Background
COLVIN, Howard was born on October 15, 1919. Son of late Montagu Colvin.
art historian architectural historian
COLVIN, Howard was born on October 15, 1919. Son of late Montagu Colvin.
Trent College, and University College London (University College London). And part author) 1963-1982, A History of Deddington 1963, Building Accounts of King Henry III 1971, A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600-1840 1978, Unbuilt Oxford 1983, Calke Abbey, Derbyshire 1985, The Canterbury Quadrangle, Saint John"s College, Oxford 1988, All Souls: an Oxford college and its buildings (with J. South. G. Simmons) 1989.
Sir Howard Montagu Colvin Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Commander of the Order of the British Empire (15 October 1919 – 27 December 2007) was a British architectural historian who produced two of the most outstanding works of scholarship in his field: A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600–1840 and In 1948, he became a Fellow of Street John"s College, Oxford where he remained until his death in 2007. He was knighted in 1995.
He served as president of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain 1979-1981 and a special issue of their journal Architectural History was produced in his honour in 1984.
Colvin is most notably the author of A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects, 1600–1840 which appeared in its original form in 1954. Yale University Press produced a third edition in 1995, and he had just completed his work on the fourth edition at the time of his death.
On first publication this reference work of heroic scale immediately became the standard in its field: it "changed the face of English architectural history", according to David Watkin. In the revised edition, Colvin expanded the range to include Scottish and Welsh architects as well.
The work includes every building within its time range with which the name of an architect can be associated, based on documentary evidence from extensive archival research, both by him and a growing network of correspondents.
He was particularly an enemy of attributions based on style alone. This resulted in an index that is an architectural gazetteer, and which also gives a comprehensive listing of architectural books published in Britain, listed by author The prefatory essay, "The Practice of Architecture, 1600–1840", is divided into two sections, covering the building trades and the architectural profession, both contributions to the broader social history of Britain.
Colvin also edited and largely wrote the official multi-volume study of all the buildings with which the Crown had been associated through history.
Just as he rose to become the acknowledged authority within academia, he also rose via membership of the bodies listed above and others to be Chair of the committee of English Heritage that dealt with Britain"s built environment.
Historic buildings Council for England 1970-1984, Historic Bldgs, and Monuments Commission 1984-1985, Historic buildings Advisory Committee since 1984, Royal Commission, on Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland 1977-1989, Royal Commission, on Historical Manuscripts 1981-1988, Royal Fine Art Commission 1962-1972, Royal Commission, on Historical Monuments, England 1963-1976, et cetera
Married Christina East. Butler in 1943.