Two Temple Place

William Waldorf Astor, founder of the famed New York City Waldorf Astoria, owned the gothic mansion[nb 1] on the Victoria Embankment overlooking the River Thames. He built or renovated the home[nb 2] that was to become a "crenellated Tudor stronghold" with three things in mind. It would be his office and it had residential space, supporting his desire to create a home away from the United States[nb 3] where he felt his children would be safer from the threat of kidnapping. Second, he had the wealth to support his vision for an opulent home for himself and his family – and his extensive collections of art work, musical instruments and books. And, lastly, he wanted the building to be both his home and offices for managing his holdings.[2][7][8][15][nb 4]

The building is described by Donald Strachan as follows:

Behind the sturdy Portland stone facade, the interior has a slight strange Victoriana-meets-Disney vibe with the otherwise straightforwardly opulent rooms (lots of marble and mahogany) adorned with bizarre details, such as the characters from The Three Musketeers (Astor's favorite book) on the banisters of the main staircase and the gilded frieze in the Great Hall showing 54 seemingly random characters from history and fiction, including Pocahontas, Machiavelli, Bismark, Anne Boleyn, and Marie Antoinette.[15]

The architect was John Loughborough Pearson, often called the founder of Modern Gothic architecture.[16] With seemingly unlimited funds at his disposal Pearson was able to design a lavish building with the assistance of eminent craftsmen.[7] John Thompson & Sons Ltd of Peterborough were the builders. After Pearson's death, his son Frank Loughborough Pearson (1864–1947) continued his work on Two Temple Place when the building required some alterations under the ownership of Sun Life of Canada. For these alterations many of the original craftsmen were used again, including Nathaniel Hitch, as well as the original builder.[17]

Since the Astor family sold the house it has had various owners: Sun Life of Canada owned the building from 1919 to 1928, who named it Sun of Canada House. In 1928 it was purchased by the Society of Incorporated Accountants and Auditors naming it the Incorporated Accountants Hall. On 19 February 1929 the building was opened as the "Head Office of the Society" by H.R.H. the Duke and Duchess of York.[18] Smith & Nephew purchased the building in 1960 which served as its headquarters.[19]

On 24 July 1944 the building, named "Astor House" at the time, was hit by a German flying bomb, which caused considerable damage to the house, including burst plumbing that resulted in some flooding, damaging expensive works of art, including works by William Silver Frith. The building, called "Accountants Hall" on the damage report, was deemed as suitable to be "partially demolished" and was fully restored between 1949 and 1951.[12][20]

It is now managed and preserved by The Bulldog Trust, a charitable organization, and is hired out for personal and functions. It opened to the public as a gallery in October 2011.[2]

Bulldog Trust, a charitable foundation, manages Two Temple Place, which is available to the public to view its collections and, for revenue generation, is hired out.[2] On 28 October 2011, Two Temple Place opened as the first London venue to specifically showcase publicly owned art from UK regional collections.

The first exhibition to launch the building was in collaboration with the William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow. Titled William Morris: Story, Memory, Myth, the exhibition looked at how William Morris told stories through pattern and poetry and examined the tales that were most important to him, such as the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, Norse saga, Arthurian legend and Greek myth.[2][7][15]

"Rip Van Winkle" and characters from The Last of the Mohicans and The Scarlet Letter are depicted in a frieze in the main hall.[8] This frieze was also executed by Thomas Nicholls. Two of the figures are from the Leatherstocking novels of James Fenimore Cooper, the first being The Last of the Mohicans the nickname of Uncas, a leading character in the book. The second statue is that of "The Pathfinder", one of the names given to Leatherstocking (otherwise Natty Bumppo). Next Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter is represented by Hester Prynne and the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. The two remaining characters are Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle and his daughter. At the feet of Rip Van Winkle is his dog and at those of his daughter is the gnomes’ keg of liquor, the drinking of which had sent Van Winkle into his long slumber and freedom from his bothersome wife for 20 years![6]

The staircase hall is overlooked by a gallery that features statues made by Nicholls, having American literary associations, and a frieze in relief which features 82 characters from Shakespeare’s Othello, Henry VIII,[2][22] Antony and Cleopatra and Macbeth. Around this gallery are ten pillars of solid ebony. The statues are positioned on six of the carved oak panels which surmount these pillars. The ceiling of the staircase Hall and Gallery is in stained glass, coved and panelled.[6]

Astor's study, located off the gallery and overlooking the Thames, held his vast collection of collectible books and art. It was also home to business meetings.[2][8] The room was described by a London area architect thus:

There is no more curious room in London than this hall which was intended by its creator to be a sort of temple to culture and expresses in a curious way his own tastes in art and literature.[8]

From the pencil cedar panel walls, 35-foot mahogany ceilings and doors, Astor adorned the room with Spanish mahogany panelling, carving, such as the Four Musketeers and decorations. Accoutrements of the room included marble floors, Persian rugs, chandeliers, and portraits of himself and his ancestors.[2][8] Located by his desk in the library was a spinning wheel of New England.[8]

The entrance door to the Great Hall is made of mahogany, has a beautifully carved head and nine decorative panels in silver gilt by Sir George James Frampton. These panels, which were exhibited at the Royal Academy prior to installation in the house, depict in low relief the nine heroines of the Arthurian Legend, to Thomas Malory’s version, of which Tennyson gave a new interpretation. The first two panels depict the "Lady of the Isle of Avelyon" and "Elaine" ("The lily maid of Astolat"). The third, fourth and fifth panels depict "The Lady of the Lake", "Morgan le Fay" and "Guinevere" (for whom "A man had given all other bliss/And all his worldly worth for this/To waste his whole heart in one kiss/Upon her perfect lips"). The sixth, seventh and eighth panels depict "La Beale Isoude", "Lyonors" and "Enid". The ninth and final panel depicts "Alis la Beale Pilgrim".[6]

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  The Lady of the Isle of Avelyon
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  Elaine, the lily maid of Astolat
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  The Lady of the Lake
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  Morgan le Fay
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  Guinevere
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  La Beale Isoude
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  Lyonors
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  Enid
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  Alis la Beale Pilgrim

The Great Hall extends the whole length of the building on the river front. The walls are panelled in pencil cedar and surmounted by a frieze in which fifty-four portraits of the heads of characters famous in history and fiction, have been modelled, carved in low relief and then gilded. These 54 portraits are by the sculptor Nathaniel Hitch. The Hall is 35 feet high to the ridge and open to a hammer-beam type roof, a notable example of modern Gothic timber work made from carved Spanish mahogany.[2][8]

The frieze portraits include Juliet, Queen Louise of Prussia and Richard Coeur de Lion[6]

Above the frieze and standing within tracery canopies under the roof principals are twelve carved figures from literature, including Ivanhoe, Robin Hood and Maid Marion.[23] At either end of the Great Hall are carved pencil cedar chimney pieces and at one end there are some bench ends carved by Hitch these being fine examples of his work. Photographs of these carvings are included in the album of photographs of Hitch's work held at the Henry Moore Archive in Leeds.

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  Two further Hitch portraits from the Great Hall.
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  Three further Hitch portraits from the Great Hall.
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  Juliet's portrait by Hitch in the Great Hall frieze.
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  Another photograph of Hitch’s carvings on the frieze in the Great Hall.
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  Another photograph of Hitch’s carvings on the frieze in the Great Hall.
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  Hitch carving on seat-end.
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  close-up of Hitch carving on seat-end.

At the eastern and western ends of the Great Hall are stained-glass windows which are the work of Clayton and Bell.[24] One of these is called A Swiss Summer Landscape and includes Thun Castle in the Swiss Canton of Bern. Clayton and Bell often collaborated with John Loughborough Pearson, their other work including the stained-glass windows at Truro Cathedral.[25]

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  Panel of stained-glass window.
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  Part of stained-glass window.
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  View of one of Clayton and Bell’s stained-glass windows.
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  One of the panels.

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  J.Starkie Gardner’s weather vane over 2 Temple Place.
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  Exterior view of 2 Temple Place showing machicolated parapets.
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  View of portico with good example of Nathaniel Hitch carving in stone-work.
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  Another view of exterior of building
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  Nathaniel Hitch “Grotesque”
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  Another Nathaniel Hitch “Grotesque”
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  Exterior of 2 Temple Place
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  Nathaniel Hitch carvings on exterior.
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  Nathaniel Hitch carving over 2 Temple Place entrance.
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  Example of intricacy of Hitch’s carvings

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  One of seven “Robin Hood” themed bronzes on main staircase.
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  Carvings on fireplace.