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Francis Greenway

British-Australian architect (1777–1837)

British-Australian architect (1777–1837)

FieldValue
nameFrancis Howard Greenway
imageFrancis Greenway Portrait.jpg
captionFrancis Howard Greenway, 1814-1837, unknown artist, pencil [ML 482](http://digital.sl.nsw.gov.au/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?embedded=true&toolbar=false&dps_pid=FL3266814)
birth_date
birth_placeMangotsfield, Gloucestershire, England
death_date(aged 59)
death_placenear Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
resting_placeGlebe burial ground, East Maitland, New South Wales
resting_place_coordinates
monumentsFrancis Greenway High School, Beresfield
nationalityEnglish
occupationArchitect
years_active1800–1835
known_forEarly colonial Australian architecture
notable_worksList of works
criminal_chargeForgery
criminal_penalty14 years transportation to Australia
criminal_statusDischarged
children7

Francis Greenway (20 November 1777 - September 1837) was an English-Australian convict and colonial architect. After being convicted of forgery in England and subsequently transported to New South Wales, Australia (known then as New Holland) at age 37, Greenway was appointed the colony's official architect by Governor Lachlan Macquarie despite his convict status. Over the next two decades, Greenway designed the General Hospital (commonly known as the Rum Hospital), St James' Church, and the Macquarie Lighthouse. His designs incorporated neoclassical architectural principles and responded to the practical needs of the developing colony.

Life and career

Greenway was born in Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire (near the English city of Bristol), the son of Francis Greenway and Ann Webb. Greenway became an architect in Bristol and Bath. His only remaining building in the United Kingdom is the Clifton Club in Bristol, originally the Clifton Hotel and Assembly Rooms, although only the front facade is his work, due to bankruptcy in 1809. In 1812 he pleaded guilty to forging a financial document, and was sentenced to death; this sentence was later commuted to 14 years' transportation. It is not known why he pleaded guilty, but some believe that this was due to his bankruptcy and the dire circumstances he may have faced. Whilst awaiting deportation to Sydney, Greenway spent time in Newgate Prison, Bristol, where he painted scenes of prison life.

Greenway arrived in Sydney, New South Wales, on the transport * General Hewitt* in February 1814 to serve his sentence. On board the ship was the surgeon Dr John Harris who was to give Greenway his first private commission in the colony which involved extending his residence on his Ultimo estate. Greenway first met Lachlan Macquarie in July 1814, to whom he had come recommended by Admiral Arthur Phillip. During the initial meeting, Macquarie sought to test Greenway by asking him to copy a design of a town hall and courthouse from a pattern book. Greenway responded with a letter asserting his professional qualifications and urging Macquarie to consider a classical design, citing Sir William Chambers. He added that he would "immediately copy the drawing Your Excellency requested me to do, notwithstanding it is rather painful to my mind as a professional man to copy a building that has no claim to classical proportion and character."

Between 1816 and 1818, while still a convict, Greenway was responsible for the design and construction of the Macquarie Lighthouse on the South Head 2 km from the entrance to Port Jackson. After the success of this project, he was emancipated by the governor Lachlan Macquarie on 16 December 1817 at the Lighthouse. In the role of Acting Civil Architect and Assistant Engineer responsible to Captain J. M. Gill, Inspector of Public Works, he went on to build many buildings in the new colony.

Greenway's works include Hyde Park Barracks, extensions to First Government House, the stables for a projected new Government House (condemned for their 'useless magnificence' by a visiting British official, the building is now home to the Sydney Conservatorium of Music), and St James' Church, Sydney, which was chosen as one of Australia's only two man-made 'treasures' by Dan Cruickshank in the BBC series Around the World in 80 Treasures. He submitted designs for the first Catholic church in Sydney, St Mary's but they did not match the ambitious scale envisaged by the priest Fr Therry, and were not proceeded with.

Greenway fell into disrepute when Macquarie accused him of charging high fees whilst on a government retainer, and he was dismissed by the next governor, Thomas Brisbane, in 1822. He continued to follow his profession with little success.

In 1835 he was destitute, advertising in the Sydney Gazette that "Francis Howard Greenway, arising from circumstances of a singular nature is induced again to solicit the patronage of his friends and the public".

Greenway died of typhoid near Newcastle, New South Wales in 1837, aged 59. The exact date of his death is not known. He is believed to have been buried in the Glebe burial ground at East Maitland on 25 September 1837, but his grave is unmarked.

Posthumous tributes

language=en-au}}</ref>

Greenway is the eponym of a NSW Federal electorate, a suburb of Canberra, and a high school in Woodberry, a suburb of Maitland.

Francis Greenway Drive in the suburb of Cherrybrook is named in his honour, as is the Vaucluse home of the Australian architect Leslie Wilkinson (1882–1973).

A Correctional Centre complex near Windsor, NSW is called the Francis Greenway Correctional Complex.

Selected list of works

The following works were either designed by Greenway or were influenced by Greenway:

Structure nameLocationPeriodArchitectural styleContributionHeritage statusImageNotes
Cadmans Cottage1815–1816Supervised construction[[File:Front of Cadman's Cottage.jpg100px]]title=Sydney Architectureauthor=Haskell, Johnpublisher=University of New South Wales Pressyear=1997 }}
Cleveland HouseSurry HillsContribution uncertain
Clifton Hotel and Assembly Rooms buildingBristol1806–1809Supervised constructionGrade II* listed building on the National Heritage List for England[[File:Clifton Club 3.jpg100px]]
First Government House, SydneyBridge Street, Sydney1810–1820ItalianateExtensions[[File:Government House Sydney 1809.jpg100px]]
*Hobartville*Contribution uncertain
Hyde Park BarracksMacquarie Street, Sydney1818–1819Architect{{bulleted listUNESCO World Heritage ListNational Heritage ListNew South Wales State Heritage Register(Former) Register of the National Estate}}[[File:HydeParkBarracksDrawingHardyWilson1914.jpg100px]]
Judge's HouseSydneyAlso attributed to W. Harperp.67}}
Liverpool Technical College
(formerly Liverpool Hospital)[[File:Liverpool TAFE 2.JPG100px]]
Macquarie Lighthouse (1816–1878)Watsons Bay1816–1818Architect[[File:Macquarie Lighthouse old and new 2.jpg100px]]
ObeliskMacquarie Place1818Architect[[File:Obelisk (Francis Greenway), Macquarie Place, Sydney - Wiki0032.jpg100px]]
Old Government HouseParramattaTimber portico only{{bulleted listUNESCO World Heritage ListNational Heritage ListNew South Wales State Heritage Register(Former) Register of the National Estate}}[[File:Old Government House - Parramatta Park, Parramatta, NSW (7822321952).jpg100px]]
St James' ChurchQueen's Square
Phillip Street, Sydney1820–1824Architect[[File:St James church Sydney.jpg100px]]
St Luke's Anglican Church1818–1820Architect[[File:Liverpool St Lukes 1.JPG100px]]
St Matthew's Church1817Architect[[File:Windsor0003.jpg100px]]
Supreme Court of New South WalesCnr King and Elizabeth streets, Sydney1820–1828Architect
(dismissed before completion)[[File:Supreme Court and St James Church 1842.jpg100px]]5045639Sydney Supreme Court House (Old Court House)hr=00800fn=S95/00338/1access-date=2 June 2018}}
Sydney Conservatorium of MusicMacquarie Street, SydneyArchitect[[File:1_Conservatorium_a.JPG100px]]
Windsor Court House1821Architect

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

References

  1. Herman, Morton. (1966). "Francis Greenway (1777–1837)".
  2. State Library of New South Wales. (2015-11-30). "Francis Greenway: convict architect".
  3. "Inside Newgate Prison". [[State Library of New South Wales]].
  4. Broadbent, James. (1997). "Francis Greenway Architect". Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales.
  5. "Francis Greenway". Historic Houses Trust of NSW.
  6. Dupain, Max. (1980). "Francis Greenway: a celebration". Mead & Beckett.
  7. (1981). "Architects of Australia". MacMillan.
  8. "Convict Francis Howard Greenway - Convict Records".
  9. (2021-01-31). "Francis Greenway, Architect & Engineer".
  10. "Our history".
  11. "Around the World in 80 Treasures (TV Series) Australia to Cambodia". IMDB.
  12. (2022). "For a godly purpose: planning Saint Mary's Chapel in old Sydney-town". Journal of the Australian Catholic Historical Society.
  13. "Francis Greenway: The Convict Architect {{!}} Harbour Trust".
  14. (20 January 1835). "Advertisement - Francis Howard Greenway". The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser.
  15. James, Clare. (25 March 2008). "Francis Greenway Memorial". [[Maitland City Council]].
  16. Australia, Reserve Bank of. "The Decimal Revolution: Portraits of Notable Australians on the First Series of Decimal Currency {{!}} Reserve Bank of Australia - Museum".
  17. Australian Electoral Commission. "Profile of the electoral division of Greenway (NSW)".
  18. "Greenway (ACT 2900) Suburb Profile".
  19. The Heritage of Australia, Macmillan Company, 1981
  20. Haskell, John. (1997). "Sydney Architecture". [[University of New South Wales Press]].
  21. {{NHLE
  22. {{cite NSW SHR. 5045710. First Government House Site
  23. {{cite AHD. 105761. First Government House Site
  24. "Heritage Council of NSW". NSW Government.
  25. "Australian Convict Sites". United Nations.
  26. "Australian Convict Sites". Australian Government.
  27. {{cite NSW SHR. 5045203. Macquarie Lighthouse Site
  28. {{cite NSW SHR. 2424811. Macquarie Place Including Road and Park Reserve, Obelisk, Canon, Anchor. (21 December 2011)
  29. {{cite NSW SHR. 5045475. Old Government House
  30. {{cite NSW SHR. 5051462. Parramatta Park and Old Government House
  31. {{cite AHD. 105957. Old Government House and the Government Domain, O'Connell St, Parramatta, NSW, Australia. (1 August 2007)
  32. (31 July 2010). "UNESCO World Heritage Centre – World Heritage Committee inscribes seven cultural sites on World Heritage List". United Nations.
  33. {{cite NSW SHR. 5054947. St. James' Anglican Church
  34. {{cite NSW SHR. 5045188. St. Luke's Anglican Church
  35. {{cite NSW SHR. 5045639. Sydney Supreme Court House (Old Court House)
  36. {{cite NSW SHR. 5060991. Conservatorium of Music
  37. {{cite NSW SHR. 2423927. Conservatorium of Music Including Interior and Grounds
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1777-births 1837-deaths architects-from-new-south-wales english-emigrants-to-colonial-australia australian-public-servants convicts-transported-to-australia people-from-mangotsfield maitland,-new-south-wales people-from-clifton,-bristol
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