William Burges

While back in Wales visiting my family we took the children to visit Cardiff Castle.
I have always been a fan of the English architect and designer William Burges (1827 - 1881) since I discovered his work while studying for my Foundation art course.

Burges sought in his work an escape from 19th century industrialisation and a return to the values, architectural and social, of an imagined mediaeval England.
His range encompassed some of the most splendid examples of mid and late Victorian gothic revival buildings, furniture, stained glass, jewellery and metalwork.
Burges was born on 2 December 1827, the son of Alfred Burges (1796–1886), a wealthy civil engineer who undertook work in Cardiff for John Crichton-Stuart, 2nd Marquess of Bute, himself the father of Burges' later, greatest, patron, the 3rd Marquess. Alfred Burges made a considerable fortune, some £113,000 at his death, and this wealth enabled Burges to devote his life to the study and practice of architecture, without requiring that he actually earn a living.

In 1865, the defining moment in Burges' life occurred when he met John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute and led him to produce his most important works, the castle at Cardiff and Castell Coch. The Marquess was the richest man in Britain and his unlimited resources gave Burges free rein to present a fantasy of the medieval world.

My children particularly love Castell Coch and every time we visit the grandparents it is a focal point to look out for on the way. With it's fairytale like turrets it really is every girls fantasy fairytale castle.