National Library of Scotland 2018-08-21 by Marcok

The Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and St Meddan - geograph

Reginald Francis Joseph Fairlie LLD (7 March 1883 – 27 October 1952) was a Scottish architect. He served as a commissioner of

RCAHMS The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) was an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government that was "sponsored" inanced and with oversightthrough Historic Scotland, an executive ...

and on the Ancient Monuments Board for Scotland.

Life

see Born at Kincaple,

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

, he was the son of J. Ogilvy Fairlie of Myres (1848–1916) and Jane Mary Fairlie. He was educated at the Oratory School in

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 ...

. > He was apprenticed to

Robert Lorimer Sir Robert Stodart Lorimer, Order of the British Empire, KBE (4 November 1864 – 13 September 1929) was a prolific Scotland, Scottish architect and furniture designer noted for his sensitive restorations of historic houses and castles, f ...

in 1901, and much of his style echoes that of Lorimer.

Ian Gordon Lindsay Ian Gordon Lindsay (29 July 1906 – 28 August 1966) was a Scottish architect. He was most noted for his numerous restoration projects, sometimes of whole villages but curiously was also involved in the design of several hydro-electric power st ...

trained under him (1927–30). A faithful Roman Catholic, Fairlie designed many war memorials, churches and restorations of castles. From a long list of commissions, only a handful fall outside the borders of Scotland. He set up office at 14 Randolph Place in 1908. He served in

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

in World War I. His older brother John Ogilvy Fairlie was killed in action on 25 September 1915. With the death of his father on 28 September 1916, Reginald fell heir to the family estate of Myres. In the early 1920s he designed a series of war memorials, largely working with the sculptor Alexander Carrick. After the war (around 1920) he joined forces briefly with the architects

Reid and Forbes Reid and Forbes was a firm of Scottish architects specialising in school buildings in central and southern Scotland from 1920 to 1964. They had a very distinctive style and many of their buildings are now listed buildings. History The firm was a ...

and worked on some award winning housing schemes including Northfield in Edinburgh. He set up his own office at 7 Ainslie Place (which was also his home) in 1925 but remained linked with

until 1926. Curiously, James Smith Forbes of

lodged with Fairlie even after the end of their business partnership. His neighbour at 7 Ainslie Place was Francis Cadell the artist, and they became friends and remained so even after Cadell moved house. He was also close friends with the sculptor Hew Lorimer, whom he met during his connection with

as Hew was his second son. He pulled Hew into some of his projects, including the prestigious National Library project, where Hew provided the figurative sculpture on the frontage. From 1930 to 1935

Schomberg Scott Walter Schomberg Hepburn Scott (1910–1998) was a Scottish people, Scottish architect specialising in building restoration. From 1950 to 1975, he did multiple projects for the National Trust of Scotland. Life He was born on 14 September 191 ...

worked in his office as a junior. He generously passed the commission for the restoration of

Iona Abbey Iona Abbey is an abbey located on the island of Iona, just off the Isle of Mull on the West Coast of Scotland. It is one of the oldest History of early Christianity, Christian religious centres in Western Europe. The abbey was a focal point ...

to his friend and employee

in 1938. Fairlie lived the life of a bachelor, with a personal servant, Robertson, serving him faithfully until death in 1938. He leased Inchrye Abbey from 1931 to 1939 for shooting parties and falconry. Work ceased on most projects during World War II, including his major commission for the National Library. The work on the library did not resume until 1950. In 1946 Fairlie was elected a fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

. His proposers were Sir David Russell, Sir James C Irvine, Sir

Ernest Wedderburn Sir Ernest MacLagan Wedderburn (3 February 1884 – 3 June 1958) was a Scottish lawyer, and a significant figure both in the civic life of Edinburgh and in the legal establishment. He held the posts of Professor of Conveyancing in the Univers ...

, and

Robert James Douglas Graham Robert James Douglas Graham FRSE (1884–1950) was a Scottish botanist. Life He was born on 20 July 1884 in Perth, the son of Dr John Thomas Graham. His family lived at 4 Athole Crescent in Perth. He was educated at Perth Academy then attended ...

. Fairlie died in St. Raphael’s Nursing Home in the

Grange, Edinburgh The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hi ...

, but was buried with his parents in the Eastern Cemetery in

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

. His grave stone was carved by his friend Hew Lorimer. It lies on the eastern wall, towards the south-east corner.

Achievements

Fairlie rose to the position of chairman of the Directorate of Ancient Monuments. In 1933 he became elected a full member of the

Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country's national academy of art. It promotes contemporary art, contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy ...

. In 1937 he received a doctorate from the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

(LLD) for his work on St Salvator’s Chapel there. He was also a member of the Royal Fine Art Commission and the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...

Principal works

His works include: *Our Lady of the Assumption and St Meddan,

Troon Troon (Scottish Gaelic: ''An Truthail'') is a town and sea port in South Ayrshire, situated on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland, about north of Ayr and northwest of Glasgow Prestwick Airport. Troon has a port with ferry and freight serv ...

, listed as Category A. 1909-1911. * St James Church, St Andrews, 1910 * Sousing scheme in

Moffat Moffat is a burgh and parish in Dumfriesshire. Part of the Dumfries and Galloway local authority area in Scotland, it lies on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. It was a centre of the wool trade and a spa town. Moffat is arou ...

, 1921 (with

) * Housing scheme in Northfield, Edinburgh, 1921 (with

) * Restoration of Hutton Castle, 1926 * Side chapels of St Mary, Our Lady of Victories Church, Dundee, 1926 * Cloister at

Kelso Abbey Kelso Abbey is a ruined Scottish abbeys, Scottish abbey in Kelso, Scottish Borders, Kelso, Scotland. It was founded in the 12th century by a community of Tironensian monks first brought to Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland in the reign of Alexander ...

, 1933 * Scottish Classroom, one of the Nationality Rooms at the

Cathedral of Learning The Cathedral of Learning is a 42-story skyscraper that serves as the centerpiece of the University of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsburgh's (Pitt) main campus in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Stan ...

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

, 1938 *

National Library of Scotland The National Library of Scotland (NLS; ; ) is one of Scotland's National Collections. It is one of the largest libraries in the United Kingdom. As well as a public programme of exhibitions, events, workshops, and tours, the National Library of ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, 1938–56

Memorials by Fairlie

Memorials he designed include:Dictionary of Scottish Architects: Fairlie *Kinclaven War Memorial, 1919 *

War Memorial, 1919 *

Peebles Peebles () is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the United Kingdom census, 2011, 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in ...

War Memorial, 1919 *

Auchtermuchty Auchtermuchty ( ; , 'upland of the pigs/boar') is a town in Fife, Scotland. It is beside Pitlour Hill and north of Glenrothes. History Until 1975 Auchtermuchty was a royal burgh, established under charter of James V of Scotland, King Jame ...

War Memorial, 1920 * Blairgowrie War Memorial, 1920 *

Monzievaird Monzievaird () is a location in Scotland, situated west of Crieff, within the Highland district of Perth and Kinross. The village of Monzie (pronounced "Mon-ee") lies a few miles to the east-northeast. Name The place was originally named ''Muit ...

and Strachan War Memorial, 1920 *Tomb of Canon Lyle, St Joseph's RC Church,

, 1920 *Memorial Chapel (Lady Chapel)

Dunblane Cathedral Dunblane Cathedral is the larger of the two Church of Scotland parish churches serving Dunblane, near the city of Stirling, in central Scotland. The lower half of the tower is pre- Romanesque from the 11th century, and was originally free-stan ...

c.1922

References

* Patrick Nuttgens, "Reginald Fairlie, 1883–1952: a Scottish architect", Oliver and Boyd, 1959
online biography at scottisharchitects.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairlie, Reginald 1883 births 1952 deaths 20th-century Scottish architects People from Fife Architects from Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Scottish Academicians Scottish Roman Catholics 20th-century Scottish antiquarians British Army personnel of World War I Military personnel from Fife Royal Engineers soldiers