Augustus Charles Pugin

Augustus Charles Pugin , 1762-1832, English writer on medieval architecture, b. France. His writings and drawings furnished a mass of working material for the architects of the Gothic revival . Among them is Specimens of Gothic Architecture (2 vol., 1821-23). In some of his publications he was assisted by his son, Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin, 1812-52, English architect and writer, noted for his prominent role in the Gothic revival. Although he erected numerous buildings, including churches, monasteries, and convents, his writings exerted greater influence than his architecture, and his works Contrasts (1836) and The True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture (1841) might be termed the textbooks of the Gothic revival. His other publications include Gothic Furniture in the Style of the 15th Century (1835) and Glossary of Ecclesiastical Ornament and Costume (1844). He worked under Sir Charles Barry on the Houses of Parliament, chiefly in the execution of fittings and ornamental details. The cathedral in St. George's Fields, London, is an example of his executed work, which included over 65 churches.

Bibliography: See studies by M. Trappes-Lomax (1933) and P. Stanton (1972).

Pugin, Augustus Charles (1769–1832). French-born, he came to Wales during the French Revolution. He became an assistant to Nash, and made his reputation as a draughtsman, drawing and etching plates for Rudolph Ackermann (1764–1834), John Britton (1771–1857), Edward Wedlake Brayley (1773–1854), and other publishers. He produced some of the first archaeologically accurate images of medieval architecture in Specimens of Gothic Architecture … at Oxford (1816), Specimens of Gothic Architecture (1821–3), Gothic Furniture (1827), Specimens of the Architectural Antiquities of Normandy (1827–8), Examples of Gothic Architecture (1828–36), Gothic Ornaments from Ancient Buildings in England and France (1828–31), and A Series of Ornamental Timber Gables, from Existing Examples in England and Wales (1831). These works were as important for the Gothic Revival as Stuart and Revett's were for the Greek Revival. With Charles Heath (1785–1848) he produced Paris and its Environs (1829–31). He made designs for cemeteries, including a layout for Kensal Green Cemetery, London (1830). His pupils included Ferrey, Pennethorne, and his son, A. W. N. Pugin.

Bibliography

Colvin (1995);
Ferrey (1861);
Jervis (1984);
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (2004);
Placzek (ed.) (1982);
Jane Turner (1996)

Pugin, Augustus Welby Northmore (1812–52) English architect. With Sir Charles Barry, he designed (1840–70) the Houses of Parliament. Through his designs and writings, especially True Principles of Pointed or Christian Architecture (1841), he was a leading promoter of the Gothic revival.