This is the first monograph of George Edmund Street, a prolific High Victorian architect of churches and other buildings, the best known of which is the Royal Courts of Justice (the Law Courts). He was born in Essex and, after being articled in Winchester, worked in the office of George Gilbert Scott before setting out on his own account. His earliest works were in Cornwall, but he went on to design many churches, parsonages and schools in Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, having been appointed Oxford diocesan architect.
Moving to London opened up commissions far and wide, as far north as Aberdeenshire, and also abroad. He paid great attention to the fittings and furnishings of his churches, taking a particular detailed interest in stained glass and embroidery. He was renowned for always completing all his own drawings personally, to the frustration of his pupils and assistants, including Philip Webb and Norman Shaw, who successively became his chief assistant before branching out on their own.
His early death at the age of 57 is often attributed to the strain of building the Law Courts, which were completed after his death. Geoff Brandwood, who died suddenly in November 2021, was the author of monographs on Sharpe, Paley & Austin and on Temple Moore. He was a former chairman of the Victorian Society.
2024 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of George Edmund Street.
