Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Georgian Dublin
Dublin's architectural apogee can roughly be placed in the period spanning the rule of the
four English Georges, between the accession of George I in 1714 and the death of George
IV in 1830. The greatest influence on the shape of modern Dublin throughout this period
was the Wide Street Commissioners, appointed in 1757 and responsible for designing civic
spaces and the framework of the modern city. Their efforts were complemented by Dub-
lin's Anglo-Irish Protestant gentry who, flush with unprecedented wealth, dedicated them-
selves wholeheartedly towards improving their city.
Their inspiration was the work of the Italian architect Andrea Palladio (1508-80), who
revived the symmetry and harmony of classical architecture. When the Palladian style
reached these shores in the 1720s, the architects of the time tweaked it and introduced a
number of, let's call them, 'refinements'. Most obvious were the elegant brick exteriors and
decorative touches, such as coloured doors, fanlights and ironwork, which broke the some-
times austere uniformity of the fashion. Consequently, Dublin came to be known for its
'Georgian style'.
GEORGIAN PLASTERERS
The handsome exteriors of Dublin's finest Georgian houses are often matched by superbly crafted plasterwork
within. The fine work of Michael Stapleton (1770-1803) can be seen in Trinity College (
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), Ely House
near St Stephen's Green, and Belvedere House in north Dublin. The LaFranchini brothers, Paolo (1695-1776) and
Filippo (1702-79), are responsible for the outstanding decoration in Newman House (
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) on St Stephen's
Green. But perhaps Dublin's most famous plastered surfaces are in the chapel at the heart of the Rotunda Hospital
(
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). Although hospitals are never the most pleasant places to visit, it's worth it for the German stuc-
codore, Bartholomew Cramillion's fantastic rococo plasterwork.
Sir Edward Lovett Pearce
The architect credited with the introduction of this style to Dublin's cityscape was Sir Ed-
ward Lovett Pearce (1699-1733), who first arrived in Dublin in 1725 and turned heads
with the building of Parliament House (Bank of Ireland; 1728-39). It was the first two-
chamber debating house in the world and the main chamber, the House of Commons, is
topped by a massive pantheon-style dome.
Pearce also created the blueprint for the city's Georgian townhouses, the most distin-
guishing architectural feature of Dublin. The local version typically consists of four
storeys, including the basement, with symmetrically arranged windows and an imposing,
