Sir Reginald Theodore Blomfield (20 December 1856 – 27 December 1942) was a prolific British architect, garden designer and author of the Victorian and

Edwardian In the United Kingdom, the Edwardian era was a period in the early 20th century that spanned the reign of King Edward VII from 1901 to 1910. It is commonly extended to the start of the First World War in 1914, during the early reign of King Ge ...

period.

Early life and career

Blomfield was born at Bow rectory in

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 ...

, where his father, the Rev. George John Blomfield (1822−1900), was rector. His mother, Isabella, was a first cousin of his father and the second daughter of Charles James Blomfield, Bishop of London. He was brought up in Kent, where his father became vicar of Holy Trinity Church, Dartford, in 1857 and then Rector of Aldington in 1868. He was educated at

Highgate School Highgate School, formally Sir Roger Cholmeley's School at Highgate, is a co-educational, fee-charging, private day school, founded in 1565 in Highgate, London, England. It educates over 1,400 pupils in three sections – Highgate Pre-Preparato ...

in North London, whose Grade 2 listed

War Memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

he later designed, and then

Haileybury and Imperial Service College Haileybury is a co-educational public school (fee-charging boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols pupils at the 11+, 13+ and 16+ stages of edu ...

in Hertfordshire, and at

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...

, where he took a first-class degree in classics. At Oxford, he attended

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English polymath a writer, lecturer, art historian, art critic, draughtsman and philanthropist of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as art, architecture, Critique of politic ...

's lectures, but found "the atmosphere of rapt adoration with which Ruskin and all he said was received by the young ladies... was altogether too much for me". Although he had a clear leaning towards the polite arts, his family did not have the means to sustain him as a gentleman artist, and Blomfield at this date had no clear career. After Oxford, he spent a year travelling on the continent as a tutor before accepting an offer from his maternal uncle, Sir

Arthur Blomfield Sir Arthur William Blomfield (6 March 182930 October 1899) was an English architect. He became president of the Architectural Association in 1861; a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1867 and vice-president of the RIBA in ...

, to become an articled pupil in his London practice in the autumn of 1881. He also enrolled in the

Royal Academy Schools The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

, where Richard Phené Spiers was Master of the Architectural School. He found the atmosphere in his uncle's office uncongenial and the practice's traditional

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 ...

output hard and soulless, although he gained valuable mechanical skills at draughtsmanship and site experience. He prospered more at the Academy Schools, taking the junior prize in 1882 and the senior prize the following year, with a design for a town house in the fashionable Queen Anne Revival style, of which he was later ashamed. During his years in his uncle's office, the practice produced two uncharacteristic schemes (for work at

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

and

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by royal charter, to replace the town's Saxon collegiate foundations which were disestablished in the sixteenth century, Shrewsb ...

) that appear to foreshadow Blomfield's enthusiasm for classicism, and in the design of which he was presumably involved. He was an occasional cricketer and played in matches with

J. M. Barrie Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, (; 9 May 1860 19 June 1937) was a Scottish novelist and playwright, best remembered as the creator of Peter Pan. He was born and educated in Scotland and then moved to London, where he wrote several succe ...

's Allahakbarries XI.

Design work

At the beginning of 1884, having completed his training, he left his uncle's office and spent a further four months travelling in France and Spain before returning to London and establishing a practice at 17 Southampton Street, off the Strand, in London; E.S. Prior had an office in the same building. Through Prior, a former pupil of

Richard Norman Shaw Richard Norman Shaw RA (7 May 1831 – 17 November 1912), also known as Norman Shaw, was a British architect who worked from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings. He is considered to be among the g ...

, Blomfield met others of Shaw's circle, including Mervyn Macartney, Ernest Newton and Gerald Horsley. Although he never worked in Shaw's office, Blomfield was, like them, henceforth a great admirer of Shaw. With this ground, Blomfield was involved in the founding of the Art Workers Guild and was at first made its Honorary Secretary, but he attended infrequently and when admonished about this, resigned in a huff. In retrospect, however, he paid tribute to these efforts as formative in setting a new direction for architecture: "I think it is due to these young men of the 80s that the arts were rescued from the paralysing conventions of the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

". In 1890, with the idea of designing and making fine furniture, Blomfield, Ernest Gimson, Macartney and William Lethaby joined forces to establish Kenton & Co. Although the venture had the makings of a success, it lasted only two years, as the partners decided to concentrate instead on their increasingly successful architectural practices. In 1886 Blomfield married Anne Frances Burra, the daughter of Henry Burra of Rye, Sussex, a town where he had designed several houses, including his own, the very informal ''Point Hill''. The same year, Blomfield and the printer T.J. Cobden Sanderson (1840–1922) built themselves a pair of pretty houses in Frognal,

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

; 51 Frognal remained Blomfield's London home until his death. Regent Street 20040807

The heyday of Blomfield's practice, between 1885 and 1914, was dominated by the construction of new country houses and the renovation and extension of existing ones on the most generous scale. Notable among these works are the alteration of

Apethorpe Palace Apethorpe Palace (pronounced ''App-thorp''), formerly known as "Apethorpe Hall", is a Grade I listed English country houses, country house, dating to the 15th century, close to Apethorpe, Northamptonshire. It was a "favourite List of British ro ...

, Northamptonshire (1906-09);

Chequers Chequers ( ) is the English country house, country house of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister of the United Kingdom. A 16th-century manor house in origin, it is near the village of Ellesborough in England, halfway betwee ...

, Buckinghamshire (mostly 1909–12), Heathfield Park, Sussex (1896–1910) and Brocklesby Park, Lincolnshire (1898–1910). The completely new buildings are mostly slightly smaller but still substantial; houses such as Wittington House at

Medmenham Medmenham () is a village and civil parish in south-west Buckinghamshire, England. It is on the River Thames, about southwest of Marlow, Buckinghamshire, Marlow and east of Henley-on-Thames. The parish also includes Danesfield, a housing estate ...

, Buckinghamshire in 1897; Caythorpe Court, Lincolnshire; Moundsmere Manor. Hampshire; or Wretham Hall, Norfolk. Much of this work was carried out in a manner inspired by Blomfield's studies of both English and French Renaissance styles. Blomfield's fairly numerous university and commercial buildings also included a number of prestigious commissions, including the college buildings for

Lady Margaret Hall Lady Margaret Hall (LMH) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England, located on a bank of the River Cherwell at Norham Gardens in north Oxford and adjacent to the University Parks. The college is more formally known under ...

, Oxford and the United Universities Club in London. He played a major part in the completion of the Quadrant on

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George IV of the United Kingdom, George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash (architect), J ...

, London when

withdrew from the project. The

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

put an end to the type of building projects on which he had been engaged, and after it ended in 1919 his practice never returned to its former size. He was sixty-five in 1921, but continued working at a gradually decreasing pace into his late 70s, producing a large number of

war memorials War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

in the 1920s, including the

Menin Gate The Menin Gate (), officially the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, is a war memorial in Ypres, Belgium, dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the Ypres Salient of World War I and whose graves are unknown. The m ...

Ypres Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

. The Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 created a government body called the

Central Electricity Board The United Kingdom Central Electricity Board (CEB) was established by the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926. It had the duty to supply electricity to authorised electricity undertakers, to determine which power stations would be 'selected' stations ...

(CEB). The following year the CEB asked Blomfield to judge a competition to find a suitable design for the

Transmission tower A transmission tower (also electricity pylon, hydro tower, or pylon) is a tall structure, usually a lattice tower made of steel that is used to support an overhead power line. In electrical grids, transmission towers carry high-voltage transmis ...

, which would be used to support

overhead power lines An overhead power line is a structure used in electric power transmission and Electric power distribution, distribution to transmit electrical energy along large distances. It consists of one or more electrical conductor, conductors (commonly mu ...

. He chose the lattice design, submitted by the US engineering company, Miliken Brothers, which, today, carry electricity cabling across the United Kingdom. Blomfield's last major project was the reconstruction of 4 Carlton Gardens, London, in 1932.

Publications

Blomfield had a gift for sketching and writing. His first book, ''The Formal Garden in England'', illustrated by Inigo Thomas, appeared in 1892. His views invoked the criticism of the gardener William Robinson, who pursued a lengthy dispute with those architects who dared to interest themselves in gardening, especially Blomfield and John Dando Sedding. In 1897 Blomfield's first major historical work, ''A history of Renaissance architecture in England, 1500–1800'' was published by George Bell and Sons. The architecture of the Wren era in particular appealed to him, and he came to regard it as the era of England's finest architecture. This book was complemented by the appearance of a companion study, ''A history of French architecture'', published in two volumes covering 1494–1661 (1911) and 1661–1774 (1921). Together with the work of Blomfield himself, Sir John Belcher and Mervyn Macartney, the arrival of a serious account of architectural development in the 17th and 18th centuries led not only to the preservation of many previously neglected buildings of those periods, but also increased interest in the neo-Georgian style. His other published works include ''Studies in Architecture'' (1905); ''The Mistress Art'' (1908), ''Architectural Drawing and Draughtsmen'' (1912); ''The Touchstone of Architecture'' (1925); ''Six Architects'' (1925); ''Memoirs of an Architect'' (1932); the controversial anti-

Modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

polemic, ''Modernismus'' (1934) and the sketchy ''

'' (1940). In 1920 he delivered the British Academy's Aspects of Art Lecture, which was published in the ''

Proceedings of the British Academy The ''Proceedings of the British Academy'' is a series of academic volumes on subjects in the humanities and social sciences. The first volume was published in 1905. Up to 1991, the volumes (appearing annually from 1927) mostly consisted of the te ...

''. A further collection of autobiographical material, 1932–42, continuing his memoirs, remains unpublished and is in the possession of his descendants.

Archival materials

The British Architectural Library Drawings Collection has a number of his perspective drawings produced for

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

exhibitions and an incomplete collection of his sketchbooks, photographs and papers. Other documents remain in the possession of his descendants, but he disposed of the majority of his drawings during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. A bronze bust of Blomfield by Sir William Reid Dick is in the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

List of works

The following list of major works is selected from that given in R.A. Fellows, ''Sir Reginald Blomfield: an Edwardian architect'', 1985, with additions from ''The Buildings of England'' and other sources cited in the bibliography: Goldsmiths College main building

London - Regent Street - The Quadrant 1926 by Sir Reginald Blomfield - View SSE

Haileybury College Haileybury is a co-educational public school (fee-charging boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols pupils at the 11+, 13+ and 16+ stages of edu ...

, Hertfordshire: erection of Bradby Memorial Hall, 1886; Music School, Sports Pavilion and organ case, 1923 *

Broxbourne Broxbourne is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne in Hertfordshire, England, with a population of 15,303 at the 2011 Census.Broxbourne Town population 2011 It is located to the south of Hoddesdon and to the north of Cheshunt, north of London. ...

, Hertfordshire: erection of five houses on St Catherine's estate for J.A. Hunt, 1887 * 20 Buckingham Gate,

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, Middlesex: new town house in free Queen Anne style, 1887 *

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

, Sussex: new vicarage, 1887; mission room, 1900 * Swinford Old Manor, near Ashford, Kent: restoration, 1887 *Blacknoll, Dorset: new house, 1889 *

Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a Ford (crossing), ford on ...

, Hertfordshire: new covered market, public library and art school, 1889 (with W.H. Wilds) *

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge district in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a cro ...

, Surrey: alterations and renovation for Arthur Brook, 1889, in free Queen Anne style *

, Sussex: erection of houses in Gun Garden and Watchbell Street, 1890, 1910 * Aslockton, Nottinghamshire: new church, 1890–92 *

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

(Switzerland): rebuilding of St. Antonien Kapelle, 1891, in late Gothic style *

Carshalton Carshalton ( ) is a town, with a historic village centre, in south London, England, within the London Borough of Sutton. It is situated around southwest of Charing Cross and around east by north of Sutton town centre, in the valley of the Rive ...

, Surrey: extension of All Saints church, 1891–1914 (with A.W. Blomfield) *Southwater,

Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

, Sussex: new house and gardens, 1891 *

Court, Buckinghamshire: restoration, alterations and gardens for Bertram Astley, 1892–1901 and Arthur Lee, 1st Baron Lee of Fareham, 1909–12, in neo-Jacobean style * Frogmore Hall, Hertfordshire: alterations, 1892 * Frognal, Hampstead, Middlesex: new houses at 49–51 Frognal for himself and T.J. Cobden Sanderson, 1892 * Swiftsden,

Etchingham Etchingham is a village and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex in southern England. The village is located approximately southeast of Royal Tunbridge Wells in Kent and northwest of Hastings, on the A265 road ...

, Sussex: new house in neo-Georgian style, 1892 * Borrowstone Lodge, Kincardine O'Neil, Aberdeenshire: new house, 1893 *

Queen Anne's School Queen Anne's School is a private boarding and day school for girls aged 11 to 18, situated in the suburb of Caversham just north of the River Thames and Reading town centre and occupying a campus. There are around 450 pupils. Nearly half are ...

, Caversham, Oxfordshire: chapel, 1893 * St. George, Hanover Square, London: new fittings, ''circa'' 1894 * Warley Lodge, Essex: new gardens, 1894 * Mystole House.

Chartham Chartham is a village and civil parish in the City of Canterbury, Canterbury district of Kent, England. It is situated on the Ashford side of the city, and is in the North Downs, North Downs area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, south west of Ca ...

, Kent: alterations and additions, 1895, in neo-Georgian style * Godinton Park, Kent: alterations, 1895, 1924 and new garden, ''circa'' 1902 * Greycoat Place, London: warehouse for Army and Navy Stores, 1895 * Limpsfield Chart, Surrey: St. Andrew's Church, 1895, in Arts & Crafts style *

, ''Point Hill'', expansion of cottage into new house for himself, 1895–1912 * Cowley House, Middlesex: addition and alterations, 1896 * Heathfield Park, Sussex: alterations and additions for W.C. Alexander, 1896–1910, in neo-Georgian style *

, Oxford: college buildings, 1896–1915 * St Edmund's School,

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

, Kent: headmaster's house, 1897 * Hillside School, Godalming, Surrey: school buildings and house, 1897 * Wittington House,

, Buckinghamshire: house, gardens and lodge for

Hudson Kearley Hudson Ewbanke Kearley, 1st Viscount Devonport, (1 September 1856 – 5 September 1934), styled Lord Devonport between 1910 and 1917, was an English grocer and politician. He founded the International Tea Company's Stores, became the first ch ...

, 1st Lord Devonport, 1897–1904, and enlargement, 1909; in Wrenaissance style *

Mellerstain Mellerstain House is a Scottish country house around north of Kelso in the Borders, Scotland. It is currently the home of George Baillie-Hamilton, 14th Earl of Haddington, and is designated as a historical monument. History The older house ...

, Roxburghshire: restoration and gardens for Lord Binning, 1898–1910 * Brocklesby Hall, Lincolnshire: reconstruction after a fire, and new gardens for the Earl of Yarborough, 1898–1910 in Wrenaissance style * Caythorpe Court, Lincolnshire: new house and gardens for Edgar Lubbock, brewer and banker, 1899–1903, in neo-Jacobean style * Effordleigh House, near Plymouth, Devonshire: new house, 1899 * Fratton, Portsmouth, Hampshire: St Mary's Church Institute (1899–1907) * Drakelow Hall, Derbyshire: restoration and gardens for Gresley family, 1900–06 * West Broyle,

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 ...

, Sussex: new house, 1901 * Yockley,

Frimley Frimley is a town in the Borough of Surrey Heath, in Surrey, England. It lies approximately south-west of central London. The town is of Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Saxon origin, although it is not listed in Domesday Book of 1086. Hi ...

, Surrey: new house and gardens for Charles Furse ARA, 1901–02 in neo-Georgian style; additional wing, 1910 * Murraythwaite, Dumfriesshire: new house, 1901 *

Blundell's School Blundell's School is an Private schools in the United Kingdom, independent co-educational boarding school, boarding and Day school, day school in the English Public School (United Kingdom), public school tradition, located in Tiverton, Devon, T ...

Tiverton, Devon Tiverton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Devon, England, and the commercial and administrative centre of the Mid Devon district. The population in 2019 was 20,587. History Early history The town's name is conjectured to derive from "Twy-for ...

shire: additions, 1901 * Heywood Manor, Boldre, Hampshire: new house and gardens, 1902 * Euston Hall, Suffolk: new gardens for

Duke of Grafton Duke of Grafton is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1675 by Charles II of England for Henry FitzRoy, his second illegitimate son by the Duchess of Cleveland. The most notable duke of Grafton was Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke o ...

, 1902 * Hatchlands, Surrey: new Music Room, 1902–03, in Wrenaissance style *

Sherborne School for Girls Sherborne Girls, formally known as Sherborne School for Girls, is an independent day and boarding school for girls, located in Sherborne, North Dorset, England. There were 485 pupils attending in 2019–2020, with more than 90 per cent of them ...

, Dorset: new buildings, 1902–26, in neo-Tudor style * Gogmagog Hall, Cambridgeshire: alterations, 1903 * Ballard's Court,

Goudhurst Goudhurst is a village and civil parish in the borough of Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England. It lies in the Weald, around south of Maidstone, on the crossroads of the A262 and B2079. The parish consists of three wards: Goudhurst, Kilndown a ...

, Kent: new house, 1903 * Leasam House, Playden, Sussex: alterations and new gardens, 1903 * Medmenham Manor House, Buckinghamshire: restoration for

, 1903 *

Apethorpe Hall Apethorpe Palace (pronounced ''App-thorp''), formerly known as "Apethorpe Hall", is a Grade I listed country house, dating to the 15th century, close to Apethorpe, Northamptonshire. It was a "favourite royal residence" for James I. After res ...

, Northamptonshire: alterations and additions, and new gardens, for Leonard Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey, 1904 * Knowlton Court, Kent: alterations and new gardens for Major Elmer Speed, 1904 * St Mary's Church, Islington, Portico at west door, 1904 * Merchant Taylors' Hall, London: alterations, 1904, 1926 * Saltcote Place, Rye, Sussex: new house for Mr Hennessy, 1905 , URL=https://planweb01.rother.gov.uk/OcellaWeb/planningDetails?reference=RR/2023/2215/O&from=planningSearch/ * Kenfield Hall, Kent: additions and alterations, 1906–09 * Oxford & Cambridge Club, Pall Mall, London: alterations, including new staircase, 1906–12 * United University Club, Suffolk St., London: new building, 1906; extensions, 1924, 1938 * Wyphurst,

Cranleigh Cranleigh is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Borough of Waverley, Surrey, England. It lies southeast of Guildford on a minor road east of the A281, which links Guildford with Horsham. It is in the north-west corner ...

, Surrey: additions for C.E.H. Chadwyck-Healey, 1907, in neo-Tudor style * Garnons, Herefordshire: alterations, 1907, in neo-Georgian style * Ickworth, Suffolk: remodelling of entrance hall for 4th Marquess of Bristol, 1907 * Hill House, Shenley, Hertfordshire: new gardens for S. de la Rue, 1907 * Milner Court,

Sturry Sturry is a village on the Great Stour river situated northeast of Canterbury in Kent. Its large civil parish incorporates several hamlets and, until April 2019, the former mining village of Hersden. Geography Sturry lies at the old Roman j ...

, Kent: additions and new gardens, 1907 * Moundsmere Manor, Hampshire: new house and gardens for Wilfred Buckley, 1908–09 in neo-Georgian style *

Roehampton Roehampton is an area in southwest London, sharing its SW15 postcode with neighbouring Putney and Kingston Vale, and takes up a far western strip, running north to south, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It contains a number of large counc ...

, Surrey: new archive repository for

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...

, 1908–10 * Hill Hall, Essex: alterations and additions for Mrs Charles Hunter, 1909 *

Sherborne School Sherborne School is a full-boarding school for boys aged 13 to 18 located beside Sherborne Abbey in the Dorset town of Sherborne. The school has been in continuous operation on the same site for over 1,300 years. It was founded in 705 AD by Ald ...

, Dorset: Carrington Building, 1909–10; Classrooms and Gatehouse Tower on the northside of the Courts, 1913–23; War Memorial Staircase and ante-Chapel, 1922; Gymnasium, 1923; Music School, 1926 * Manoir de la Trinité, Jersey: remodelling for Athelstan Riley, 1909–12 * Sandhouse,

Witley Witley is a village in the civil parish of Witley and Milford in the Waverley (borough), Waverley district in Surrey, England. It is centred south west of the town of Godalming and southwest of Guildford. The land is a mixture of rural (ran ...

, Surrey: new house, ''circa'' 1909–11 * New Public Library, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, 1910–14, in Wrenaissance style * Westgate Water Tower, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, 1910 * 20 Upper Grosvenor Street, London: alterations and redecoration, 1910 *

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

, London: redevelopment of The Quadrant with new shops and stores, 1910–26 * Malma, Pyrford, Surrey: new house, 1914–1915 * Lockleys, Welwyn, Hertfordshire: alterations, additions and gardens, 1911 * Lord Wandsworth College, Hampshire: Entrance to campus, 1912 *

Whiteley Village Whiteley Village, in Hersham, Surrey, England, is a retirement village, much of it designed architecturally by Arts and Crafts movement-influenced architect Reginald Blomfield. It is owned by the charitable Whiteley Homes Trust and is on land w ...

, Surrey: new houses in North Avenue, 1911 * The Lordship, Much Hadham, Hertfordshire: additions, 1912 * Wretham Hall, Norfolk: new house and gardens for Sir Saxton Noble, 1912–13, in Wrenaissance style * Netherseal Hall, Derbyshire: restoration, 1914 * Kinnaird House, Pall Mall, London: new building, 1915 (with A.J. Driver) *Penn House, Buckinghamshire: alterations, 1918 * Brodick Castle, Arran: restoration and new gardens, 1919 * Harefield Place, Middlesex: alterations, 1920, 1934 *

Carlton Club The Carlton Club is a private members' club in the St James's area of London, England. It was the original home of the Conservative Party before the creation of Conservative Central Office. Membership of the club is by nomination and elect ...

, Pall Mall, London: extension, 1920 (destroyed in Second World War: not the current premises in St James's Street) *

Sulgrave Manor Sulgrave Manor is a mid-16th century Tudor architecture, Tudor hall house in Sulgrave, Northamptonshire, UK, built by Lawrence Washington, the 3rd great-grandfather of George Washington, first President of the United States. The manor passed o ...

, Northamptonshire: additions and restoration, 1921 * Halstead Hall, Lincolnshire: restoration, 1922 * Barkers Department Store, High Street, Kensington, Middlesex: new department store, 1924 * The Headrow,

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, Yorkshire: layout of new street with shops, offices and banks, 1924–37 (with other architects) * Lambeth Bridge, London: new bridge, 1929–32 *

(Belgium): new British School building, 1925 *

Stowe School The Stowe School is a public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13–18 in the countryside of Stowe, England. It was opened on 11 May, 1923 at Stowe House, a Grade I Heritage Estate belonging to the British Crown. ...

, Buckinghamshire: development plan, 1926 * Usher Gallery,

Lincoln, Lincolnshire Lincoln () is a cathedral city and district in Lincolnshire, England, of which it is the county town. In the 2021 Census, the city's district had a population of 103,813. The 2021 census gave the urban area of Lincoln, including Bracebridge He ...

: new building, 1926–27 * Chantry Bridge,

Rotherham Rotherham ( ) is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Rother, South Yorkshire, River Rother, from which the town gets its name, and the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don. It is the largest settlement ...

, Yorkshire: reconstruction, 1927 * Crockerhill, Sussex: alterations, 1929 * County Hall, Lewes, Sussex: rebuilding, 1928–30 *

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

, London: new facade, 1930 * 4 Carlton Gardens, London: new offices, 1932 (part of a scheme for the total redevelopment of

Carlton House Terrace Carlton House Terrace is a street in the St James's district of the City of Westminster in London. Its principal architectural feature is a pair of terraces, the Western and Eastern terraces, of white stucco-faced houses on the south side of ...

Among war memorials for which he was responsible are: * Brandhoek Military Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery,

West Flanders West Flanders is the westernmost province of the Flemish Region, in Belgium. It is the only coastal Belgian province, facing the North Sea to the northwest. It has land borders with the Dutch province of Zeeland to the northeast, the Flemis ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, 1915. * Belgian War Memorial,

Victoria Embankment Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment (the other section is the Chelsea Embankment), a road and river-walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London, England. Built in the 1860s, it runs from the Palace of Westminster to ...

, London, 1917, with Belgian sculptor Victor Rousseau * Bouzincourt Ridge Cemetery, Somme, France, 1918 * Derby School War Memorial, an obelisk at St. Helen's House, Derby, 1921 * Hertfordshire Regiment Memorial, Hertford, 1921 *

(Belgium):

, 1922 and Saint George's Memorial Church, 1928 *The Royal Air Force Memorial in London, 1923. *The

Cross of Sacrifice The Cross of Sacrifice is a Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth war memorial designed in 1918 by Sir Reginald Blomfield for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission). It is present in Commonwealth War grave ...

or War Cross, for the Imperial War Graves Commission (now

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

). These are in Commonwealth cemeteries in many countries. * Bury War Memorial

Awards and honours

Blomfield was made an Associate 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 ...

(RIBA) in 1881 and a Fellow in 1906; an Associate of the

in 1905 and elected to the Academy in 1914, where he had been Professor of Architecture 1907–11 and awarded the

Royal Gold Medal The Royal Gold Medal for architecture is awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects on behalf of the British monarch, in recognition of an individual's or group's substantial contribution to international architecture. It is gi ...

in 1913. He was President of the RIBA in 1912–14 and was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

in 1919. In 1933, he was elected into the

National Academy of Design The National Academy of Design is an honorary association of American artists, founded in New York City in 1825 by Samuel Morse, Asher Durand, Thomas Cole, Frederick Styles Agate, Martin E. Thompson, Charles Cushing Wright, Ithiel Town, an ...

as an Honorary Corresponding member.

Death

He died aged 86 on 27 December 1942 and is buried in family plot in the churchyard of St Michael, Playden, East Sussex, half a mile north of his country home ''Point Hill'',

. Fellow architect Horace Field, who was a near neighbour in both Rye and Hampstead, is buried in the same churchyard.

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * * * * *

External links

Profile on Royal Academy of Arts Collections

* Blomfield, Reginald (1911). ''A History of French Architecture from the Death of Charles VIII till the Death of Mazarin'' London: G. Bell. Vols. I (copie
1

2
and II (copie
1

2
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

. * Blomfield, Reginald (1921). ''A History of French Architecture from the Death of Mazarin till the Death of Louis XV, 1661–1774''. London: G. Bell. Vols. I (copie
1

2
and II (copie
1

2
at Internet Archive. {{DEFAULTSORT:Blomfield, Reginald 1856 births 1942 deaths Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Architects from Devon Associates of the Royal Institute of British Architects Blomfield family Commonwealth War Graves Commission Knights Bachelor People associated with Goldsmiths, University of London People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College People educated at Highgate School People from Mid Devon District Presidents of the Royal Institute of British Architects Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal Royal Academicians