castles and fortifications

dreamscape built up by burges over decades throughout the later c19

burges drew on castles throughout europe for details for his mid c19th restorations, then added icing from his opiate dreams

view of the appartments at cardiff castle from the shell keep on the motte. the main block is c18 in its bones, with an interior transformed by billy burges , who was also responsible for the fairy tale tops.

burges employed and trained some of the best craftsmen of the mid c19th for work such as this leadwork lantern. his feel for and knowledge of mediaeval art enabled him to produce designs that could fool his peers, who took some of his elevations for original c13 drawings

a georgian country house was turned into a victorian dream of chivalry by william burges, using the finances of the fellow romantic the marquis of bute, who wanted to clothe his ancestral coal and iron docks at cardiff with a glamour that only the middle ages could supply. billy burges grafted his visions onto real mediaeval stock, which flowered in spectacular interiors and skylines like this, his imagination fed by his deep knowledge of the architecture and decorative techniques of the gothic period.

burges was probably best on smaller tighter designs, but he enjoyed recreating a romantic yet authentic dream here.

burges had a sympathetic grasp of sculptural form in building; walking around the outside of this castle gives a masterclass in proportion , texture and mass.

view from the balcony of lord bute's bedroom

strongly sculptural forms on the exterior act as a foil to burges' fantasia inside