A Study on British Architects in East and Southeast Asia: 1830 - 1940

Abstract

This paper aims at identifying a profile of the British architects who have worked in East and Southeast Asia from 1830 to 1940. They played a vital role in the modern development of Asian architecture. Althoug most of building works have been done by military and civil engineers all the time of the 19th century, a couple of trained architects came to this region to look for the luck as soon as the British possessed new colonies. After Suez Canal opened, professional British architects began to be employed by local or colonial governments and designed marvelous and symbolic buildings probably to show colonial supremacy to the locals. During economic boom starting in 1880s, private architectural firms were also set up by partnarship of civil engineers. Three firms took advantage of this boom and grew up immediately as leading architectural office. After the First World War, the number of British architects gradually decreased supposedly because Japanese and American architects advanced to this region. © 2003, Architectural Institute of Japan. All rights reserved.