Terracotta tiled walkway along a line of bush-hammered concrete pillars.
An elevated walkway in the Barbican, City of London. In the background the top of the Church Of St Giles, Cripplegate is still visible © Historic England Archive DP100573
An elevated walkway in the Barbican, City of London. In the background the top of the Church Of St Giles, Cripplegate is still visible © Historic England Archive DP100573

Building the Brutal: the Barbican Redevelopment

The Barbican is a Grade II listed building complex built after the Second World War. The idea was conceived after bombing destroyed the area - then known as Cripplegate - on 29 December, 1940.

On this page:

Before the Blitz

When war was declared on 3 September 1939, Cripplegate was the centre of the rag trade in London, home to many fabric merchants, tailoring and dressmaking businesses.

Cripplegate before the war

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

View from the south-west of St Giles' Church Cripplegate Exterior of the premises of Dalton, Barton and Company at the corner of Jewin Crescent and Jewin Street The lower front of 13 Edmund Place, showing signs for occupants of the premises E W Houghton Limited leather good manufacturers and John B Stetson hat manufacturers. The lower half of the exterior of the Currier's Hall on St Alphage Garden in the City of London in 1917.

Starting again

When bombs rained down during the Blitz in 1941 the Church of St Giles was badly damaged and the immediate area around it was almost completely destroyed. 

The Barbican building project became possible when the Town and Country Planning Act 1947 came into law allowing authorities like the Corporation of the City of London to buy large areas of land for redevelopment.

Barbican had been the name of a street in the destroyed Cripplegate area.

The Church of St Giles was rebuilt in the 1950s and now stands at the centre of the Barbican Estate.

The building project

Although conceived in the 1940’s, the Barbican construction project didn’t start until 1960.

At this point architects Chamberlin, Powell and Bon moved from making recommendations about the redevelopment plan to overseeing it. Shortly after, the Royal Shakespeare Company and London Symphony Orchestra also got involved with the planning process as well.

A year later, in February 1961, it was decided to name the separate blocks of the site after prominent figures associated with the historic area, such as the Shakespeare Tower, Thomas More House and Defoe House.

The building project gallery

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

A black and white photo showing the Barbican Estate under construction. Cranes and scaffolding are in the foreground, while St Giles church and the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral are visible in the background. A black and white photo showing a building site with a crane in the background, holding a bucket swinging in the middle of the photo. Tower blocks are visible in the background and a few people are on site. A black and white photo showing the building site of the Barbican estate, with a crane in the foreground that has a sign on it saying ‘Holmpress Piles of Hull’. Men are working in the background amongst bricks and debris. A black and white photo showing the Cromwell Tower under construction. The tower is seen from a low angle, with scaffolding surrounding it. A black and white photo of the Church of St Giles next to a narrow lake, showing Lauderdale Tower in the Background. A black and white photo showing Liverpool Street station with a crane in the foreground. Tower blocks of the barbican can be seen under construction in the background. A colour photo showing the Barbican estate under construction, with a red crane in the foreground. St Giles Church and modern tower blocks can be seen in the background. A colour photo of the Barbican arts centre in the centre from a high vantage point.

A colossal achievement

Once the architects Chamberlin, Powell and Bon released their vision of the Barbican project, it took incredible amounts of work and dedication from engineers and builders to construct it.

The contractors and their teams faced many obstacles, including flaws in the designs. As the project progressed, they succeeded in modernising the old trade unions system and developed new construction techniques needed for the scale of the project.

In persevering, they created what's now recognised as a brutalist masterpiece.

Gallery

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

A black and white photo of a man sitting down with a newspaper, smoking a cigarette. The man is surrounded by the Barbican building site in progress, with a crane and tower in the background. A black and white photo showing a surveyor wearing a hard-cap, taking measurements with a theodolite instrument, in front of a railway line with a speeding train passing. A black and white photo showing two workmen in a large tunnel at the Barbican site. The men are working on reinforcements with a few lights installed in the tunnel. A black and white photo showing a group of men in suits leaning against a brick wall. The background shows the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral, as well as office blocks.

The finished complex

The Barbican project was finished in 1982 when Queen Elizabeth II opened the new Arts Centre. During her visit to unveil its foundation stone, the Queen called the building "one of the modern wonders of the world".

And yet the Barbican development has always been controversial and still divides opinion. In 2003, it was voted "London's ugliest building".

Gallery

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

Colour photo showing the interior of the roof-top tropical conservatory of the Barbican Centre. Various large plants, including palm trees, extend under a glass roof. A black and white photo showing St Giles church from the South side, with a tower block in the background. Colour photo showing the Barbican Centre next to a narrow lake, with a high tower in the background. Colour photo showing the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Sand colour columns extend on the left side in the foreground, with the complex itself in the background. A colour photo showing a side view of part of the Barbican complex. A rectangular sand coloured apartment building with small palm trees on balconies can be seen in the foreground, with a tower block in the background. A colour photo showing the interior of a concert hall in the Barbican centre. Rainbow coloured rows of seats extend in the background, overlooking the stage in the foreground with seats for musicians. A digital colour photograph showing the backstage area of the Pit theatre at the Barbican centre. Green lights shine on the dark grey walls, with various equipment stored in the background. A digital colour photograph showing the edge of Andrewes House at the Barbican from a high vantage point. A black and white photo showing the interior of a flat with a large sofa and sitting room in the foreground, and a kitchen area in the background. A black and white photo showing Queen Elizabeth II dressed in white at the Barbican Arts Centre, with a blurred view of a crowd of people in the background. A black and white photo showing the interior of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Library. The library’s floors and walls are partially covered with bricks, and three people are reading books in the area. A colour photo of the Barbican arts centre in the centre from a high vantage point.

Whilst the architecture of the colossal complex is awe inspiring, there are some small details about the living spaces that are curious. For example, there are only electric cookers in the flats, as the City Corporation didn't allow any gas to be installed.

Another interesting detail is that the Barbican was modelled partially on Venice and its waterway traffic. The pedestrians are segregated from road traffic for their safety.

Construction phases of the Barbican project

  • Phase 1: The Public Services Building, Milton Court.
    J Jarvis and Sons Limited won the contract in 1962 and took four years to complete the project.
  • Phase 2: The South area including Lauderdale Tower, City of London Girls School, Mountjoy House, The Wallside and Postern group terraces, and terraces around Thomas More Gardens. Turriff won the opportunity to build phase 2 later in 1962.
  • Phase 3: Cromwell Tower and terraces around the lake and garden: Willoughby house, Brandon Mews, Andrews House, Speed House, and Gilbert House. John Laing was awarded the £6 million contract in March 1964.
  • Phase 4: In November 1964, a subsidiary of Taylor Woodrow called Myton Limited, were awarded the £5.6 million contract.
  • Phase 5: The building of the Arts complex, including the Barbican Arts Centre, Frobisher Crescent, and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, was also awarded to John Laing in 1964.
  • The last phase, initially called Phase 5a: The building of Shakespeare Tower was awarded to Sir Robert McAlpine and Sons Limited.

Also of interest

John Laing Photographic Collection
Spending a Penny: A Photographic Exploration of England's Public Toilets
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