The term
Edwardian Baroque refers to the
Neo-Baroque architectural style of many public buildings built in the
British Empire during the
Edwardian era (1901–1910).
The characteristic features of the Edwardian Baroque style were drawn from two main sources: the architecture of France in the 18th century and that of Sir
Christopher Wren in
England in the 17th. Some of the architecture that borrowed more heavily from the
English Baroque architects was known by the term
Wrenaissance.
Sir Edwin Lutyens was a leading exponent, designing many commercial buildings in what he termed 'the Grand Style' in the later 1910s and 20s. This period of British architectural history is considered a particularly retrospective one, since it is contemporary with
Art Nouveau.
Typical details of Edwardian Baroque architecture include extensive
rustication, usually heavier at ground level, often running into and exaggerating the voissours of arched openings (derived from French models); domed corner rooftop pavilions and a central taller tower-like element creating a lively rooftop silhouette; revived Italian Baroque elements such as exaggerated keystones, segmental arched pediments, columns with engaged blocks, attached block-like rustication to window surrounds;
colonnades of (sometimes paired) columns in the
Ionic order and domed towers modelled closely on Wren's for the
Royal Naval College in
Greenwich. Some Edwardian Baroque buildings include details from other sources, such as the
Dutch gables...
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