Hawksmoor, Nicholas

Hawksmoor, Nicholas, 1661–1736, English architect involved in the development of most of the great buildings of the English baroque. From the age of 21 he assisted Sir Christopher Wren in the design of Chelsea Hospital, city churches, royal residences, and St. Paul's Cathedral. He became deputy surveyor (1705–29) in the construction of Greenwich Hospital. In the building of the great residences, Castle Howard and Blenheim Palace, he was associated with Sir John Vanbrugh. Under the act of 1711, Hawksmoor was appointed one of the architects to design 50 churches in London. He planned (1714–30) six highly original churches, which included St. George's, Bloomsbury; Christ Church, Spitalfields; and the rebuilding of St. Mary Woolnoth. At Oxford he designed the north quadrangle of All Souls' College. Influenced by architectural elements of many periods, Hawksmoor arrived at an individuality of design that makes him a significant figure in the history of the international baroque.

Bibliography

See studies by K. Downes (1959, repr. 1979) and V. Hart (2003).