EDINBURGH EXPERT WALKING TOURS

Edinburgh Expert Walking Tours BLOG

Buy Me a Coffee
Enjoy the blog but can't take a tour? Buy me a coffee!

Blog Archive
  • Home
  • Private Edinburgh Tours
    • Customised Edinburgh Tours
    • Fixed Route Tours >
      • Royal Mile Tour
      • New Town Tour
      • Old and New Towns Tour
      • Beyond the World's End Tour
  • Book Online
  • About Your Guide
  • Blog

4/11/2020

Architecture of Edinburgh - Robert Lorimer

Read Now
 
Robert Stodart Lorimer was born in Edinburgh on 4 November 1864.

His name isn't as well known as some of the architects like Robert Adam or William Playfair, but Lorimer was active across the UK and further afield during the early twentieth century, and found a reliable supply of work after the First World War as a designer of graves, monuments and war memorials. He also worked extensively in domestic settings, creating not the grand public buildings of better known architects, but contributing to his clients' domestic experience instead.

He was a notoriously frugal figure who never had more than four people working in his architecture practice, and resented having to buy coal to heat the offices during the winter months. He could also be a difficult man to work with, and lost several commissions because of his lack of tact or his  insistence on features and elements that his clients didn't like.

One of his chief draughtsmen once commented that Lorimer was "terrible with clients", and remembered that during one argument with a client was heard to say, "'This house will be remembered because I designed it, not because you paid for it"...!

But some of Lorimer's greatest works were public buildings and features in Edinburgh. Here are some highlights. 
PictureFlags of Knights of the Thistle in St Giles's Cathedral
THISTLE CHAPEL, ST GILES' CATHEDRAL
​Lorimer produced several memorials and commemorative features in St Giles' Cathedral, but his most significant early contribution to the church building was the Thistle Chapel, designed in 1909.

​This octagonal feature on the south-east corner of the building is filled with incredibly ornate decoration, with every surface covered in carved wooden panels with the crests of major Scottish figures around the space. It is in the Thistle Chapel that the Queen awards the chivalric title of Order of the Thistle, a historic royal honour dating back to the seventeenth century.

It's a small space, and not always open to the public (which is why I don't have photos of it!) but is worth visiting if you can get access during a visit - it is in the Thistle Chapel that you'll find the famous carving of an angel playing bagpipes! See if you can spot it amongst all the other decorations and carvings.
Picture
WALLACE AND BRUCE MONUMENTS, EDINBURGH CASTLE
The gatehouse of Edinburgh Castle was (only) built in the 1870s, but modifications were made in 1929 by Lorimer, for this grand entranceway to accommodate two statues of two of Scotland's historic heroes.

King Robert the Bruce and William Wallace stand on either side of the drawbridge entrance into the castle, cast by the sculptor Alexander Carrick. 

But it's inside the castle itself that Lorimer's greatest work is visited by thousands of visitors a year...

PictureScottish National War Memorial
Scottish National War Memorial, Edinburgh Castle
Designed and planned in the aftermath of World War One, Lorimer's building honouring the Scottish soldiers who lost their lives during that war was opened in 1927 and today honours all those Scots who have lost their lives in conflict since 1914. ​

​Lorimer utilised a part of an existing barracks block on the site at the top of Edinburgh Castle for his plans, which today are a quiet and peaceful place of reverence and respect.

​Rolls of the names of the dead are kept in books for visitors to trace family and loved ones, and even in the middle of the summer when the castle is at its busiest, the Scottish National War Memorial remains a place of remembrance.

Picture
WAR MEMORIALS
A number of other war memorial from Lorimer can be found in the city. Look for the memorial inside Old College, part of the University of Edinburgh, along with the memorial outside the City Chambers on the Royal Mile.

KING'S BUILDINGS
Another of the University of Edinburgh campuses is King's Buildings, a collection of science and technology departments a little way from the city centre. Lorimer's architectural firm, which he ran with John Fraser Matthew, was responsible for several of the buildings on the site, including the building which originally housed the university's zoology department
Picture
Lorimer died in 1929, so it's likely that the bulk of the zoology building from 1928 was designed and overseen by Matthew, but it's an intriguing structure that always catches my eye on my frequent trips past it to do my weekly supermarket shop...
Picture
The building features reliefs of a variety of animals, a fun and creative addition to what could otherwise have been a very sombre and imposing 1920s structure!

Here's an aardvark, but you might also see crocodiles, an elephant, a kangaroo and many more cast in the building's stone...

Find out more about some of Edinburgh's other architects and designers on my private city walking tours!

Share


Comments are closed.
Details

    Search the blog archive...

    Categories

    All
    Architecture Of Edinburgh
    Around Town
    A To Z Of Edinburgh
    City Of Literature
    Edinburgh History
    Edinburgh Local Heroes
    Edinburgh's Graveyards
    Expert Advice
    Local Flavour
    Museums And Galleries
    New Town
    Old Town
    Scottish History

    Archives

    January 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    July 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    October 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    April 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    August 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014

EDINBURGH TOURS
​Customised Edinburgh Walking Tours
Fixed Route Edinburgh Walking Tours
​​Edinburgh's New Town Walking Tour
Edinburgh's Old and New Towns Tour
Old Town and Royal Mile Walking Tour
Beyond the World's End Walking Tour​
BOOK A TOUR ONLINE
​Book an Edinburgh Tour
Edinburgh Tour Pricing
​Terms and Conditions
​Interactive Edinburgh map
CONTACT​
About Your Tour Guide
Edinburgh Expert Blog
​Frequently Asked Questions
​Telephone: +44 (0) 131 235 2351
Email: gareth@edinburghexpert.com
© COPYRIGHT GARETH DAVIES ​2014-23
Featured on KAYAK Travel Guides
  • Home
  • Private Edinburgh Tours
    • Customised Edinburgh Tours
    • Fixed Route Tours >
      • Royal Mile Tour
      • New Town Tour
      • Old and New Towns Tour
      • Beyond the World's End Tour
  • Book Online
  • About Your Guide
  • Blog