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Chartered Accountants' Hall

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Coordinates: 51°30′59″N 0°05′18″W / 51.5163°N 0.0884°W / 51.5163; -0.0884
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Entrance to Chartered Accountants Hall in Moorgate Place

Chartered Accountants' Hall is a [| Grade II* listed building] located at 1 Moorgate Place in the City of London. It is the headquarters of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW). The Hall is one of the richest examples of late Victorian architecture in the City and has been praised for its seamless integration of sculpture.[1]

It established the fame of its architect, John Belcher. Chartered Accountants’ Hall was Belcher's first building in a more monumental Baroque Revival style, drawing on Baroque architecture which he had studied while travelling in Europe.[2].

Some sources[3][4] attribute the building as a joint design by Belcher in conjunction with Arthur Beresford Pite, who was a partner in Belcher's practice. The two men were friends and admired each other's work. In ‘The Alliance of Sculpture and Architecture’ (1993)[5] the authors begin a discussion of the influence of Pite upon Belcher's new Baroque style for the Hall by stating:

"To what extent the design was the work of Arthur Beresford Pite [...] has never been satisfactorily established."

— The Alliance of Sculpture and Architecture: Hamo Thornycroft, John Belcher and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales

.

Construction

Between 1880 and 1890, ICAEW was based in 3 Copthall Buildings while a location was sought for a permanent headquarters. During a special meeting in 1888, William Deloitte put forward a motion to purchase the site at Moorgate Place on a 999 year lease at a ground rent of £900 per annum. The competition for designs was won by John Belcher, with an estimated cost of £17,250. The ICAEW Council also commissioned Hamo Thornycroft to produce a sculpted frieze at an additional cost of £3,000.

Construction was delayed as the original contractors went into receivership, the work being completed by Messrs Coll & Sons. In the event, the terms of the lease were altered to £472 for twenty years increasing to £786 thereafter, in return for part of the site being given up to expand Great Swan Alley.[6]

The foundation stone of Chartered Accountants’ Hall was laid in July 1890. Under the stone were placed current issues of The Times and The Accountant, a copy of the Institute’s Charter and Bye-Laws, a list of members, and examples of the copper and silver (though not gold) coins of the day.[7]

The Hall was formally opened in 10 May 1893 by the Institute President, Edwin Waterhouse. It originally provided 19,500 square feet of accommodation. The final cost came to £41,561 3s 0d, including heating, lighting, ground rents and the architect’s commission.[8]

Interior

The former library of the hall, now a members' room, includes a balustraded Venetian-style bridge, decorated with lanterns

The building has been described as “one of the few Victorian buildings in the City with interiors worthy of its ornate facades.”[9]

It features a pilastered entrance hall with coffered ceiling after Alessi’s Palazzo Cambiaso in Genoa. The substantial library (now the members’ room) has a gallery and balustraded bridge inspired by the Rialto Bridge in Venice.

The staircase originally featured stained glass windows by Henry Holiday, completed in 1898[10]. These were re-installed in 2018 on the 125th anniversary of the building’s opening and are now positioned in the entrance to the Great Hall.[11] Holiday's original 1897 watercolour designs for the windows are housed in the Prints, Drawings & Paintings collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.[12]

The council chamber (now the reception room) has a high domed ceiling and elaborate wall-paintings by George Murray to Belcher’s designs, representing the Triumph of the Law and Science bringing Order to Commerce.[13]

Frieze

Thornycroft’s frieze depicts groups of figures representing Arts, Sciences, Crafts, Education, Commerce, Manufacture, Agriculture, Mining, Railways, Shipping, India, the Colonies, and Building. The figure of the architect is based on Belcher and the sculptor on Thornycroft himself. The figure of the solicitor is H. Markby of Markby, Stewart & Co., who acted for ICAEW in its early years. [14]

When the Hall was expanded in 1930 the frieze was continued for another 50 feet by J.A. Stevenson on the theme of the history of building. This is represented by British, Italian, Gothic, Byzantine, Roman, Greek, Assyrian, Egyptian and Prehistoric figures.

For the Whitfield extension in the 1960s, David McFall completed three final panels. These depict Egyptians and the foundation of accounting, 19th century men as the founding fathers of ICAEW, and four Renaissance figures including Luca Pacioli, the first person to publish a work on double-entry bookkeeping.[15]

First extension

As ICAEW expanded after the First World War it became necessary to extend the original building. In 1926 the Institute purchased Swan House on the adjoining land. J.J. Joass, a pupil of Belcher’s, was commissioned to extend the building eastwards and provide an additional 5,000 square feet for meeting rooms and offices. The final cost of the extension came to £35,976 9s. 6d. [16]

Second extension

In 1957 the Society of Incorporated Accountants was integrated into the national bodies of accountants, boosting the Institute’s membership by 10,000. William Whitfield was commissioned in 1959 to report on the feasibility of a new building. It was decided to extend the existing building substantially and create a Great Hall to accommodate functions, large meetings and other events. Final designs for Whitfield's Brutalist bush-hammered concrete extension were accepted in 1964 and the new headquarters was opened by HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in May 1970.[17]

Unusually for a space of this size, Whitfield’s Great Hall is uninterrupted by any supporting columns. Instead the office floors above are supported by exterior concrete piers.[18]

Of the building as a whole, Nikolaus Pevsner noted that: ”here is proof, if proof were needed, that the uncompromisingly new can go with the old, if handled by an appreciate and imaginative architect.” [19]The juxtaposition of the two complementary extensions by J.J. Joass and Whitfield with Belcher's original Victorian Baroque building contribute to Chartered Accountants' Hall being designated a Grade II* listed building.[20]

The total cost of the new building came to almost £2.5 million and added 63,000 square feet of space. The improvements included a new set off offices for the library and a members’ restaurant. It was at this point that the council chamber became the reception room, the old library became the members’ room, and the Oak Hall was divided horizontally into a new council chamber and a set of interview rooms.

References

  1. ^ Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). London 1: The City of London. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 109. ISBN 9780300096248.
  2. ^ Pile, Liz. "Chartered Accountants' Hall - Analysis - A building of distinction". Accountancy Daily. Croner-i. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  3. ^ "Sir William Whitfield". Oxford Index. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  4. ^ Cork, Richard. "Art Beyond the Gallery in Early 20th Century England". Google Books. Google. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  5. ^ Friedman, Terry; Linstrum, Derek; Read, Benedict; Rooke, Dark; Upton, Helen (1993). The Alliance of Sculpture and Architecture: Hamo Thornycroft, John Belcher and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The Henry Moore Centre for the Study of Sculpture & Leeds City Art Galleries. p. 3. ISBN 0901981559.
  6. ^ Howitt, Harold (1966). The History of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales 1880-1965 and of its Founder Accountancy Bodies 1870-1880: The Growth of a Profession and its Influence on Legislation and Public Affairs. London: Heinemann. pp. 30–31.
  7. ^ Boys, Peter (1990). Chartered Accountants’ Hall: the First Hundred Years. London: ICAEW. pp. 12–13. ISBN 1853550981.
  8. ^ Boys, Peter (1990). Chartered Accountants’ Hall: the First Hundred Years. London: ICAEW. p. 13. ISBN 1853550981.
  9. ^ Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). London 1: The City of London. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 107. ISBN 9780300096248.
  10. ^ "Lot 876: Henry Holiday , a set of four stained glass windows". Invaluable. Invaluable, LLC. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  11. ^ Parker, Nick. "From the top: Nick Parker - see last paragraph, 'Stained glass windows come home'". Economia. ICAEW. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Design for window in the Institute of Chartered Accountants". V&A. V&A. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  13. ^ Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). London 1: The City of London. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 307. ISBN 9780300096248.
  14. ^ Howitt, Harold (1966). The History of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales 1880-1965 and of its founder Accountancy Bodies 1870-1880: The Growth of a Profession and its Influence on Legislation and Public Affairs. London: Heinemann. p. 206.
  15. ^ Boys, Peter (1990). Chartered Accountants’ Hall: the First Hundred Years. London: ICAEW. p. 37-42. ISBN 1853550981.
  16. ^ Boys, Peter (1990). Chartered Accountants’ Hall: the First Hundred Years. London: ICAEW. p. 14-15. ISBN 1853550981.
  17. ^ Boys, Peter (1990). Chartered Accountants’ Hall: the First Hundred Years. London: ICAEW. p. 16. ISBN 1853550981.
  18. ^ Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). London 1: The City of London. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 308. ISBN 9780300096248.
  19. ^ Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2002). London 1: The City of London. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 307. ISBN 9780300096248.
  20. ^ "Chartered Accountants' Hall, One Moorgate Place". Historic England. Historic England. Retrieved 16 October 2018.

51°30′59″N 0°05′18″W / 51.5163°N 0.0884°W / 51.5163; -0.0884

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