The London Society is a British membership organisation established to encourage public interest and participation in urban planning and transport matters in London as well as to study and celebrate the capital's unique history and character. It is among the oldest civic societies in the United Kingdom.
The society advertises itself as being "for all those who love London". Its original motto was "Antiqua Tegenda, Pulchra Petenda, Futura Colenda”, Latin for "look after the old, seek the beautiful, cultivate the future". It was agreed at the society's annual general meeting in 2018 that a new motto would be adopted: "Valuing the past; looking to the future", which came into effect in 2019. The society's journal states that "the aim of the society is to stimulate a wider concern for the beauty of the capital city, for the preservation of its charms and the careful consideration of its developments".[1]
History
The London Society was founded on the back of the town planning movement in the early 20th century. In the year following the first planning act of 1909 the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) held a London conference which focused attention on the capital city, and the Architectural Review began a town planning supplement. In its first issue the architect David Barclay Niven wrote a paper on the need for new roads and a system of parks in outer London before the area was swamped by new development; his ideas chimed with those of George Pepler who gave a paper at the RIBA conference suggesting that a voluntary body might undertake inquiries into London's needs and lead public opinion. The London Society became this body.[citation needed]
The society was formally inaugurated on 9 February 1912 at a meeting at the galleries of the Royal Society of British Artists. The minutes of the first meeting indicate that it was attended by only ‘a few men keenly interested in the artistic development of London and the protection of its beauty and character’.[2] Two weeks later, the society adopted its name and settled its objects as being ‘to foster an intelligent interest in London as the largest civic centre’ and ‘to induce a public spirit for the study and encouragement of its improvement’.[3] The Earl of Plymouth accepted the position of president of the London Society. Niven took the chair at the first meeting in 1912, though he was soon succeeded by the weightier figure of Aston Webb. By the third meeting on 9 February 1912, 160 people were present. Those who had been promoting the need to prepare a plan for London at the Town Planning Conference were quick to join. This included politician John Burns, planner Sir George Pepler, and architects William Edward Riley and Arthur Beresford Pite.
The society was launched to the general public on 13 January 1913 at a meeting held at the Mansion House, under the presidency of the Lord Mayor, Earl Curzon of Kedleston (later the 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston) who delivered an address that neatly described its objects as being "to make London beautiful where it is not so already, and to keep it beautiful where it already is".[4] The fledgling society attracted wide coverage and interest. By the end of 1913 the society's membership was over 400, including 65 MPs and peers, 9 members of the London County Council and many practising architects and surveyors. Early members also included planners, engineers and artists. Its formation partly reflected a shift from a 19th-century philanthropic approach to urban reform to a more professional and democratic attempt to planning of the whole urban environment.[3][5] It predated the establishment of the Royal Town Planning Institute in 1914. The journalist Thomas Raffles Davison wrote:
"The chief issue is the good of London, its orderly and beautiful development, its general amenity as a place for business or pleasure", and that the society’s role was "to think about the Future of London and its improvement" as well as "the jealous preservation of all that is old and beautiful in London as far as is possible."[citation needed]
The society developed the first Development Plan of Greater London (1919) which influenced thinking about shaping places and the post-war planning put forward in Patrick Abercrombie’s Greater London Plan (1944). This was the first attempt to envisage the management of London as a functional metropolitan region and a key step in developing the notion of a green belt. The first major project to be taken up by the society, the Development Plan pulled together many of the ideas for roads and open spaces being canvassed in the years before the Great War. War delayed this work though preparation of the plan provided some employment for architects when new building more or less ended. The plan was completed in 1917 but government controls prevented its publication until the end of 1918. The Metropolitan Police had covered a wide area since its establishment in 1829 but otherwise the concept of a Greater London to be planned as a whole was forward-looking and not given administrative force until the establishment of the Greater London Council in 1965. When Patrick Abercrombie was asked to draft a plan for the LCC area in 1941 he commented that he would only do it if he could follow the lead of the London Society and do a plan for Greater London as well.[citation needed]
By the early 21st century the society's activities had begun to focus increasingly on heritage and conservation. For this reason, following its centenary in 2012, the society's executive committee proposed merging the organisation into the Heritage of London Trust (HOLT). This prompted an influential group of professionals to intervene and set out an alternative vision for the future, instead making the case for retaining and reinvigorating the charity with a renewed focus on its original objects. A vote was taken among members of the society at an extraordinary general meeting in December 2013. This prevented the merger and the society was formally relaunched in September 2014 by a new executive committee.[citation needed]
Modern society
Membership of the London Society is open to all. The society is supported by a range of patrons and members, both organisational and individual.[citation needed]
Committee: Leanne Tritton (chair), Neil Bennett and Darryl Chen (both vice-chairman), Barry Coidan (treasurer), and Helen Parton (editor). Other committee members include Michael Coupe, Alpa Depani, Rob Fiehn, Dave Hill, Nick Mckeogh, Mark Prizeman, Lucy Smith and Eric Sorensen.
At the time of the 2014 saving and relaunch, the executive committee comprised: Peter Barber, Peter Bishop, Patricia Brown, Michael Coupe, Benjamin Derbyshire, Kathryn Firth, Martin Hart, Edward Jones, Jonathan Manns, Nick McKeogh, David Michon, Peter Murray (chairman), Clive Price, Mark Prizeman, Eric Reynolds, Eric Sorensen and Deyan Sudjic.[citation needed]
Journal
The Journal of The London Society was first produced in 1913, and, while the format has changed over time, it has been published ever since. It is now published twice a year and distributed free of charge to members. The current editor is Helen Parton. Past editors include former deputy editor of Time Out London Jessica Cargill Thompson and Booker-nominated Philippa Stockley.[citation needed]
White papers
From its earliest days it has produced reports and contributed to debates about the future of London and various of its landmarks (e.g. London churches, Euston Arch, the British Museum, etc.). Indeed, a collection of essays published in 1921 was entitled London of the Future.[8] In this context, the society has historically played a significant ‘thought leadership’ role.[9] To continue this work the society in 2014 launched a series of occasional white papers by those at the forefront of debate about the city.[9] These are considered on their merit.[citation needed] They are professionally rigorous, peer-reviewed and intended to direct discussion about the evolution of London.[citation needed] Those published to-date include:
Green Sprawl: Our current affection for a preservation myth? (2014)
The society's first white paper was authored by the English urban planner and surveyor Jonathan Manns. It provides a comprehensive history of the evolution of London's green belt from the 19th century until the 1960s and contextualizes this with a consideration of that which existed in the early 21st Century. Regarded as "an excellent historical account of the establishment of the Green Belt around London",[10] the report attracted wide coverage and prompted an update of the House of Commons Standard Note on Green Belt (SN/SC/934) and subsequent Research Briefings.[11][12] The most widely reported element within the public media was its emphasis on the need to "move away from the simplistic and naïve idea that that countryside is a sacrosanct patchwork of medieval hedgerows and towards an empirically informed position which once more recognises housing as a need to be met in locations with appropriate environmental capacity."[13] Manns said:
"This means asking ourselves how best to meet the challenges faced today in an holistic and strategic manner. Would we devise the current green belt if we started again today and do we actually need the green belt in certain places? It emerged as an idea that flexibly evolved and adapted to respond to the perceived challenges facing each generation. We can and should have the confidence to build on these achievements and re-envisage it for those that follow."[14]
Building Greater London: An end to the Capital's crisis of affordability (2015)
Written by Ben Derbyshire, English architect (managing partner of HTA Design), it considers London's housing shortage at the start of the 21st century and proposes solutions, including a strategic revamp of the structure of governance for the economic region of Greater London and consideration of the kinds of housing solutions that the leadership of such an entity could pursue. Looking to examples from elsewhere in the world, the implication of Derbyshire's work is that London has fallen behind; he told Building: "Melbourne has built example homes of different kinds all around its central business district, San Francisco has got a larger area with greater powers and is encouraging a more diverse offer".[15] He said:
"The people most adversely affected by the affordability crisis are London’s young who are struggling to find places to live in the city, yet on the other hand they are the entrepreneurial seedbed of the city’s future."[15]
Re/Shaping London: Unlocking Sustainable Growth in West London and Beyond (2016)
Jointly authored by Jonathan Manns and Nicholas Falk, this paper sets out recommendations as to how planning could be done better in England and gives consideration to the opportunities in West London. It was published by the London Society and commissioned by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for London's Planning and Built Environment. The most publicized idea was for a 'green web' to replace the 'green belt' in some locations, with the ambition being to create a "multifunctional green infrastructure landscape" in which new-build and publicly accessible natural space sat side by side.[16][17] It also calls for a new Garden City at Northolt Airport and a new orbital railway linking Uxbridge and Staines via West Drayton and Heathrow. Huq, who chairs the APPG, said:
"It is only through innovative fresh-thinking such as this that we can begin to chart a course towards the type of cities in which we wish to live."[18]
Political influence
London's parliamentarians have a close historic involvement with the society. In the early years the political diversity and influence of the society was particularly notable, not least because the Government remained cautious of state intervention in built environment issues. Early Liberal members included Viscount Cowdray and Walter Morrison, whilst Conservatives included the Earl of Crawford and Sir George Touche; all were members of the Parliamentary Committee by 1919. More widely, founding member John Adams was committed to the Marxist Democratic Federation (later the Social Democratic Federation) whilst Lady St Davids was an influential campaigner for women's rights. By 1920 the Parliamentary Committee had 40 members, which included the majority of London MPs and peers.[citation needed]
This connection to Parliament was re-established with the launch of the All-party parliamentary group (APPG) on London's Planning and Built Environment in October 2015, for which the society provides the secretariat. When launched, the APPG was the first cross-party group to focus on London's planning and built environment for some 50 years. The first chair was Rupa Huq and vice-chair Paul Scully, with the Bishop of London being Lords liaison and Helen Hayes acting as treasurer.[19]
Library
The library is a research resource for matters relating to the history of London and contains over 3,500 items. It is held at Mortimer Wheeler House. Its contents include books, periodicals, maps, press cuttings, letters and drawings. Access is available to members on request.[citation needed]
Activities
Society events include member visits to places of interest, keynote lectures (including the annual Banister Fletcher Lecture), debates and social events. These are intended to bring together those with a particular interest in the city, whatever their age or interests. Recent speakers have included Stephen Bayley, Rowan Moore and Robert Peston.[citation needed]
Banister Fletcher Lecture
Sir Banister Flight Fletcher (1866–1953) was an English architect and architectural historian. He was president of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) from 1929 to 1931. With his father he co-authored A History of Architecture on the Comparative Method (1896) which became the standard architectural textbook for much of the twentieth century. Banister Fletcher was an early member of the society and his will provided a small bequest to the society on condition that it held an annual lecture in his name, which was inaugurated upon his death. Speakers have included:[citation needed]
Landscape architecture is the design of outdoor areas, landmarks, and structures to achieve environmental, social-behavioural, or aesthetic outcomes. It involves the systematic design and general engineering of various structures for construction and human use, investigation of existing social, ecological, and soil conditions and processes in the landscape, and the design of other interventions that will produce desired outcomes.
Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie was an English regional and town planner. Abercrombie was an academic during most of his career, and prepared one city plan and several regional studies prior to the Second World War. He came to prominence in the 1940s for his urban plans of the cities of Plymouth, Hull, Bath, Bournemouth, Hong Kong, Addis Ababa, Cyprus, Edinburgh, Clyde Valley and Greater London.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supplemental charters and a new charter granted in 1971.
Sir Banister Flight Fletcher was an English architect and architectural historian, as was his father, also named Banister Fletcher. They wrote the standard textbook A History of Architecture, which is also often referred to just as Banister Fletcher.
Sir Raymond Unwin was a prominent and influential English engineer, architect and town planner, with an emphasis on improvements in working class housing.
The Royal Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA) is the professional body for registered architects in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1901. Chartered Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) members in Northern Ireland are automatically members of the RSUA. RSUA members use the suffix "RSUA" and may also use "RIBA". According to its website it has "over 1000 members".
The Society of Architects was formed in 1834 and continued until 1925. At that time Fellows and Associates comprised two distinct classes of membership of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). They were respectively entitled to use the post-nominal affix "FRIBA" or "ARIBA". The formation of the Society of Architects was a result of a campaign by a group of associates to be allowed to vote on the affairs of the Institute which the Fellowship class had resisted.
After nearly a century of endeavour and negotiation which had been led by the Royal Institute of British Architects, a statutory Board of Architectural Education was formed under the Architects (Registration) Act 1931. For the purposes of constituting the Board of Architectural Education the Act included a list of Schools of Architecture in the United Kingdom. The statutory Board was abolished in the 1990s, and when the Architects Act 1997 repealed the 1931 Act the statutory list of Schools of Architecture went with it.
Dame Jane Drew, was an English modernist architect and town planner. She qualified at the Architectural Association School in London, and prior to World War II became one of the leading exponents of the Modern Movement in London.
Louis Emanuel Jean Guy de Savoie-Carignan de Soissons CVO RA FRIBA (1890–1962) was the younger son of Charles de Savoie-Carignan, Count de Soissons. An architect, he was called for professional purposes Louis de Soissons.
John Leonard Melvin is a British architect, town planner, and author. He is the former Chairman of the London Region of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). His architectural work has been widely exhibited in the UK and abroad by the RIBA and the British Council. In 1993, the Royal Fine Art Commission honoured him with the Building of the Year Award. In 1995, he was named to a Sargant Fellowship at the British School at Rome to research the idea of memory in architecture.
Robert Philip Andrew Hurd was an influential conservation architect. His original aim was to be an architectural author specialising in traditional forms. He came to Scotland in 1930 and worked at the Edinburgh College of Art for two years as assistant to the architect and planner Frank Mears. He was an early and highly respected conservation architect and wrote and broadcast on Scottish architecture, planning and reconstruction.
Sadie Anna Morgan is an English designer. In 1995 she founded dRMM, the RIBA Stirling Prize winning architecture practice, with Alex de Rijke and Philip Marsh.
Elsie Owusu is a Ghana-born British architect, a founding member and the first chair of the Society of Black Architects. She is also known to have co-led the refurbishment of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom in 2009 and worked on Green Park tube station. She has been an elected Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Council member since 2014, and vice-chair of the London School of Architecture.
Wei Yang FAcSS FRTPI MCIHT is a Chinese-British town planner and urban designer, an author and a scholar. She is the founder of Wei Yang & Partners and Co-founder of the Digital Task Force for Planning in London. She is a leading figure in researching, promoting and implementing the 21st Century Garden City approach and promoting joined up thinking between different built and natural environment professionals.
Ben Derbyshire is a British architect. He is the current chair of HTA Design LLP and a former president of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Jonathan Manns MBE JP is a British urbanist and developer, known for his work as a practitioner as well as a writer, speaker, educator and campaigner on built environment issues. He has lived and worked in the UK and New Zealand.
Prunella Fraser was an architectural historian, writer, and archivist, and Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London. She worked on the cataloguing of architectural drawings at the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Jocelyn Frere Adburgham (formerly Abram) (24 May 1900 – 23 January 1979) was a British architect and town planner, and the first woman admitted to professional membership of what is now the Royal Town Planning Institute.
Murray Fraser is Professor of Architecture and Global Culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London (UCL).
References
↑ This is stated on the inside page of each edition from No.466 onwards (Autumn/Winter 2014).
↑ The London Society, Development Plan for Greater London, 2012
1 2 Lucy Hewitt (2011), Towards a greater urban geography: regional planning and associational networks in London during the early twentieth century, Planning Perspectives, volume 26, issue 3.
↑ Webb, A (ed.), London of the Future, London Society, 1921, p.17
↑ Helen Beaufoy (1997), Order out of chaos: The London Society and the planning of London 1912–1920, Planning Perspectives, volume 12, issue 2, pp.135-164.
1 2 Hall, P., Cities of Tomorrow: An Intellectual History of Urban Planning and Design, Blackwell, 2014
1 2 Journal of the London Society, No.467 (Spring/Summer 2015), p.44
↑ Planning Officers Society, Planning for a Better Future: Our Planning Manifesto for the Next Government, Aylesbury, March 2015 Archived 17 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine
↑ House of Commons Library, Standard Note on Green Belt, SN/SC/934, December 2014
↑ House of Commons Library, Briefing Paper: Green Belt, Number 00934, June 2015
↑ http://ihbconline.co.uk/newsachive/?p=9292 "The London Society: Green Belt a ‘current affectation’?'", IHBC NewsBlog, Institute of Historic Building and Conservation, 9 December 2014
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
