Molton, John

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Molton, John (fl. 1524–d. 1547). English master-mason. He worked at Westminster (1524–8) and Bath (1526–39) Abbeys, and succeeded Henry Redman as master-mason to the King and to Westminster Abbey in 1528. He probably designed the chantry-chapel of Abbot John Islip (d. 1532) in Westminster Abbey (1530s), and he worked on Cardinal (now Christ Church) College, Oxford, the Palace of Westminster, and, from 1532, Hampton Court Palace, where he designed the Great Hall. He seems to have been responsible for works at all the major buildings for King Henry VIII (1509–47), including the Palaces of St James, Bridewell, and Nonsuch, and the Forts of Deal, Walmer, and Sandown in Kent, although the last three buildings were designed by von Haschenperg, with probable contributions from Richard Lee. He was probably the last of the great English medieval architects.

Bibliography

J. Harvey (1987)