2020 money), and the building was still unfinished. This controversy ensured that Nash would not receive any more official commissions, nor would he be awarded the knighthood that other contemporary architects such as Jeffry Wyattville,
John Soane and
Robert Smirke received. Nash retired to the Isle of Wight to his home,
East Cowes Castle.
On 28 March 1835 Nash was described as "very poorly and faint". This was the beginning of the end. On 1 May Nash's solicitor John Wittet Lyon was summonsed to East Cowes Castle to finalise his will. By 6 May he was described as 'very ill indeed all day', he died at his home on 13 May 1835. His funeral took place at St. James's Church, East Cowes on 20 May, where he was buried in the churchyard with a monument in the form of a stone sarcophagus. His widow acted to clear Nash's debts (some £15,000; £1.97 million in 2020 money), she held a sale of the Castle's contents, including three paintings by J. M. W. Turner painted on the Isle of Wight, four by Benjamin West and several copies of old master paintings by Richard Evans (portrait painter), Richard Evans. These artworks were sold at Christie's on 11 July 1835 for £1,061 (~£139,500 in 2020 money). His books, medals, drawings and engravings were bought by a bookseller named Evans for £1,423 on 15 July (~£187,078 in 2020 money). The Castle itself was sold for a reported figure of £20,000 (~£2.63 million in 2020 money) to Henry Boyle, 3rd Earl of Shannon, within the year. Nash's widow retired to a property Nash had bequeathed to her in Hampstead where she lived until her death in 1851; she was buried with her husband on the Isle of Wight.
Assistants and pupils
Nash had many pupils and assistants, including
Decimus Burton;
Humphry Repton's sons,
John Adey Repton and George Stanley Repton; Anthony Salvin; John Foulon (1772–1842);
Augustus Charles Pugin; F.H. Greenway;
James Morgan;
James Pennethorne; and the brothers Henry, James Pain, James, and George Richard Pain, George Pain.
Works
Works in London

Works in London include:
*
Park Crescent, London (1806, 1819–21)
*Carlton House, alterations, demolished
*Southborough House, 14 Ashcombe Avenue, Southborough,
Surbiton
Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...
(1808)
*Southborough Lodge, 16 Ashcombe Avenue, Southborough,
Surbiton
Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...
(1808)
*18 Ashcombe Avenue, Southborough,
Surbiton
Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...
(1808) Southborough House's summer house
*
Regent Street (1809–26) rebuilt
*
Regent's Canal (1811–20)
*Royal Lodge (1811–20) subsequently remodelled by Sir Jeffry Wyattville
*
Carlton House, London remodelled several interiors, (1812–14) demolished 1825 to make way for Nash's Carlton House Terraces
*Trafalgar Square (1813–30) completely redesigned by Sir Charles Barry
*The Rotunda (Woolwich), Rotunda, Woolwich (1814; re-erected 1820)

*The King's Opera House, Haymarket, on the site of
Her Majesty's Theatre. The Royal Opera Arcade is the only part presently standing (1816–18).
*Waterloo Place (1816) rebuilt
*The County Fire Office (1819) rebuilt
*Piccadilly Circus (1820) rebuilt
*Suffolk Place, Haymarket (1820)
*Haymarket Theatre (1820–21)
*14–16 Regent Street (Nash's own house) (1820–21)
*York Gate, London, York Gate (1821)
*The Church of All Souls, Langham Place (1822–25)
*Hanover Terrace (1822)
*
Royal Mews (1822–24)
*Sussex Place (1822–23)
*Albany Terrace, London (1823)
*
Park Square, London (1823–24)
*Park Village East and West (1823–34)
*Cambridge Terrace (1824)
*Landscaping of King's Road (1824)
*Ulster Terrace (1824)
*
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...
. The state rooms and western front (1825–30), since much extended by
James Pennethorne,
Edward Blore, and Aston Webb
*Clarence House (1825–27)
*Cumberland Terrace (1826)
*Former United Services Club Pall Mall, London, Pall Mall now Institute of Directors (1826–28)

*Gloucester Terrace (1827)
*
Marble Arch (1828)
*430–449 Strand, London, Strand (1830)
With Decimus Burton
*
Regent's Park (1809–32)
*York Terrace (1822)
*Chester Terrace (1825)
*Cornwall Terrace
*Clarence Terrace
*
Carlton House Terrace (1827–33)
*
St. James's Park (1814–27)
The changes made by John Nash to the streetscape of London are documented in the film ''John Nash and London'', featuring Edmund N. Bacon and based on sections of his 1967 book ''Design of Cities.''
Work in England outside London

*Blaise Castle, additions, including the conservatory and various buildings in the grounds, dairy, gatehouses etc. (1795–c.1806)
*Kentchurch Court, Pontrilas (c.1795)
*
Hereford
Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...
Gaol (1796)
*Hereford Lunatic Asylum (c. 1796), no longer standing
*
Corsham Court, remodelling work (1796–1813). Only his east front survives of the main house, but many of his garden buildings, including the Bath House at Corsham Court, bathhouse originally designed by Capability Brown and remodelled by Nash, are extant.
*Grovelands Park, Enfield, England, Enfield, Middlesex (1797)
*Atcham, several houses in the village (1797)
*Attingham Park, new picture gallery and staircase, with further interiors, and entrance lodges (c.1797–1808)
*
East Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight (1798–1802) – his home until his death in 1835, demolished 1960
*Sundridge Park, Sundridge, London, (1799)
*Chalfont Park, Chalfont St Peter, remodelled (1799–1800)
*Helmingham Hall, modernisation work (1800–03)
*
Luscombe Castle (1800–04)
*
Cronkhill, near Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The first Italianate villa in Britain (1802)
*Longner Hall, Atcham, remodelling and extension (1803)
*Nunwell House, Nunwell Isle of Wight (1805–07)

*
Sandridge Park (1805)
*Witley Court (1805–06)
*Market House Chichester (1807)
*Ravensworth Castle (Tyne and Wear), Ravensworth Castle (1808)
*
Caerhays Castle, Cornwall (1808)
*Ingestre Hall (1808–13) rebuilt later in the 19th century
*Knepp Castle, Sussex, c.1809
*
Blaise Hamlet, Bristol (1810–11)
*Newport Guildhall, Isle of Wight (1814)
*Rebuilding of the
Royal Pavilion at
Brighton
Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
(1815–22)
Work in Wales
Work in Wales include:
*The stable block at Plas Llanstephan (1788)
*Golden Grove, Carmarthenshire, Golden Grove, Llanfihangel Aberbythych (1788)
*Priory House, Carmarthen (1788–89)
*
Carmarthen Gaol, (1789–92)
*
St Davids Cathedral, new west front (1789–91) completely remodelled by Sir George Gilbert Scott (1862)
*Glanusk Villa, Cadoxton-juxta-Neath (1790)
*Llanfechan house, Llanwenog, Cardiganshire c. 1790 attributed on stylistic grounds
*Meidrim Poor House (1791)
*
Newport Bridge (1791–92) abandoned before completion
*
Cardigan Gaol, (1791–97)
*
Ffynone, Boncath (1792–96)
*Sion House, Tenby (1792)
*South Sion Lodge, Tenby (1792)
*Emlyn Cottage, Newcastle Emlyn (1792–94) demolished 1881
*Dolaucothi Estate, Dolaucothi House, Cynwyl Gaeo (1792–96) demolished (c. 1954)

*Tregaron Bridge (1793)
*
Abergavenny Market Place (1794–46)
*Foley House,
Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...
, Pembrokeshire (1794)
*
Hafod Uchtryd, remodelling including octagonal library (1794) demolished 1958.
*Herman Hill House,
Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...
(c. 1794)
*
Llanerchaeron, Ciliau Aeron, Ceredigion (c. 1794)
*Llysnewydd, Henllan, Ceredigion (1795)
*Whitson, Whitson Court, near
Newport (1795)
*Glanwysc Villa, Llangattock (Crickhowell) (c. 1795)
*Llysnwydd house, Llangeler (c. 1795) attributed on stylistic grounds demolished 1971.
*Temple Druid House, Maenclochog (1795)
*Castle House, later replaced by Old College, Aberystwyth, Old College, Aberystwyth University, (1795)
*The Priory Cardigan, Ceredigion (1795)
*
Clytha Park gates, (1797)
*
Llanerchaeron, St Non's Church (1798) attributed on stylistic grounds
*Harpton Court, Old Radnor, remodelled (1805) demolished 1956 apart from the service range
*
Hawarden Castle, enlargement (1807)
*Nanteos Mansion, planned replanning and new dairy and lodges (1814) not executed
*Rheola House, Resolven (1814–18)
*Picton Monument, Carmarthen, Picton Memorial, Carmarthen (1827–28) demolished 1846
*Extension block of Plas Gelli, Talsarn, Ceredigion
Work in Ireland
* House for Countess Shannon, County Cork (1796). Unbuilt.
* Ballindoon House (c. 1800) Kingsborough, Derry, County Sligo for Stafford-King-Harmon family. House and stable block.
* Killymoon Castle, near Cookstown, County Tyrone (1801–1807). Castle originally built in 1671. Rebuilt in Norman style by Nash for Col. William Stewart at an alleged cost of £80,000. Now well maintained as home of the Coulter family. The parkland is now used as a golf course.
* Lissan Rectory, County Tyrone (1807). Italianate Villa.
* Kilwaughter Castle, in Kilwaughter, near Larne, County Antrim (1807). New castillated mansion built for E. J. Agnew incorporating an earlier house (ruined 1951).
* Caledon House, County Tyrone (1808–1810), for the Du Pré Alexander, 2nd Earl of Caledon. Enlargement and embellishment of an earlier house (1779) by Thomas Cooley (architect), Thomas Cooley with two single storey domed wings connected by a colonnade of coupled Ionic columns; Nash redecorated the oval drawing room.
* Vice-Regal Lodge, Phoenix Park, Dublin (present-day Áras an Uachtaráin, public residence of the President of Ireland; 1808, entrance lodges only).
* St. John's Church of Ireland church Valentia Island (1815).
* St John's Church Caledon, Count Tyrone (1808). Alterations including timber spire. Spire replaced in stone to same design 1830.

* St. Paul's Church of Ireland church in Cahir,
County Tipperary
County Tipperary () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary (tow ...
(1816–1818). Cruciform plan.
* Rockingham House, Boyle, County Roscommon (1810). Originally two-storey with curved central bow, fronted by a semi-circular Ionic colonnade, and surmounted by a dome. Built for the King Harmon family. Extra floor added by others. Burnt in fire 1957; subsequently demolished. Parkland now a public park and amenity.
* Rockingham lakeside gazebo.
* Rockingham Gothic Chapel. Roofless.
* Rockingham Castle. Nash may have contributed to picturesque island castle ruin.
* Swiss cottage, Cahir County Tipperary (1810–1814) Cottage ornée.
* City Gaol, Limerick, County Limerick (1811–1814).
* Lough Cutra Castle, Gort, County Galway (1811–1817). Built for Charles Vereker, 2nd Viscount Gort, Charles Vereker, subsequently Viscount Gort.
* Shane's Castle in Randalstown, County Antrim (1812–1816). Alterations to 17th century castle for Charles O'Neill, 1st Earl O'Neill, consisting of lakeside terrace, and battlemented conservatory with round headed windows, watch-tower and look-out. Burnt down in 1816 before Nash's plans were completed.
* Burne Lodge. Crawfordsburn Park, County Down (1812). 2-storey gate lodge with octagonal room at first floor level.

*
Shanbally Castle, near Clogheen, County Tipperary (1818–1819). Built for Cornelius O'Callaghan, 1st Viscount Lismore; largest of Nash's Irish Castles; demolished and dynamited 1960.
* Gracefield Lodge, County Laois, for a Mrs Kavanagh (1817).
* Erasmus Smith School, Cahir, Cahir, County Tipperary (1818).
* Tynan Abbey, Tynan, County Armagh (1820). Remodelled in Tudor Gothic style for Sir James Stronge baronets, Stronge; gutted by fire 1980. Drawings destroyed after being photographed.
* St. Luran's Church of Ireland, Derryloran parish, Cookstown (1822). Cost £2,769.4s.71/2d. Early English style. Rebuilt 1859–61, apart from tower.
* Woodpark Lodge, Co. Armagh. Alterations (1830s).
* St. Beaidh church, Ardcarn, County Roscommon. Alterations including tower which was an eyecatcher to Rockingham House.
* Somerset House, Coleraine for a Mr Richardson. Date unknown. Unexecuted.
* Mountain Lodge, County Tipperary for Viscount Lismore. Date unknown. Now in a state of disrepair.
* Castle Leslie, County Monaghan. Date unknown. Gateways and gate lodge.
* 80–82 Chapel Street, Cookstown, County Tyrone. Dower house to Killymoon. Date unknown.
* Finaghy House, Belfast. Date unknown.
Work in Scotland
Nash's only known work in Scotland is:
*St. Mary's Isle, Kirkcudbright, an enclosure around family graves (1796)
See also
*Buildings and architecture of Brighton and Hove
Notes
References
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nash, John
1752 births
1835 deaths
Architects from London
Georgian architecture
Historicist architects
Regency architecture in the United Kingdom
18th-century British architects
Burials in the Isle of Wight
19th-century English architects