Robert Adam

Robert Adam FSA FRSA
Portrait attributed to George Willison, c. 1770–1775
Born	(1728-07-03)3 July 1728 Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland[1]
Died	3 March 1792(1792-03-03) (aged 63) London, England
Burial place	Westminster Abbey
Nationality	British
Alma mater	University of Edinburgh
Style	Neoclassical
Parent	William Adam (father)
Relatives	John Adam (brother) James Adam (brother)
Occupation	Architect
Practice	Adam Brothers (Edinburgh, London)
Buildings	Syon House Culzean Castle Kedleston Hall Pulteney Bridge Harewood House Charlotte Square

Robert Adam

He served as the member of Parliament for Kinross-shire from 1768 to 1774.^[5]

Biography

Early life

Adam was born on 3 July 1728 at Gladney House in Kirkcaldy, Fife, the second son of Mary Robertson (1699–1761), the daughter of William Robertson of Gladney, and architect William Adam.^[1][6] As a child he was noted as having a "feeble constitution".^[7] From 1734 at the age of six Adam attended the Royal High School, Edinburgh^[8] where he learned Latin (from the second year lessons were conducted in Latin)^[9] until he was 15, he was taught to read works by Virgil, Horace, Sallust and parts of Cicero and in his final year Livy.^[9]

In autumn 1743, he matriculated at the

On his recovery from illness in 1746, he joined his elder brother John as apprentice to his father. He assisted William Adam on projects such as the building of Inveraray Castle and the continuing extensions of Hopetoun House. William's position as Master Mason to the Board of Ordnance also began to generate much work, as the Highlands were fortified following the failed Jacobite revolt. Robert's early ambition was to be an artist rather than architect, and the style of his early sketches in the manner of Salvator Rosa are reflected in his earliest surviving architectural drawings, which show picturesque gothic follies.^[13] William Adam died in June 1748, and left Dowhill, a part of the Blair Adam estate which included Dowhill Castle, to Robert. From his father, Robert inherited an extensive library and extended it.^[14]

Architectural practice in Edinburgh

On William Adam's death, John Adam inherited both the family business and the position of Master Mason to the Board of Ordnance. He immediately took Robert into partnership, later to be joined by James Adam. The Adam Brothers' first major commission was the decoration of the grand

In the winter of 1749–1750, Adam travelled to London with his friend, the poet John Home. He took the opportunity for architectural study, visiting Wilton, designed by Inigo Jones, and the Queens Hermitage in Richmond by Roger Morris. His sketchbook of the trip also shows a continuing interest in Gothic architecture.^[16]

Among his friends at Edinburgh were the philosophers Adam Ferguson and David Hume and the artist Paul Sandby whom he met in the Highlands. Other Edinburgh acquaintances included Gilbert Elliot, William Wilkie, John Home and Alexander Wedderburn.^[13]

Grand Tour

On 3 October 1754, Robert Adam in the company of his brother James (who went as far as Brussels) set off from Edinburgh for his

He returned to Britain in 1758 and set up in business in London with his brother James Adam. They focused on designing complete schemes for the decoration and furnishing of houses.

Adam was elected a fellow of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce in 1758 and of the Society of Antiquaries in 1761, the same year he was appointed Architect of the King's Works (jointly with Sir William Chambers). His younger brother James succeeded him in this post when he relinquished the role in 1768 to devote more time to his elected office as member of Parliament for Kinross-shire.

Architectural style

Adam rejected the

The Adam brothers' principle of "movement" was largely Robert's conception, although the theory was first written down by James. "Movement" relied on dramatic contrasts and diversity of form, and drew on the picturesque aesthetic. The first volume of the Adam brothers' Works (1773) cited Kedleston Hall, designed by Robert in 1761, as an outstanding example of movement in architecture.

By contrasting room sizes and decorative schemes, Adam applied the concept of movement to his interiors also. His style of decoration, described by Pevsner as "Classical Rococo", drew on Roman "grotesque" stucco decoration.^[31][32]

Influence

Adam's work had influenced the direction of architecture and design across the western world. In England his collaboration with

Knowing he was dying, he drafted his will on 2 March 1792. Having never married, Adam left his estate to his sisters Elizabeth Adam and Margaret Adam.[34]

His obituary appeared in the March 1792 edition of The Gentleman's Magazine:^[35]

It is somewhat remarkable that the Arts should be deprived at the same time of two of their greatest ornaments, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Mr Adam: and it is difficult to say which of them excelled most in his particular profession... Mr Adam produced a total change in the architecture of this country: and his fertile genius in elegant ornament was not confined to the decoration of buildings, but has been diffused to every branch of manufacture. His talents extend beyond the lie of his own profession: he displayed in his numerous drawings in landscape a luxuriance of composition, and an effect of light and shadow, which have scarcely been equalled...to the last period of his life, Mr Adam displayed an increasing vigour of genius and refinement of taste: for in the space of one year preceding his death, he designed eight great public works, besides twenty five private buildings, so various in their style, and so beautiful in their composition, that they have been allowed by the best judges, sufficient of themselves, to establish his fame unrivalled as an artist.

He left nearly 9,000 drawings, 8,856 of which (by both Robert and James Adam) were subsequently purchased in 1833 for £200 by the architect John Soane and are now at the Soane Museum in London.^[36]

List of architectural works

Works include:^[37]

Public buildings

• Fort George, Scotland, the buildings within the fort were designed by William Adam
  , after his death his sons oversaw completion (1748–69)
• The Argyll Arms, Inveraray (1750–56)
• The Town House, Inveraray (1750–57)
• Royal Exchange, Edinburgh
  , with his brother John Adam (1753–54)
• Screen in front of the Old Admiralty, Whitehall, London (1760)
• Kedleston Hotel, Quarndon (1760)
• Little Market Hall, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire (1761) later altered
• Riding School, Edinburgh (1763) demolished
• Courts of Justice and Corn Market, Hertford, Hertfordshire, now Shire Hall (1768). Altered, but partially restored to original design. A joint project with James Adam.
• Pulteney Bridge, Bath (1770)
• County House, Kinross (1771)
• Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce
  (1772)
• Register House, Edinburgh (1774–1789)
• Market Cross, Bury St Edmunds, refaced and upper floor added (a theatre now art gallery) (1776)
• Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, remodelled, (1775) demolished
• Red Lion Inn, Pontefract (1776)
• Drummonds Bank, Charing Cross, London (1777–78) demolished
• Home House, London (1777)
• Old College, University of Edinburgh, (1788-onwards) completed to an amended design by William Henry Playfair 1831
• The Bridewell, Edinburgh, (1791) demolished
• The Assembly Rooms, Glasgow (1791–94) demolished
• Trades Hall
  , Glasgow, Scotland (1791–1792) (completed 1792–1802 by his brothers)
• Glasgow Royal Infirmary (1791–94) rebuilt 1914
• Coutts Bank enclosed bridge, John Adam Street (1799) later demolished

• 
  City Chambers, Edinburgh
• 
  Register House, Edinburgh
• 
  Register House, cross section, Edinburgh
• 
  Register House, Edinburgh
• 
  Old College Edinburgh, Dome added later
• 
  Market Cross, Bury St Edmunds
• 
  Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London, rebuilt
• 
  Edinburgh Bridewell in foreground, demolished
• 
  Pulteney Bridge, Bath
• 
  Little Market Hall, High Wycombe
• 
  McLennan Arch, Glasgow, built from the remains of Glasgow Assembly Rooms
• 
  Kedleston Hotel, Quarndon
• 
  Coutts Bank, John Adam Street, demolished and replaced with this building
• 
  Register House Edinburgh, interior of the dome

Churches

• Yester Chapel, Lothian, new west front in Gothic style (1753)
• Cumnock church, Ayrshire (1753–54) demolished
• St. Mary Magdalene,
  Lancelot "Capability" Brown
• St. Andrew's Church, Gunton Hall, Gunton, Norfolk (1769)
• St Mary's, Mistley (1776) only the towers survive
• St. George's Chapel, Edinburgh, (1792) demolished

• 
  Mistley Church as built
• 
  Mistley Church as it survives
• 
  St. Andrew's Church Gunton
• 
  Yester Chapel, west front

Mausoleums

• William Adam Mausoleum, Greyfriars Kirkyard (1753–55)
• Bowood House Mausoleum (1761–64)
• Old Calton Cemetery
  (1777–78)
• Templetown Mausoleum, Castle Upton, County Antrim Ireland (1789) for 2nd Lord Templetown.
• Johnstone Family Mausoleum, Ochil Road graveyard, Alva, Clackmannanshire (1789–90)
• Johnstone Family Mausoleum, Westerkirk graveyard, near Bentpath, Dumfries and Galloway 1790

• 
  David Hume Mausoleum
• 
  Templetown Mausoleum
• 
  Johnstone Family Mausoleum, Bentpath

Urban domestic work

• Little Wallingford House, Whitehall, London, alterations (1761) demolished
• Lansdowne House, Berkeley Square, London (1762–67), partially demolished, the Dining Room is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Drawing Room is in Philadelphia Museum of Art
• 34 Pall Mall, London (1765–66) demolished
• Langford House, Mary Street, Dublin, Ireland. (1765) First recorded work in Ireland remodelling of house for Rt. Hon. Hercules Langford Rowley. Demolished 1931.^[38]
• 16
  Hanover Square, London
  , alterations (1766–67) demolished
• Deputy Ranger's lodge, Green Park, London (1768–71) demolished in the 19th century
• The Adelphi development, London (1768–1775) mostly demolished 1930s, a ceiling & fireplace are in the Victoria and Albert Museum
• Chandos House, London (1770–71)
• 8 Queen Street, Edinburgh (1770–71) originally designed for Lord Chief Baron Ord, now housing the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh^[39]
• Mansfield Street, London (1770–72)
• Northumberland House, London, alterations (1770) demolished, parts of the Glass Drawing Room survive in the Victoria and Albert Museum
• 20
  St. James's Square
  (1771–74)
• 33 St. James's Square (1771–73)
• Ashburnham House, Dover Street, London, alterations (1773)
• Derby House, 26 Grosvenor Square (1773–74) demolished
• Portland Place, London (1773–94) (only a few houses survive)
• 11 St. James's Square (1774–76)
• Frederick's Place, London (1775–78)
• Roxburghe House,
  Hanover Square, London
  (1776–78) demolished
• Home House, London (1777 – before 1784)
• 31 (now 17) Hill Street, London alterations (1777–79)
• Apsley House, London (1778) altered
• Cumberland House, Pall Mall, London, alterations and interiors (1780–88) demolished
• Marlborough House, Brighton (1786)
• Fitzroy Square, London (1790–94) only the south and east sides were built
• Charlotte Square (north side), Edinburgh (1791–94)
• 169–185 High Street, Glasgow (1793) demolished
• 1–3 Robert Street

• 
  North side, Charlotte Square, Edinburgh
• 
  Centre of North side, Charlotte Square, Edinburgh
• 
  Chandos House London
• 
  Music Room, Home House, London
• 
  Drawing Room, Home House, London
• 
  Design for the Etruscan Room, Home House, London
• 
  Detail of the Etruscan Room, Home House, London
• 
  Staircase, Home House, London
• 
  Staircase Dome, Home House, London
• 
  South side, Fitzroy Square, London
• 
  East side, Fitzroy Square, London
• 
  Surviving Adam Houses, Portland Place, London
• 
  The Adelphi, London, largely demolished
• 
  Robert Adam ceiling from the Adelphi, now in the V&A
• 
  Model of the Glass Drawing Room Northumberland House, in the V&A
• 
  Panels from the Glass Drawing Room Northumberland House, in the V&A
• 
  Design for fireplaces in the withdrawing room and the Countess of Derby's dressing room, Derby House
• 
  Drawing Room, Derby House
• 
  Drawing Room, Derby House
• 
  Plan, Derby House
• 
  Ceiling, Countess of Derby's Dressing Room, Derby House
• 
  Details for Derby House in Grosvenor Square, an example of the Adam Brothers' decorative designs
• 
  20 St. James's Square, London, front facade
• 
  20 St. James's Square, London, rear facade
• 
  Dining Room ceiling, 20 St. James's Square, London
• 
  Music Room ceiling, 20 St. James's Square, London
• 
  Drawing Room ceiling, 20 St. James's Square, London
• 
  Fireplace, Round room, Strawberry Hill House, Middlesex
• 
  1-3 Robert Street
• 
  Lansdowne House Drawing Room, now in Philadelphia Art Museum
• 
  Lansdown House dining room, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Country houses with major work

• Dumfries House, Ayrshire (1754–1759)
• Hatchlands Park, Surrey, interiors (1756)
• Douglas Castle, Lanarkshire (1757–1761)
• Paxton House, near Berwick-upon-Tweed (1758)
• Shardeloes, Amersham, Buckinghamshire (altered and completed the original design by Stiff Leadbetter) (1759–63)
• Harewood House, West Yorkshire (1759–1771)
• Kedleston Hall, near Derby (1759–1765)
• Mellerstain House, Kelso, Scottish Borders (1760–1768)
• Ugbrooke, Devon
• Osterley Park, west London (1761–1780)
• Mersham le Hatch, Mersham, Ashford, Kent (1762–1766)
• Syon House interior, Brentford (1762–1769)
• Luton Hoo, Bedfordshire (1766–1770) later extensively reconstructed 1816 by Robert Smirke and other architects later
• Nostell Priory (1766–80)
• Newby Hall, Newby Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire (1767–76)
• Kenwood House, Hampstead, London (1768)
• Saltram House, Plymouth, Devon (1768–69)
• Bowood House, near Calne, Wiltshire, Diocletian wing, and other interiors (1770)
• Wedderburn Castle, Duns, Scottish Borders, Berwickshire (1770–1778)
• Culzean Castle, South Ayrshire (1772–1790)
• Moreton Hall
  , Suffolk (1773–1776), building and interiors
• Stowe, Buckinghamshire (1774)
• Moreton Hall
  , Bury St Edmund (1783)
• Brasted Place, Kent (c. 1783)
• Pitfour Castle, Tayside, attributed (c. 1785–90)
• Seton Castle, East Lothian (1789)
• Newliston, Lothian (1789)
• Dalquharran Castle, South Ayrshire (1789–1792); now a ruin
• Airthrey Castle, Stirlingshire (1790–1791)
• Balbardie House, Lothian (1792); demolished
• Gosford House, near Longniddry, East Lothian (1790–1800)

• 
  Paxton House, Berwickshire
• 
  South front, Kedleston Hall
• 
  Cross section, Kedleston Hall
• 
  Kedleston Hall, Marble Hall
• 
  South front, Stowe House, slightly modified in execution
• 
  Cross section of Hall, Syon House, London
• 
  Plan, Syon House, London
• 
  Apse, Entrance Hall, Syon House
• 
  The Dining Room, Syon House
• 
  The Ante-Room, Syon House
• 
  The ceiling, Ante-Room, Syon House
• 
  Long Gallery, Syon House
• 
  Closet off Long Gallery, Syon House
• 
  Kenwood House, London
• 
  Entrance portico, Kenwood House, London
• 
  Kenwood House, Library
• 
  Cross section of the library, Kenwood House, London
• 
  The library ceiling, Kenwood House, London
• 
  Nostell Priory, Yorkshire, Adam wing on right
• 
  Culzean Castle, Ayrshire
• 
  Culzean Castle, Ayrshire
• 
  Pitfour Castle, Tayside
• 
  The Saloon, Saltram House
• 
  Bowood House, Adam's Diocletian wing on left, the main block demolished in 1950s
• 
  Bowood House, Diocletian wing
• 
  Wedderburn Castle, Berwickshire
• 
  The Entrance Hall Ceiling, Harewood House
• 
  Harewood House, Yorkshire, altered by Sir Charles Barry
• 
  Harewood House, State Bedroom
• 
  The Ceiling, State Bedroom, Harewood House
• 
  Harewood House, Old Library
• 
  Harewood House, Music Room Ceiling
• 
  The Music Room, Harewood House
• 
  Gallery ceiling, Harewood House
• 
  The Gallery, Harewood House
• 
  Gallery fireplace, Harewood House
• 
  Newliston House
• 
  Dalquarran Castle, Ayrshire
• 
  Luton Hoo House, Bedfordshire, altered by Sir Robert Smirke and again in the late 19th century
• 
  Mellerstain House, Berwickshire
• 
  Osterley Park, London
• 
  Main Staircase, Osterley Park, London
• 
  Entrance Hall, Osterley Park, London
• 
  Osterley Park, Drawing Room Ceiling
• 
  Portico Ceiling, Osterley Park

Garden buildings and follies

• Stables, Inveraray Castle, joint work with his brother John (1758–60)
• North Lodge, Kedleston Hall (1759)
• Circular and Octagon pavilion, La Trappe, Hammersmith (1760) for George Bubb Dodington (demolished)
• Conservatory
  Croome Park
  (1760)
• Rotunda
  Croome Park
  , attributed (1760)
• Old Rectory, Kedleston Hall (c. 1761)
• Entrance screen, Moor Park, Hertfordshire (1763)
• The Conservatory, Osterley Park (1763)
• Bridge, Audley End House, Essex (c. 1763–64)
• Tea Pavilion, Moor Park, Hertfordshire (c. 1764)
• Gatehouse Kimbolton Castle (c. 1764)
• Bridge, Kedleston Hall (1764)
• Estate Village Lowther, Cumbria (1766)
• Dunstall 'Castle' and Garden Alcove, Croome Park (1766)
• Entrance arch, Croome Court (1767)
• Entrance Screen, Cullen House, Cullen, Moray (1767)
• Bridge, Osterley Park (c. 1768)
• Entrance screen, Syon House (1769)
• Fishing, Boat & Bath House, Kedleston Hall (1770–71)
• Circular Temple, Audley End House, Essex (1771)
• Lion Bridge, Alnwick (1773)
• Stag Lodge, Saltram House, Devon (c. 1773)
• The Stables, Featherstone entrance & Huntwick arch Nostell Priory (1776)
• Wyke Green Lodges, Osterley, Middlesex (1777); remodelled
• the Home Farm, Culzean Castle, Ayrshire (1777–79)
• Brizlee Tower, Alnwick, Gothic tower (1777–81)
• Oswald's Temple, Auchincruive, Ayrshire (1778)
• 'Ruined' arch and viaduct, Culzean Castle (1780)
• The semi-circular conservatory, Osterley Park (1780)
• Tea House Bridge, Audley End House, Essex (1782)
• The Stables, Culzean Castle (c. 1785)
• Stables, Castle Upton, Templepatrick, County Antrim, Ireland. (1788–89). Important range of office buildings in castle style.
• Montagu Bridge, Dalkeith Palace, Lothian (1792)
• Loftus Hall, Fethard-on-sea, County Wexford, Ireland. Date unknown. Proposed gates.
• Lion Gate and Lodge, Syon Park, London. Date unknown.

• 
  Screen, Syon House, London
• 
  The Lion Gate, Syon Park, London
• 
  Gatehouse, Kimbolton Castle
• 
  Entrance Arch, Croome Park, Worcestershire
• 
  Garden Alcove, Croome Court, Worcestershire
• 
  Rotunda, Croome Park, Worcestershire
• 
  Dunstall "Castle", Croome Court, Worcestershire
• 
  Brizlee Tower, Alnwick
• 
  The semi-circular conservatory, Osterley Park
• 
  Featherstone entrance, Nostell Priory, Yorkshire
• 
  Oswald's Temple, Auchincruive, Ayrshire
• 
  Kedleston Fishing, Bathing & Boat House
• 
  Kedleston Bridge
• 
  Former Home Farm, Culzean Castle
• 
  Lowther Castle Model Village
• 
  Montagu Bridge, Dalkeith Palace
• 
  The Lion Bridge, Alnwick
• 
  Tea House Bridge, Audley End
• 
  Clock Tower, Stables, Castle Upton, County Meath
• 
  Stables, Culzean Castle, Ayrshire

Country houses with minor work

• Hopetoun House, West Lothian (interiors) (1750–54), the house was designed by William Adam
• Ballochmyle House
  , Ayrshire (c. 1757–60)
• Compton Verney House, added the wings and interiors (1760–63)
• Croome Park, three interiors: the Library the fittings are in the Victoria and Albert Museum, Gallery and Tapestry Room this is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
  , (1760–65)
• Audley End House, redecoration of ground floor rooms (1763–65)
• Goldsborough Hall, near Knaresborough, North Yorkshire (1764–1765)
• Alnwick Castle, Northumberland (interiors) (1766) destroyed when Anthony Salvin created the current state rooms
• Woolton Hall, Woolton, Merseyside (1772), remodelled main façade and the interior
• Headfort House, County Meath, Ireland. Internal work, including stairs and notably the Great Eating Room (1775) for Thomas Taylour, 1st. Earl Bective.
• Wormleybury, Hertfordshire, internal work including entrance hall & staircase (1777)
• Downhill, near Coleraine, County Londonderry, Ireland. (1780) Design for dining room. Not executed. House is now a crumbling ruin.
• Moccas Court, Moccas, Herefordshire, internal work including drawing room (1781)
• Castle Upton, Templepartick, County Antrim, Ireland. Remodelling of house. (1782–83) for 1st. Lord Templetown.
• Archerfield House, Lothian, internal work including library (1791)
• Summerhill House, County Meath, Ireland. 1765 unexecuted. Proposed alterations including a quadrant link connecting two wings.^[40]

• 
  Summerhill House, Main Front.
• 
  Compton Verney House, wings by Adam

See also

• Adam style
• Category:Robert Adam buildings

References

Sources

• Adam, Robert (1764) Ruins of the palace of the Emperor Diocletian at Spalatro in Dalmatia
• Bolton, Arthur T. (1922, reprinted 1984) The Architecture of Robert & James Adam, 1785–1794, 2 volumes
  ISBN 0-907462-49-9
• Curl, James Stevens (2006) Oxford Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 0-19-860678-8
• Fleming, John (1962) Robert Adam and his Circle John Murray
  ISBN 0-7195-0000-1
• Glendinning, Miles, and McKechnie, Aonghus, (2004) Scottish Architecture, Thames and Hudson.
  ISBN 0-500-20374-1
• Graham, Roderick (2009) Arbiter of Elegance: A Biography of Robert Adam (Birlinn,
  ISBN 978-1-84158-802-5
  )
• Harris, Eileen (1963) The Furniture of Robert Adam Alec Tiranti, London.
  ISBN 0-85458-929-5
  .
• Harris, Eileen (2001) The Genius of Robert Adam: His Interiors
  ISBN 0-300-08129-4
• Lees-Milne, James (1947) The Age of Adam
• Pevsner, Nikolaus (1951) An Outline of European Architecture 2nd Edition. Pelican
• Roderick, Graham (2009) Arbiter of Elegance A Biography of Robert Adam. Birlinn
  ISBN 978-1-84158-802-5
• Roth, Leland M. (1993). Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History and Meaning (First ed.). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
  ISBN 0-06-430158-3
  .
• Stillman, Damie (1966) The Decorative Work of Robert Adam
  ISBN 0-85458-160-X
• Tait, A. A. (2004) "Adam, Robert (1728–1792)",
  doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/105
• ISBN 0-460-02130-3
  (1973 paperback)
• Belamarić, Joško – Šverko, Ana (eds.): Robert Adam and Diocletian's Palace in Split, Zagreb 2017,
  ISBN 978-953-0-60975-4

Further reading

• Chambers, Robert; Thomson, Thomas Napier (1857). "Adam, Robert" . A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Scotsmen. Vol. 1. Glasgow: Blackie and Son. pp. 18–20 – via Wikisource
  .
• Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Adam, Robert" . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Robert Adam.

• "Archival material relating to Robert Adam". UK National Archives.

Parliament of Great Britain
Preceded by Robert Colvile (to 1761)	Member of Parliament for Kinross-shire 1768–1774	Succeeded by George Graham (from 1780)
Government offices
New office	Architect of the King's Works 1761–1769 Served alongside: Sir William Chambers	Succeeded by Sir Robert Taylor and James Adam