RESTRICCIONES AL CRECIMIENTO DE LARGO PLAZO

lb See J M ordaunt Crook, ‘The Villas in Regent’s Park’ (1) & (2),

N o ttin g h a m Place, o n ly a s h o rt distance fro m th e p a rk . W ith in one y e a r Lance had sold h is lease to W illia m H e n ry C ooper w ho re m a in e d th e re u n til 1836 w hen he m oved to P a in sh ill, S urrey - w here D ecim us B u rto n c a rrie d o u t a lte ra tio n s . A lb a n y Cottage, la te r kn o w n as N o rth V illa (p la te 9) had been occupied b y 1824 b y th e d ia ris t Thom as Raikes. T his was designed b y C R C ockerell w ith som e p a rtic ip a tio n o n th e p a rt o f D ecim us Burton. 17 H anover Lodge designed b y D ecim us B u rto n fo r the N apoleonic ve te ra n S ir R obert A rb u th n o t (p la te 10) was occupied in 1827. Three o f th e v illa s stand o u t th ro u g h th e ir design and occupants. G rove House (p la te 11 a, b & c) was one o f th e m ost specular and w e ll p o s itio n e d v illa s designed an d b u ilt betw een 1822-4 b y D ecim us B u rto n fo r George Bellas G reenougl^ an e m in e n t n a tu ra l s cie n tist w ho liv e d th e re u n til h is death in 1856,

St Duns ta n 's (p la te 12 a & b) was designed b y B u rto n in 1825 fo r th e M arquess o f H e rtfo rd , one o f George IV 's closest associates, w ho h e ld o n to to th e v illa u n til h is death in 1842. H o lfo rd House, th e la s t o f th e e ig h t, was ow ned b y the w e a lth y c ity m e rch a n t James H o lfo rd w ho a p p lie d to th e com m issioners fo r la n d fo r a house in th e n o rth w e st o f the p a rk in 1833 w here he liv e d u n til h is death in 1854. This to o was designed b y B urton. The tw o la tte r v illa s w ere m uch la rg e r and m o re fla m b o y a n t th a n th e o th e rs a n d used fo r la v is h e n te rta in in g . The m ore p e rso n a l n a tu re o f th e p la n n in g o f these v illa s pe rha p s p a rtly e xp la in s w h y these w ere occupied b y single tenants fo r substantial p e rio d s o f tim e .

17 There appears to have been an unhappy collaboration between C R Cockerell and Decimus Burton. This is outlined in A Saunders, The Regent's Park Villas, London, 1981, pp 23-24.

The le a se h o ld n a tu re o f th e v illa s , th e ra p id tu rn a ro u n d and v a rie ty o f occupants, an d th e ir se m i-u rb a n lo c a tio n show th e d e p a rtu re th e Regent Park d w e llin g s m ade fro m th e established v illa tra d itio n an d th e u rb a n te rra ce d house. T h e y o ffe re d th e id e a o f a lan d sca p ed v illa th ro u g h th e fu s io n o f p riv a te an d com m on g ro u n d s: a k in d o f E nglish P icturesque in m in ia tu re . The in te n tio n had alw ays been th a t each v illa w o u ld be site d so th a t i t appeared to stand alone in the w hole p a rk. The v illa s were n o t n e ce ssa rily seen as lo n g te rm residences o r a n y k in d o f p e rm a n e n t base, in s te a d th e y w ere s o ld o n fo r p r o fit o r convenience. In m any ways th e y served as a g lo rifie d tow nhouse on th e edge o f th e c ity w ith a lin k v ia the new Regent’s S treet to th e ce n tre . Perhaps m ost im p o rta n tly th e b u ild in g h is to ry o f th e v illa s e sta b lish e s th e B u rto n s as in d e p e n d e n t p ra c titio n e rs ra th e r th a n m ere executants o f Nash’s plans.

T h e R e la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n Jam es a n d D e cim u s

T h e ro le p la y e d b y th e B u rto n s in th e w h o le p ro je c t is u n d o u b te d ly s ig n ific a n t. A n d th e re is no d o u b t th a t the v illa s p la y e d an im p o rta n t p a rt in D ecim u s’ s d e v e lo p m e n t as an a rc h ite c t. Just as D ecim us B u rto n m ade an im p o rta n t s ty lis tic c o n trib u tio n to th e p a rk, James was an im p o rta n t e n ab le r o f th e w h o le R egent’s Park and Regent’ s S treet p ro je c t. B ut i t was n o t alw ays cle a r c u t w ho had designed w ha t as th e re appears to have been some in te ra c tio n in the design process. The H olm e is a case in p o in t: perhaps in th e lig h t o f th e c ritic is m o f th e design d o u b t has been shed on D ecim us’s a u th o rs h ip . B ut it is v e ry lik e ly th a t

pp

p a re n ta l g u id a n c e . F u rth e rm o re a le tte r fro m Nash to th e C om m issioners o f W oods dated 16 M arch 1821 c le a rly states th a t James B u rto n in te n d e d to b u ild tw o fu rth e r v illa s in the p a rk and h a d fu rn is h e d th e designs him self, The p o rtic o added to the o rig in a l design o f S outh V illa a t th e behest o f th e le a se h o ld e r D a v id Lance was designed b y James Burton, T h is w o u ld have m ade i t m ore im pre ssive and m ay have been p ro m p te d b y the o p p o s itio n to B u rto n ’s design fo r th e H olm e. The in c lu s io n o f m ore grandiose elem ents in S outh V illa m ay have been to a vo id the c ritic is m m ade o f th e H olm e b y Nash and th e O ffice o f W oods th a t i t was u n s u ita b le fo r th e a rc h ite c tu ra l a s p ira tio n s o f th e p a rk (see a b o v e) . 20 James’s designs surface a g ain in D ecem ber 1822 w he n he re q u e ste d a lease on a v illa p lo t n e x t to M r L e nn a rd ’s. His design was sent to the Com m issioners o f W oods b y Nash w ith h is com m ents th e fo llo w in g January.2i

James’s in v o lv e m e n t in the design process does n o t d e tra c t fro m th e s k ill D ecim us d is p la y e d as an a rc h ite c t. B u t i t does d e m on stra te th e b lu rre d lin e betw een a rc h ite c t a n d b u ild e r and th e fa th e r and son p a rtn e rs h ip a t th is e a rly stage o f D ecim us’s ca re e r. By th e tim e D ecim us came to design The G rove th e re appears to have been a cle a re r d e m arcation betw een fa th e r and

18 Gres 2 /7 6 8