Pevsner Architectural Guides

The Pevsner Architectural Guides are a series of guide books to the architecture of the British Isles. Begun in the 1940s by art historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, the 46 volumes of the original Buildings of England series were published between 1951 and 1974. The series was then extended to Scotland, Wales and Ireland in the late 1970s. The Scottish and Irish guides were incomplete as of summer 2012. Most of the English volumes have had second editions, chiefly by other authors.

The final Scottish volume, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire, has been announced for publication in Autumn 2016.[1] This will complete coverage of Great Britain in the 65th anniversary year of the series' inception.

Buildings of England

Origin and research methods

After moving to Great Britain from his native Germany in the 1930s, Nikolaus Pevsner found that the study of architectural history had little status in academic circles, and that the amount of information available, especially to travellers wanting to inform themselves about the architecture of a particular district, was limited. He conceived a project to write a series of comprehensive county guides to rectify this, and gained the backing of Allen Lane, founder of Penguin Books, for whom he had written his Outline of European Architecture.

Work on the series began in 1945. Lane employed two part-time assistants, both German refugee art historians, who prepared notes for Pevsner from published sources. Pevsner spent the academic holidays touring the country to make personal observations and to carry out local research, before writing up the finished volumes. The first volume was published in 1951. Pevsner wrote 32 of the books himself and ten with collaborators, with a further four of the original series written by others: the two Gloucestershire volumes by David Verey, and the two volumes on Kent by John Newman. Newman is the only author in the series to have written a volume and revised it three times.

Since Pevsner's death, work has continued on the series, with several volumes now in their third revision, and three in their fourth editions.

Content of the volumes

The books are compact and intended to meet the needs of both specialists and the general reader. Each contains an extensive introduction to the architectural history and styles of the area, followed by a town-by-town — and in the case of larger settlements, street-by-street — account of individual buildings. The guides offer both detailed coverage of the most notable buildings and notes on lesser-known and vernacular buildings; all building types are covered but there is a particular emphasis on churches and public buildings. Each volume has a central section with several dozen pages of photographs, originally in black and white, though colour illustrations have featured in revised volumes published by Yale University Press since 2003.

Boundaries

The boundaries of each volume do not follow a uniform pattern and have evolved with revisions. Although the majority of the volumes covering England still follow traditional county boundaries, there are several exceptions and quirks: Cumbria, for example, covers the modern non-metropolitan county - excepting the district of Sedbergh which although in modern Cumbria is included in the volume covering the West Riding of Yorkshire. Conversely, the Furness area - geographically in Cumbria but traditionally in Lancashire - is included, having been omitted from the predecessor volume, Cumberland and Westmorland. Five of the six volumes covering London collectively represent the 32 London boroughs which constitute the modern Greater London region, rather than the earlier divisions. The entire volume on Middlesex was an early casualty of this rearrangement, as are parts of the revised volumes covering Surrey, Essex and Kent. (The sixth volume corresponds to the boundaries of The City of London.) The Buildings of Scotland similarly features hybrid divisions, with a volume such as Fife reflecting its traditional county boundary whilst Highland corresponds to the modern counterpart (although including the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland, none of which form part of the Highland council area). The Buildings of Ireland has so far broadly corresponded to the traditional provinces of Ireland and is blind to the national boundary. The Buildings of Wales largely follows the post-1974 divisions.

Celebratory volumes

In 1986 Penguin Books published an anthology from Pevsner's volumes edited by Bridget Cherry and John Newman, The Best Buildings of England, ISBN 0-670-81283-8. It has an introduction by Newman assessing Pevsner's aims and methods.

In 2001 the Penguin Collectors Society published The Buildings of England: a Celebration, edited by Simon Bradley and Bridget Cherry, fifty years after BE1 was published: it includes twelve essays and a selection of text from the series.[2]

Volumes in print and their editions

The list below is of the volumes that are in print in 2015 – dates in brackets indicate as yet unpublished new editions. Since 1962, many (although not yet all) of the volumes have been updated to reflect architectural-history scholarship and to include significant new buildings. Pevsner left virtually all the revisions to others, acting as supervisor only. He ultimately revised only two of his original editions alone: London 1: The Cities of London and Westminster (1962) and Cambridgeshire (1970). Both were later revised again by others.

As of 2016, the oldest wholly unrevised volume is Yorkshire: The North Riding (1966). Additionally, readers looking for information on West Sussex will have to consult Ian Nairn's 1965 text, whilst those wishing to read about the architecture of the Black Country must refer to the 1966 text of Warwickshire pending a new volume.

Until 1953 all volumes were published in paperback only, after which both hardback and paperback versions were issued. The revision of London: 1 in 1962 was the first volume to be issued in hardback alone, and no further paperbacks were issued after 1964. Until 1970 volumes bore a sequential BE reference number, with Cornwall being BE1. The last volume to be so numbered was Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and the Forest of Dean (BE41). Thereafter ISBNs identify each volume.

Beginning in 1983, a larger format was introduced, and all subsequent new editions have been issued in this format. Unrevised volumes remain in the original, smaller format (marked with an asterisk in the table below). All editions are now published by Yale University Press.

Title of Current Edition First Edition Co-author(s) Second Edition Co-author(s) Third Edition Co-author(s) Current ISBN
Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire and Peterborough 1968 2014 Charles O'Brien ISBN 978-0-300-20821-4
Berkshire 1966 2010 Geoffrey Tyack, Simon Bradley ISBN 978-0-300-12662-4
Birmingham and the Black Country1 1966 Alexandra Wedgwood (TBA) Andy Foster (in preparation)
Buckinghamshire 1960 1994 Elizabeth Williamson ISBN 978-0-300-09584-5
Cambridgeshire 1954 1970 2014 Simon Bradley ISBN 978-0-300-20596-1
Cheshire 1971 Edward Hubbard 2011 Clare Hartwell, Matthew Hyde ISBN 978-0-300-09588-3
Cornwall 1951 1970 Enid Radcliffe 2014 Peter Beacham ISBN 978-0-300-12668-6
County Durham* 1953 1983 Elizabeth Williamson ISBN 978-0-300-09599-9
Cumbria 1967 2 2010 Matthew Hyde ISBN 978-0-300-12663-1
Derbyshire* 1953 1978 Elizabeth Williamson (2016) Clare Hartwell ISBN 978-0-300-09591-3
Devon 1952 3 1989 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09596-8
Dorset* 1972 John Newman ISBN 978-0-300-09598-2
Essex 1954 1965 Enid Radcliffe 2007 James Bettley ISBN 978-0-300-09601-9
Gloucestershire 1: The Cotswolds 1970 David Verey 4 1979 1999 Alan Brooks ISBN 978-0-300-09604-0
Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and Forest of Dean 1970 David Verey 4 1976 2002 Alan Brooks ISBN 978-0-300-09733-7
The Isle of Wight 1967 5 David W. Lloyd 2006 David W. Lloyd ISBN 978-0-300-10733-3
Hampshire and the Isle of Wight* 1967 David W. Lloyd ISBN 978-0-300-09606-4
Hampshire: Winchester and The North 1967 6 David W. Lloyd 2010 Michael Bullen, John Crook, Rodney Hubbuck ISBN 978-0-300-12084-4
Herefordshire 1963 2012 Alan Brooks ISBN 978-0-300-12575-7
Hertfordshire* 1953 1977 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09611-8
Kent: North East and East 1969 John Newman 4 1976 1983
2013 (4th) 		ISBN 978-0-300-18506-5
Kent: West and the Weald 1969 John Newman 4 1976 2012 ISBN 978-0-300-09614-9
Lancashire: Liverpool and the South West 1969 7 2006 Richard Pollard ISBN 978-0-300-10910-8
Lancashire: Manchester and the South East 1969 7 2004 Clare Hartwell, Matthew Hyde ISBN 978-0-300-10583-4
Lancashire: North 1969 2009 Clare Hartwell ISBN 978-0-300-12667-9
Leicestershire and Rutland 1960 1984 Elizabeth Williamson ISBN 978-0-300-09618-7
Lincolnshire 1964 John Harris 1989 Nicholas Antram ISBN 978-0-300-09620-0
London 1: The City of London 1957 8
 1962 8
 1973 8
1997 (4th) 9 		Bridget Cherry
Simon Bradley
ISBN 978-0-300-09624-8
London 2: South 1952 10 1983 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09651-4
London 3: North West 1951 11
1952 9 		1991 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09652-1
London 4: North 1951 11
1952 9 		1998 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09653-8
London 5: East 1952 10 1998 12 Elizabeth Williamson 2004 Bridget Cherry, Charles O'Brien ISBN 978-0-300-10701-2
London 6: Westminster 1957 8
 1962 8
 1973 8
2003 (4th) 9 		Bridget Cherry
Simon Bradley
ISBN 978-0-300-09595-1
Norfolk 1: Norwich and North East 1962 1997 Bill Wilson ISBN 978-0-300-09607-1
Norfolk 2: North-west and South 1962 1999 Bill Wilson ISBN 978-0-300-09657-6
Northamptonshire 1961 13 1973 14 Bridget Cherry 2013 Bruce Bailey ISBN 978-0-300-18507-2
Northumberland 1957 (Ian A. Richmond) 15 1992 John Grundy, Grace McCombie, Peter Ryder, Humphrey Welfare ISBN 978-0-300-09638-5
Nottinghamshire* 1951 1979 Elizabeth Williamson ISBN 978-0-300-09636-1
Oxfordshire* 1974 Jennifer Sherwood ISBN 978-0-300-09639-2
Shropshire 1958 2006 John Newman ISBN 978-0-300-09642-2
Somerset: North and Bristol 1958 2011 Andrew Foyle ISBN 978-0-300-09640-8
Somerset: South and West 1958 2014 Julian Orbach ISBN 978-0-300-20740-8
Staffordshire* 1974 ISBN 978-0-300-09646-0
Suffolk: East 1961 16 1974 Enid Radcliffe 2015 James Bettley ISBN 978-0-300-19654-2
Suffolk: West 1961 16 1974 Enid Radcliffe 2015 James Bettley ISBN 978-0-300-19655-9
Surrey* 1962 Ian Nairn 1971 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09675-0
Sussex* 1965 Ian Nairn ISBN 978-0-300-09677-4
Sussex: East with Brighton and Hove 1965 17 (Ian Nairn) 18 2013 Nicholas Antram ISBN 978-0-300-18473-0
Warwickshire* 1966 Alexandra Wedgwood (2016) 19 Chris Pickford ISBN 978-0-300-09679-8
Wiltshire* 1963 1975 Bridget Cherry ISBN 978-0-300-09659-0
Worcestershire 1968 2007 Alan Brooks ISBN 978-0-300-11298-6
Yorkshire: The North Riding* 1966 ISBN 978-0-300-09665-1
Yorkshire: The West Riding* 1959 1967 Enid Radcliffe ISBN 978-0-14-071017-5
Yorkshire: The West Riding: Leeds, Bradford and the North 1959 20 1967 Enid Radcliffe 2009 Peter Leach ISBN 978-0-300-12665-5
Yorkshire: The West Riding: Sheffield and the South 1959 20 1967 Enid Radcliffe (TBA) Ruth Harman (in preparation)
Yorkshire: York and The East Riding 1972 1995 David Neave ISBN 978-0-300-09593-7

Notes

Note 1: Predecessor volume is Warwickshire
Note 2: First published as Cumberland and Westmorland – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 3: First published as two volumes: North Devon and South Devon – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 4: Sole credited author.
Note 5: First published as Hampshire and the Isle of Wight – see below.
Note 6: First published as Hampshire and the Isle of Wight – see above.
Note 7: First published as Lancashire 1: The Industrial and Commercial South – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 8: First published as London: The Cities of London and Westminster – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 9: Not identified as a Fourth Edition in the text but as a 'successor volume'.
Note 10: First published as London, except the Cities of London and Westminster – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 11: First published as Middlesex – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 12: Docklands area only – See Superseded Volumes.
Note 13: Including Peterborough.
Note 14: Excluding Peterborough – see Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire and Peterborough above.
Note 15: Ian Richmond credited as a contributor rather than co-author.
Note 16: First published as Suffolk – see Superseded Volumes.
Note 17: First published as Sussex – see above.
Note 18: Ian Nairn was only indirectly involved in the text under revision in this volume.
Note 19: Excluding Birmingham and the Black Country – see above.
Note 20: First published as Yorkshire: The West Riding – see above.

City Guides

The first of the paperback City Guides, covering Manchester, appeared in 2001. It featured a new format with integrated colour illustrations. In most cases the City Guides have preceded a revision of the county volume in which they are located, although they do go into greater detail than the county volumes and have more illustrations. Thus the Birmingham guide completely supersedes the central Birmingham section of the Warwickshire volume, which is now almost fifty years old. Two of the guides, covering Newcastle and Gateshead and Hull, are more recent than the hardback editions for the surrounding counties, and therefore update as well as expand the coverage of those cities. This series appears to be on a hiatus, with no new volumes published since 2010 and none confirmed as in planning.

Two supplementary works – thus far the only of their type – were published in 1998, one covering London's City Churches and the other the Docklands area (see London Docklands in Superseded Volumes below). Both were issued in the format of the main series rather than the City Guides. However, unlike the Docklands edition which represented preliminary work for an expanded main volume, the City Churches volume augmented the text in London 1: The City, published the previous year. The continued development of the Docklands area meant that the volume was superseded when London 5: East was published seven years later, but the City Churches volume remains current and was reissued by Yale in 2002.

Buildings of Scotland

The series continued under Pevsner's founding editorship into Scotland. The format is largely similar; however, only Lothian was published in the original small volume style. One noticeable difference in some of the Scottish series is a greater subdivision of the main gazetteer (e.g. in Argyll and Bute mainland Argyll has separate gazetteer from its islands, and Bute similarly is treated on its own). Unlike The Buildings of England, none of the Scottish volumes adopts a hierarchy of ecclesiastical buildings, instead grouping them together. As with the English revisions, several of the volumes are the work of many contributors. As of 2015, the series is one volume from completion.

The volumes on Glasgow and Edinburgh are, with Dublin (see below) the only Pevsner volumes outside London to focus exclusively on a city. These volumes should not be confused with the City Guide format (see above).

Buildings of Wales

The series has also been extended to Wales, and was completed with the issue of Gwynedd in 2009 (although this initial survey had taken seven years longer than Pevsner's first complete survey of England). Only the first volume, Powys (edited by Richard Haslam, and published in 1979) appeared in the original small format style; and this volume has now been superseded by a revised large-format edition, published in 2013. This is the first (and to date only) guide outside The Buildings of England series to be revised.

Buildings of Ireland

The Irish series is not so far advanced as the others, with only four volumes being published between 1979 and the present day. Research for several of the intended volumes has not yet begun.

Superseded volumes

The revision of the series has rendered some original volumes obsolete, usually as the area of coverage has changed. To date the following volumes have been entirely superseded:

In addition, two volumes, North Devon and South Devon (1952) were superseded by a single volume covering the entire county. Parts of the original Hampshire & the Isle of Wight and Yorkshire: the West Riding volumes have been superseded by revised volumes.

Unpublished volumes

In some published volumes and in advance publicity, certain titles were announced which were ultimately never published. A number of factors accounted for this, including the readiness of parts of the text covering certain areas and the anticipated size of the volumes. Unpublished titles included:

See also

Further reading

References

  1. ↑ http://issuu.com/yalebooks/docs/pevsner_newsletter_2015-16
  2. ↑ Bradley, Simon; Cherry, Bridget (2001). The Buildings of England: a Celebration. Penguin Collectors' Society. ISBN 978-0952740131.
  3. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  4. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  5. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  6. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  7. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  8. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  9. ↑ Mackay (2012)
  10. ↑ Announced in Cherry (1998)
  11. ↑ Announced in the Dumfries and Galloway volume (1996)
  12. ↑ Announced in Cherry (1998)
  13. ↑ Announced in the Fife volume (1992)

External links

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