52 



THE CIVIL ENCINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL. 



[FKBRtrARY, 



REVIEWS. 



Rf])ton's Landscape Gardeninr/ and Landscape Architecfiire, a New Edition. 

 By J. C. Loudon, F.L.S. Lomlon : Longman and Co., 1840. 



'laijii/ ruiiiii 



HUMPHRY REPTON. 



IIiini))liiy Rcpton was born at Bury St. Edmond's, May 2d, 1 "r>2, of a 

 respectalde family, and w.as originally intended for trade. At an early |ieriod 

 lie was thrown into contact with the Hopes of Amsterdam, a circmnstance 

 which perhaps decided the natural bent of his mind, and confirmed tliat love 

 for the arts which forbade any other pm-suit. After a long contest against 

 his favourite studies, about 1 788 he decided upon adopting the profession of 

 a Landscape Gardener, a title which lie created and maintained against those 

 who decried its novelty. What was his success iii this career it is uuneces- 

 saiT for us to mention,'Englaud abounds with bis works, and he has left be- 

 hind him a name which will live when the tr.iccs of his labours have vanished. 

 His personal character powerfully influenced him in his artistical career, mild 

 and amiable in his disposition, the same feelings seemed to influence bis de- 

 signs. Cirandeur perhaps he rarely attained, but in producing scenes of culti- 

 vated and placid beauty, speaking at once of comfort and of wealth, he stood 



without a rival. He seemed as it were the genius born for cultivating the 

 gentle slopes, aud verdant meads of the sea-girt island, ever inspired with that 

 love of the beautiful in nature, which marks the English character, fertile in 

 expedient, he waged perpetual battle against the rude and unpicturesque, and 

 powerfully contributed towards promoting that taste in landscape which has 

 rendered this country the model of surrounding nations. 



Repton's works consist of an agglomeration of fragments dispersed over 

 one folio and three quarto volumes, now, however, collected by Mr. Loudon 

 into one volume octavo. The service which Mr. Loudon has rendered by 

 this task, cannot be too highly appreciated by the public, for he thus codified 

 (as Hentbam would have called it) the most valuable materials on the theory 

 and practice of the art. Tlu-onghout these works a continual flow of origin- 

 ality of thought and beauty of idea seems to run from the pencil and pen of 

 Mr. Repton, while the manner in which he exhibits its own personal interest 

 in the subject give such a tone of identity as to resemble rather the warm 

 breathing words of a professor than the cool notes of a closet WTiter. Repton 

 is always present before us, and yet, instead of charging him with egotism, 

 we receive him as a kindly guide and instructor. There are few portions of 

 Milton more interesting than that where alluding to his blindness, we are 

 personally introduced to an author whom we admire. Thus Repton alludes 

 to some of his grievances. 



'* I cannot help mentioning, that, from the obstinacy and bad taste of the 

 Bristol mason who executed the design, I was mortified to find that Gotliic 

 entrance built of a dark blue stone, with dressiTigs of white Bath stone ; and 

 in another place, the intention of the design was totally destroyed, by paint- 

 ing all the wood-work of this cottage of a bright pea-green. Such, alas ! is 

 the mortifying diflference betwixt the design of the artist, and the execution 

 of the artificer." 



" Such is tlie horror of seeing any building belonging to the offices, that, 

 in one instance, I was desired by the architect to plant a wood of trees on the 

 earth winch had been laid over the copjior roofs of the kitchen offices, and 

 which extended 300 feet in length from the house." 



To show the judicious observations of Mr. Repton relative to the architec- 

 ture and alterations of old buildings, we select the following extracts from 

 different parts of the work before us, and through the liberality of Mr. Lou- 

 don, we are enabled to give a few of the valuable illustrations. 



FIG. 2.-ASHT0N COURT. 



S-^S.^^^G?'-"*^'"^ 



The old part built in the reign of Henry VI. 



The new part added in the reign of George HI. 



" The annexed engraving of Ashton Court, fig. 2, furnishes an example 

 of m.iking considerable additions to a very ancient mansion, without neglect- 

 ing the comforts of modern life, and without mutilating its original style and 

 character. 



" This house was built about the reign of HcniT VL, and originally con- 

 sisted of many different courts, surrounded by buildings, of which three are 

 still remaining ; in all tliise the Gothic windows, battlements, and jirojecting 

 Ijuttresses, have been preserved; but the front towards the south, 150 feet 

 in length, was built by Inigo Jones, in a heavy (irecian style ; tliis front was 

 designed to form one side of a large quadrangle, l)ut, from the unsettled state 

 of public affairs, the other three sides were never added, and the present long 

 front was never intended to be seen from a distance : this building consists 

 of a very fine gallery, which has been shortened to make such rooms as mo- 

 dern habits require ; but it is now proposed to restore this gallery to its ori- 



ginal character, and to add in the new part, a library, drawing-room, eating- 

 room, billiard-room, with bed-rooms, dressing-rooms, and a family apartment, 

 for which there is no provision in the old part of the mansion. It is also 

 proposed to take down all the ruinous offices, and rebuild them with the ap- 

 pearance of antiquity, and the conveniences of modern improveineiit. 



" A general idea prevails, that, in most cases, it is better to rebuild than 

 repair a very old lionse ; aud the architect often finds less difficidty in making 

 an entire new plan, than in adapting judicious alterations : but if a single 

 fragment remains of the grandeur of former times, whether of a castle, an 

 abbey, or even a house, of the date of Queen Elizabeth, I cannot too strongly 

 enforce tlie propriety of preserving the original character of such antiquity, 

 lest every hereditary' mansion in the kingdom should dwindle into the insig- 

 nificance of a modern villa." 



