Georgian House Design

Clive Fewins reveals the secrets of creating an authentic  Georgian-style home from scratch.

When self-builders wish to build in a particular historical style, the vast majority seem to choose Georgian. Why? Houses built under the reigns of the Georges – George I came to the throne in 1714 – stand for civilisation and security. To the Georgians they also stood for comfort after the draughty timber framed houses of the previous century. They also somehow repre­sented sanity and stability after all the upheavals – religious and secular – in the 17th century. Today, this style of building, with its ordered façades and careful symmetry, also symbolises power, wealth and prestige. Self-builders still have some or all of these motives for building in the Classical style, just as much as they did when the style was at the height of its popularity in the mid and late 18th century.

These are also reasons why many develop­ers will do anything to add a Georgian look to a new house: it has a strong kerb appeal. For them and for self-builders, Georgian style also stands for good resale potential.

The key to Georgian domestic architecture is proportion. The cube-and-a-half proportion of Classical design was particularly adaptable to domestic construction. Many humble Georgian terraced façades – as well as grander houses – follow this guide, in which the square or cube provides the proportions for the first, second and attic floors and the half square the guide for the ground floor. It gives Georgian houses a clean, uncluttered façade, with dignity and elegance. The key words in Georgian houses are ‘elegant’, ‘timeless’, ‘symmetrical’ and ‘proportional’.

This is seen very clearly in the first phase of Georgian style — Palladian. Those designing large houses adhered rigidly to the strict rules of proportion set down by and derived from the writings and designs of Andrea Palladio (1508-80), who laid down the ground rules for the revival of Roman proportion and symmetry in buildings.

The mid-Georgian period was known as the ‘Adam’ period and the emphasis was still strongly on the Classical, but Robert Adam and his contemporaries were convinced that the Romans had never abided by rigid rules – such as those which the Palladians followed – but had adapted their Classical orders to need and scale. There is, therefore, a much freer spirit in the houses of the late Georgian period. At this time we also see much smaller houses being built according to the Georgian principle of elegance and proportion, especially in the rapidly emerging industrial centres. By the 1770s, building practice had become standardised to an extent that components such as windows and even the bricks themselves were becoming similar in size.

By the turn of the century and the Regency period, there was even more of a freeing-up in train. There was also a strong Greek revival, which resulted from contemporary scholars such as Lord Byron and Lord Elgin, who were engrossed in Greek archaeology and theory. The result was some rather severe Classical frontages with a plethora of full-height Doric columns supporting a wide roof overhang, again often decorated with Classical motifs. Building in this style is a challenge for any self-builder. Coupled with this was a feeling of romance and adventure. Some of this came from France — George, Prince of Wales, when acting as Regent for his mad father George III, espoused the light and fanciful French styles in architecture and decoration.
If it is the ‘lighter’ Regency style you are interested in, the Picturesque movement – with its cottage ornées and forays into light and fancy Gothic forms – was running in parallel with all this. Regency, therefore, became a distinct, if transitional, form of architecture in its own right. The self-builder should note in particular the slender Gothic tracery in the large, light, elongated windows — particularly in the orangeries that were so fashionable at this time. A large glass conservatory in the style of the day would be almost a prerequisite if you were to self-build in this style. A stuccoed exterior and an ironwork balcony, possibly canopied, with late Roman or Greek motifs, would also be highly in keeping.

DOORS

The panelled, painted front door is almost as much a hallmark of the Georgian house as the sash window. The number of panels would differ widely. The classic early Georgian arrangement was six panels, all disposed in accordance with the typically Palladian princi­ples of proportion — that is, with the top two far smaller than the middle two, which were themselves slightly taller than the bottom two. However, the pairs of panels would often be joined together, with five, seven or even just three panels. By the end of the 18th century three- and two-panelled front doors were common, often provided with additional decoration in the form of raised circles or lozenges, or in the case of the classic Regency, two-panelled front doors, incorpo­rating tall, round-headed panels.

Fanlights are very much a feature of Georgian front doors. They are a means of introducing light above the door into the hallway as well as providing the designer with great scope for individuality.

ROOFS

When there are servants’ rooms in an attic that needs light, the dormer windows are nearly always placed behind a parapet. Dormer windows and mansard (dual-pitch) roofs, which permitted large, lighter rooms in the roof, following French and Dutch styles, were popular in the earlier Georgian years. M-shaped roofs, with central valley gutters, from which the water was sometimes carried away internally, were also widely used at this stage of the Georgian period.

In highly embellished Classical Georgian façades there might be all manner of refine­ment, such as stone balustrad­ing, or elaborate two-colour brick panels, per­haps with raised pediments cutting into them. The more formal and Classical the style, the less visible the roof. Towards the end of the century, tiles were superseded by slates. Because they were lighter they permitted a shallower roof, which fitted in with the dominance of the façade —pre-eminent in grander houses at this stage.

STUCCO

We hear a lot about stucco in the Georgian period. Stucco was the Georgian way of doing what we today call render. The Georgians were masters at using it as an inexpensive means of achieving the effect of carved stone ornamental details. They were expert at making render (usually over inferior brick) look like stone. This often took place in the grander houses, when quite often render with large incised deep V-shaped grooves in it (known as rustication) was made to look like large blocks of ashlared stone. It was – and is – often so effective that even today you sometimes have to go up and feel it to tell whether it is stucco or genuine blocks of stone.

What Not To Do

1. Don’t get the proportions wrong. The key to Georgian domestic architecture is proportion. Alongside this go the concepts of order and symmetry. The Georgians found the cube-and-a-half proportion of Classical design was particularly adaptable to domestic construction. Many humble Georgian terraced façades, as well as grander houses, follow this guide, in which the square or cube provides the proportions for the first, second and attic floors, and the half square the guide for the ground floor

2. Don’t forget that interiors were planned rigidly to fit in with the façades. That is why in large Georgian houses it is not uncommon to see stair treads, or even whole landings, cutting inexplicably across the middle of windows in order to preserve the symmetrical effect of a Georgian façade. Therefore, it would be a mistake to graft on a wholly modern interior with lots of open plan spaces. If you want an open plan house don’t go for a Classical façade.

3. Don’t remove original interior features. A good example is fireplaces. There are very many ranges of reproduction Georgian and Victorian fireplaces nowadays but if the original is repairable, why not retain it? In addition, don’t make the mistake of thinking the Georgians stripped doors, windows and furniture. The Georgians used a lot of softwood and they painted it — doors, windows and furniture. The modern tendency to strip softwood furniture would be an anathema to any Georgian. Only very expensive timbers such as seasoned oak and mahogany would have been left unpainted.

Georgian Style Self-Build
Beverley Pemberton, head of design at leading self-build package supplier Design & Materials  (01909 730333), is one of the UK’s leading house designers.

“I am asked to design lots of houses each year with elements of the Georgian period but only occasionally am I asked to draw up an authentic design. That probably has something to do with cost, since faithful copies of the Georgian style are, in our experience, more expensive to build.

Common factors with all these commissions are the clients’ liking for symmetry, tall windows, higher than standard room heights and architectural detailing. 
“Detailing varies from stone verges, stone cills, waist courses, quoins, porticoes, canopies, full-height bays, special bricks such as flat arches over windows, arched top windows, and sweeping staircases — the list is almost endless. Because we have our own materials department we know what things cost and are able to offer all these features to our clients on a menu basis.

“On my own house, my first choice of a contemporary style was thwarted and ironically my second choice was a double-fronted period-style house. However, my own personal taste is not full-blown Georgian; I like symmetry but not over-fussy façades. I also love the tall windows associated with period houses and the light they draw into your home, which without question increases your feeling of well-being.”

History Lesson

The arrival of George I from Hanover did not mean an immediate change in domestic architecture. In the early years of the 18th century, Britain had been under the rule of Queen Anne, and the style had been predominantly Baroque — the rather sensuous form of Classical architecture known for its multi-windowed, classically proportioned frontages and multiplicity of chimneys. This continued throughout the reign of George I, who died in 1727. The other thing to remember is that the Georgian age was a very long one. It did not end until the death of George IV and the accession of William IV in 1830.

The last phase of the Georgian period, covering the reign of George IV from 1820-30 – and indeed before that while he was Prince Regent from 1811-1820 – was known as the Regency period. Architectural historians regard this period as having started at about 1800.

Before this was the Adam style, named after Robert Adam, the neo-Classical architect and interior designer whose influence and prolific output dominated the middle of the century. Prior to that the early Georgian, often called the Palladian style, after the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio, reigned supreme.

It therefore stands to sense that if you wish to position your house in a certain part of the Georgian period, you need to do some research to get it right.

• Read about Georgian Interiors