This is a recording of a talk called David Bryce: The 19th-Century Edinburgh Architect recorded on 29th March 2024.
David Bryce (1803 – 1876) worked in many styles, his first works were in the Palladian and Italian Renaissance styles.
He then devoted himself to the Scottish Baronial style, a variant of the Gothic in which he drew inspiration from 16th century Scottish architecture with its crow-stepped gables, turrets, and carved doorways. His greatest works are considered to be the ones that combine the French Gothic with Scottish 16th to 17th century baronial architecture.
Considered his most notable work, Fettes College (1863-69) in Edinburgh, was inspired by the Loire Chateaux of the Renaissance period, particularly Chateau Chambord (1547). The Royal Infirmary (1853) and Italianate Bank of Scotland (Remodelled 1864-1871) also in Edinburgh continue to bring picturesque the beauty of the city’s skyline.
Bryce's numerous commissions for country houses across Scotland fit idyllically into their landscape.
Professor Neil Jackson is an architect and architectural historian and Professor Emeritus in the School of Architecture at Liverpool University. He has published many books on architecture including Victorian architecture (Nineteenth-century Bath, Architects and Architecture, 1991, 1998; Saltaire: The Making of a Model Town, 2010) and Arts and Crafts architecture (F W Troup, Architect, 1985). He is a Trustee of the Victorian Society and has recently retired as the Chair of the Events Committee.
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Image: Fettes College south front, Edinburgh, Photo By Kim Traynor CC BY-SA 3.0
