Edinburgh and George Square 

Redevelopment at one of the UK’s oldest institutions.

I first visited Edinburgh when I was 18 for the annual arts festival. I’d just finished college and on the advice of a friend’s dad, I went in the summer. Almost 25 years later, I decided to go back, and in January’s darkness, I booked a trip. This time I thought I’d keep my screentime and research to a minimum so I would be pleasantly surprised. My initial scoping did reveal one gem though. Designed by Sir Basil Spence (1907-1976), and completed in 1967, the University of Edinburgh’s Library Building is part of the arts faculty which is in the heart of the campus at George Square, an urban area redeveloped in collaboration with Sir Robert Matthew.

As a square, George Square is a very pleasant one. The kind of place you might while away your lunch hour, meet a friend or colleague, or simply, just sit and ponder the deeper meaning of your last lecture! The Square borders with the Meadows, one of Edinburgh’s largest public parks and a lovely spot for some fresh air in the middle of a busy cosmopolitan city. James Brown (1729-1807), was the architect who planned this area in 1766, one of the most ambitious developments in this compact and hilly city. Located just outside of the historic walls, the area quickly became sought-after with its proud neo-classical and Georgian architecture and was a catalyst for further change until 1850.

The University of Edinburgh was founded by Royal Charter in 1582 and is classed as one of Scotland’s four ancient universities with St Andrews (founded 1413), Glasgow (founded 1451) and Aberdeen (founded 1495). Today there are 35,000 students. Twentieth-century redevelopment (seen in the above image) was discussed in 1947, when the institution started a programme of expansion with a specific focus to reintegrate departments. South of the Meadows, the planned area included George Square at the core. In 1954, the University offered Spence the role of Planning Consultant; a consultancy role that was his first in higher education and much before his work with the Plateglass University of Sussex. His main responsibility was to create and develop an architectural plan which allowed institutional growth across 50 years. For his scheme to work, everything except the houses on the west side had to be demolished. These became exempt from demolition as Spence saw these as the most interesting and could house the smaller departments.

During this time, the higher education system was undergoing a major transition to cope with a post-war population surge, and to deal with the future demands of an advancing economy. UK politicians were guaranteeing national prosperity with new workforce skills and, from 1960 to 1970, 22 universities became 46, and student numbers more than doubled from just over 100,000 to 220,000. The rapid growth meant that new buildings were essential to securing manageable futute growth.

Architectural differentiation was starting to emerge with influential ideas taken from designers in Europe and America. Lionel Brett (1957) spoke of taxonomy between collegiate and non-collegiate institutions; the University Town, the Planners Precinct and the University in a Garden. Categories that might be viewed as a little specific, ambiguous even, as one might argue that Edinburgh falls across each. By 1960, Spence had stepped back from his planning role due to other commissions and projects. At this time, Sir Robert Matthew (1906-1975), was Edinburgh’s first Professor of Architecture (a post he held until 1968 and which he managed with his private practice RMJM; co-founded with Percy Johnson-Marshall’s brother Stirrat in 1956), continued with the campus redevelopment which he’d been working together with Spence. The responsibility then moved to Percy Johnson-Marshall (1915-1993),to ensure that the overall layout, designation of sites, harmonisation of finishes, landscaping, and external works were completed with a cohesive finish.

Today, George Square has matured into a finely considered mix of eighteenth-century classical architecture and twentieth-century Modernism. The use of high-quality materials gives the square a clean and timeless finish to comfortably work and feel right. Along with the Library, other stand out buildings include Robert Matthew’s 40 George Square (formerly the David Hume tower), built 1963, and the Gordon Aikman Lecture Theatre built 1970. However, the Library hogs this post’s limelight!

Libraries are intrinsic to the fabric of higher education, as well as communities, societies and the general good of people’s wellbeing. Designed by Spence’s Edinburgh office of Spence, Glover & Fergus and completed in 1967, this eight storey block is finished in Portland stone and sits horizontally across the landscape to represent a bookcase – perfect! At the time, the Library was one of the largest in the UK. The internal is still rich with content, original features such as the beechwood panelling to the foyer and mezzanine, the large central customer service desk, open staircases with thick wooden handrails, original doors and fixtures and floor to ceiling concrete walls and columns. Spence designed much of the interior, which also included the quaint wooden paper bins with their slightly uneven circular tops and the leather desk study chairs (in conjunction with Arne Jacobsen, 1902-1971 who was working for the Danish brand, Fritz Hansen). Everything you’d hope for in a library, but not so easy to find these days. A treat to visit; even more so if you are one of 2,500 students who study in there!

Thanks to their very kind Library staff, I was able to have a good look around and even visit the reading room to see some of the original plans which Spence designed and are kept there. I must admit though, as I’m not an architect, most of the original drawings were completely lost on me! However, they did look good and were in immaculate condition. Any architect, fan of Spence fan, or just an enthusiast of bygone eras, will no doubt appreciate them. The original Ove Arup structural engineering plans are based there too, which was to the delight of my tour guide whose late Father worked for them in his early career.  

All in all, I had a splendid trip, and I can’t recommend Edinburgh enough. It’s a great weekend city to escape to. Special thanks to Stephen at the Centre for Research Collections, Edinburgh University Library for his help and for making my visit so enjoyable.