A new town from 1767

 My knowledge of British New Towns is grounded town planning theory, referring to those towns designed to alleviate population growth in London after World War II. When I was putting together a course on the history of urban design, it came as a surprise that there was a much older "new town" founded in Edinburgh in 1767, which I was fortunate to be able to explore in April this year.

Charlotte Square, Edinburgh New Town

Edinburgh Old Town has its origins in the early Middle Ages, from the 7th Century, located on a spur of rock with extinct volcanoes on the west and east end, with two lakes (in Scotland called a loch) each parallel to the spur of rock, to the south and north.

When it was decided to lay out a new suburb for the wealthy, the old city having become overcrowded, the decision was to locate it to the north of North Loch with bridges connecting it to the old town. It was planned on strictly geometrical lines, with three main parallel streets, with a large grassed square at each end. The New Town was developed starting from the western Charlotte Square, which was lined by buildings designed by the renowned Robert Adam in the fashionable neoclassical style. In the UK, this style is usually very restrained, especially in the earlier days of the style, in comparison with examples elsewhere in Europe. In the UK, this is usually termed the Georgian Style, contemporary with the reigns of King George I to King George IV.

George Street from the east

The central of the three main streets is George Street, intersected by five cross streets, with a memorial statue at each intersection. This creates a powerful visual link along George Street, and from each intersection, one has a view of the Old Town to the south and a glimpse of the sea to the north.

A distant view of the sea to the north

In the centre of each block on George Street, is a public building, distinguished from the rest of the street facades usually with a projecting portico with columns, and some of which have elaborate central tower or other distinguishing architectural feature. One of these is the Assembly Building, which the rich and fashionable inhabitants would frequent for balls and other forms of recreation.

The Assembly Building with its symmetrical facade and colonnaded portico 

At the eastern end of George Street, formally positioned and accentuated with the tall Melville Monument in its centre, is the large grass covered St Andrew's Square. The statue is very prominent as a landmark visible in many parts of the New Town, and forms an accent to George Street towering above the other monuments along this road.

Melville Monument in George Square

In the centre of St Andrew's Square, to the east and set quite far back from the road, is Dundas House, a fine example of Scottish Georgian architecture which was begun in 1772. The architect was William Chambers, another prominent British architect who was knighted for his services to architecture.

 

Dundas House from St Andrew's Square

 The rest of the buildings in the New Town were built between the late 1700s and 1850, and are quite diverse while respecting an overall scale, street front and window proportions. The materials are also fairly consistent, predominantly of the local stone. This creates a far more relaxed urbanism than contemporary examples found in the wealthier parts of the West End in London and at the country town of Bath in England, made famous by the novelist, Jane Austen, who described the lifestyle of the inhabitants of Bath in the early 1800s. These examples, by contrast, are very formal and consistent, reading as a single building around the entire perimeter of a square or parkland.

A typical street view in the New Town showing the diversity of the architecture

This contrasts well with the formality created by the strict street layout, the strategically located monuments and the positioning and design of the public buildings along George Street.

A combination of formally designed public buildings and more modest and diverse infill

The other noteworthy characteristic of the New Town, is in the generous use of space, the width of the roads and the size of the two squares. This provides a striking contrast with the Old Town, with its taller buildings (often five storeys high) and narrow winding streets. However, the two parts of the city are aesthetically united through their use of stonework and the general sense of relaxed inclusivity. It is no wonder that Edinburgh is one of the foremost cities in Europe showcasing architectural heritage, celebrating centuries of history in its built form. 

View of the Castle from the New Town