Basic Site Details
| Name: | Palace of Holyroodhouse, fountain in forecourt |
| City or county: | Edinburgh |
| Country: | Scotland |
| Parish: | |
| Status: | A Listed |
| Grid ref: | |
| Notes: | Carver - John Thomas. |
Events
| The following date-based events are associated with this building: | ||||
| From | To | Event type | Notes | |
 | 1858 | |||
People
Design and Construction
| The following individuals or organisations have carried out design/construction work. Where architects or practices worked together, matching letters appear beside their names in the Partnership Group column. | ||||||
| Name | Role | Partnership Group | From | To | Notes | |
| Andrew Kerr (senior) | A | 1858 | Working under Robert Matheson in H M Office of Works, Edinburgh | ||
| Charles Altamont Doyle | A | 1858 | Drawings - as asistant in H M Office of Works | ||
| H M Office of Works (later Ministry of Works, Department of the Environment and Property Services Agency) | A | 1858 | With Robert Matheson as Architect for Scotland, and Andrew Kerr; Charles Doyle responsible for drawings | ||
| Robert Matheson | A | 1858 | As architect for Scotland in H M Office of Works - Charles Doyle responsible for drawings | ||
Related Buildings, Structures and Designs
Parent Structure and Site
| This structure is related to the following parent structure or site (click the item to view details): | ||
| Building name | Notes | |
| Palace of Holyroodhouse | List description notes that John Fowler was involved at some stage but does not make clear what his input was. Chapel now demolished. Robert Reid work: SE portion rebuilt; SE quarter refloored, replastered, new woodwork, Duke of Hamiltpon's apartment woodwork cut out, new plaster and woodwork refinished. Also rebuilding part of the south wall forming the garden front of the palace tpowards the east, new roof over north west angle. Duke of Hamilton's (commendator's0 house removed; one of the south towers in common rublle completely rebuilt in ashlar, parapaets of towers renewed. South side refaced in ashlar. Alterations to interior cost £1945. Abbey Court almost completely taken down and rebuilt. John Douglas repair work (abstract from article by Dimitris Theodossopoulos): The collapse of the significant church of Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh in December 1768 is discussed as the result of the ill-conceived repair of the roof in 1760, i.e., the substitution of the timber trusses with closelyspaced diaphragm masonry walls that aggravated the delicate equilibrium of the vaults and the poor state of a building being mutilated over 250 years. This study interprets these repairs by demonstrating the authorship and partnership of the architect John Douglas with the mason-developer James McPherson, who combined architectural ambition (the aesthetics of a flagstone roof) with the (cheaper) option of diaphragms, which would not involve a wright. The detailed examination of the procurement, the process of the intervention, the collapse, and the limited impact of its aftermath, are framed in a wider technical and historical context in Edinburgh and Scotland, during a period marked by several failures of medieval churches, and reveals a poor understanding of a critical element in Gothic construction. Analysis of all public archive material available sheds light on key events of the case, and critical study of the work of the two partners’ attempts to identify the intentions of their project, whose limitations were inevitable once the partnership was formed. |
References
Bibliographic References
| The following books contain references to this building: | ||||||
| Author(s) | Date | Title | Part | Publisher | Notes | |
| Gifford, John, McWilliam, Colin and Walker, David M | 1984 | Edinburgh (The Buildings of Scotland) | Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd | p141 | |
| Grant, James | 1883 | Old and New Edinburgh | |||
| Richardson, J S | 1950 | The Abbey and Palace of Holyroodhouse: guide book | |||
| RSA | 1858 | 748 | |||
Periodical References
| The following periodicals contain references to this building: | |||||
| Periodical Name | Date | Edition | Publisher | Notes | |
| Building News | 10 June 1859 | |||
| Scotsman | 27 December 1886 | p6 - obituary of Andrew Kerr | ||
Archive References
| The following archives hold material relating to this building: | ||||
| Source | Archive name | Source catalogue no. | Notes | |
| Historic Environment Scotland | Listed Buildings Register | 28024 | |
| National Archives of Scotland (formerly SRO) | Register House Plans | ||