Decimus Burton: Difference between revisions

Burton's works are [[Hyde Park, London]] (including the gate or screen of [[Hyde Park Corner]], and the [[Wellington Arch]], and the Gates); [[Green Park]] and [[St James's Park]]; [[Regent's Park]] (including [[Cornwall Terrace]], [[York Terrace]], [[Clarence Terrace]], [[Chester Terrace]], and the villas of the Inner Circle which include his own mansion, [[The Holme]], and the original [[Winfield House]]); the enclosure of the forecourt of [[Buckingham Palace]] from which he had Nash's [[Marble Arch]] moved; the clubhouse of the [[Athenaeum Club, London]]; [[Carlton House Terrace]]; [[Spring Gardens]] in [[St. James's]]; and the [[Palm House, Kew Gardens|Palm House]] and the [[Temperate House, Kew Gardens|Temperate House]] at [[Kew Gardens]]. Burton designed the seaside towns of [[St Leonards-on-Sea]], [[Fleetwood]], and [[Folkestone]], and also [[Royal Tunbridge Wells]]. His Calverley Estate (of which only a small proportion survives) was highly commended.

Burton was a member of [[High society (social class)|London high society]] during the [[Georgian era]] and during the [[Regency|Regency era]]. He had close friendships with Princess [[Queen Victoria|Princess Victoria]] (the future Queen Victoria); the [[Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|Duchess of Kent]]; [[William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire]], [[John Wilson Croker]], and Sir [[Humphry Davy|Sir Humphry Davy]]. The Burtons' London mansion, [[The Holme]] of [[Regent's Park]], which was built by James's company to a design by his son Decimus Burton, was described by 20th century architectural critic [[Ian Nairn]] as 'a definition of Western civilization in a single view'. Burton also contributed to the design of their [[Tonbridge]], [[Kent]] mansion, Mabledon.

On his father's side, Decimus's great-great grandparents were Rev. James Haliburton (1681–1756) and Margaret Eliott, daughter of [[Eliott baronets|Sir William Eliott, 2nd Baronet]], and aunt of [[George Augustus Eliott, 1st Baron Heathfield]].<ref name="Weald Decimus Burton Pedigree"/> Decimus was descended from John Haliburton (1573–1627),{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=9}} from whom Sir [[Walter Scott|Sir Walter Scott]] was descended on the maternal side.<ref name="BSLS"/><ref name="Williams p.18"/>{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=9}} Burton was a cousin of the Canadian author and British Tory MP [[Thomas Chandler Haliburton]]<ref name="Williams p.127"/> and of the British civil servant [[Arthur Lawrence Haliburton, 1st Baron Haliburton|Lord Haliburton]],{{sfn|Davies|2005|pp=71–73}}<ref name="DiaryJamesBurton"/><ref>{{cite ODNB |url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/11926?docPos=2|title=Haliburton [Haleburton; formerly Burton], James (1788–1862), Egyptologist|year=2004|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/11926}}</ref> who was the first native [[Canadian]] to be raised to the [[Peerage of the United Kingdom]].<ref name="Morgan">{{cite book |editor-last=Morgan |editor-first=Henry James |editor-link=Henry James Morgan |title=Types of Canadian Women and of Women who are or have been Connected with Canada |location=Toronto |publisher=Williams Briggs |date=1903 |url=https://archive.org/details/typesofcanadianw01morguoft |page=[https://archive.org/details/typesofcanadianw01morguoft/page/142 142]}}</ref>

Decimus was born at the 'very comfortable and well staffed' North House in the newly built Southampton Terrace, [[Bloomsbury]], London.<ref name="Williams p.19"/> From 1805,<ref name="Williams p.135"/> Decimus was raised in his father's mansion, Mabledon House, in [[Kent]].<ref name="Williams p.19-20"/>{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=10}} Subsequent to the birth of his twelfth child, Jessy, in 1804, Decimus's father James Burton had purchased a site on a hill about one mile to the south of Tonbridge in Kent, where he constructed, to the designs of the architect [[Joseph T. Parkinson]], in 1805,<ref name="Williams p.135"/> the large country mansion which he named Mabledon House,<ref name="Williams p.19-20"/><ref name="ODNB1"/> which was described in 1810 by the local authority as 'an elegant imitation of an ancient castellated mansion'.<ref name="Williams p.19-20"/> The majority of the stone that James Burton required for Mabledon was quarried from the hill on which it was to be built, but Burton also purchased the stone that had been released by the recent demolition ofat a nearby mansion, Penhurst[[Penshurst Place]].<ref name="Williams p.19-20"/> Decimus Burton was coincidentally commissioned to expand Mabledon, his childhood home, on several occasions after it had been sold by his father.<ref name="mabledon.co.uk" />

In 1815, James Burton took Decimus to Hastings, where the two would later design and build [[St Leonards-on-Sea]] and, in 1816, Decimus commenced work in James Burton's office.<ref name="Williams p.28"/> While working for his father, Decimus was present in the design and construction of lower [[St. James's|Regent Street St. James]]. Simultaneously, Maddox taught Decimus architectural draughtsmanship, including the details of the five orders. After his first year of tuition by his father and Maddox, Decimus submitted to the [[Royal Academy of Arts]] a design for a bridge, which was commended by the academy.<ref name="Williams p.29"/>

Burton has been described by Williams as "an exceptionally clever child" who demonstrated a lack of emotion characteristic of his family.<ref name="Williams p.21"/> Decimus left [[Tonbridge School]] in 1816 and entered directly the [[Royal Academy Schools]], in 1817.<ref name="ODNB3" /><ref name="Arnold2003" />{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=11}} His contemporaries at the Royal Academy included [[SidneySydney Smirke]], with whom he would restore [[Temple Church, London]] between 1841 and 1843,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=45}} and [[William Tite]].{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=11}} As a consequence of his father's social position, Burton was able to enter the Schools at an unprecedentedly young age, without having been previously articled to an architect. There he was taught by [[Sir [[John Soane]], for whom his brother, [[James Burton (Egyptologist)|James]], had also worked.<ref name="ODNB3" /><ref name="Arnold2003" />

Soane was an advocate of the Neo-Palladian style, but had repudiated, including to his students, Robert Smirke's new [[Royal Opera House|Theatre Royal, Covent Garden]], which had not been built in proportion: Soane used special diagrams to demonstrate to his students, including Burton, the failings of Smirke's design, as a consequence of which he was ostracized within the Royal Academy and compelled to suspend his lectures.<ref name="Williams p.27"/> Soane commended, in contradistinction, in 1815, as an archetype of neoclassical excellence, [[Robert Adam]]'s [[Kedleston Hall]]: "In this superb structure he [Adam] has united... the taste and magnificence of a Roman villa with all the comforts and conveniences of an English Nobleman's residence".<ref name="Williams p.29"/>

Whereas Decimus's father [[James Burton (property developer)|James Burton]] was vigorously industrious, and had become 'most gratifyingly rich',<ref name="Williams p.19"/> [[John Nash (architect)|John Nash]]'s early years in private practice, and his first speculative developments, which failed either to sell or let, were unsuccessful, and his consequent financial shortage was exacerbated by the 'crazily extravagant' wife whom he had married before he had completed his training, until he was declared bankrupt in 1783.<ref name="Williams p.14"/> To resolve his financial shortage, Nash cultivated the acquaintance of James Burton, who consented to patronize him.<ref name="Williams p.16"/> James Burton was responsible for the social and financial patronage of the majority of Nash's London designs,<ref name="Williams p.11"/> in addition to for their construction,<ref name="ODNB3">{{Cite ODNB|id=4125|title=Burton, Decimus|first=Dana |last=Arnold}}</ref> and Decimus became acquainted with Nash through his father.<ref name="Williams p.11"/>

Architectural scholar Guy Williams has written, 'John Nash relied on James Burton for moral and financial support in his great enterprises. Decimus had showed precocious talent as a draughtsman and as an exponent of the classical style... John Nash needed the son's aid, as well as the father's'.<ref name="Williams p.11"/> Subsequent to the [[Crown Estate]]'s refusal to finance them, James Burton agreed to personally finance the construction projects of [[John Nash (architect)|John Nash]] at [[Regent's Park]], which he had already been commissioned to construct. In return, Nash agreed to promote the career of Decimus Burton.<ref name="ODNB3" /> Nash was a vehement advocate of the neoclassical revival endorsed by Soane, although he had lost interest in the plain stone edifices typical of the Georgian style, and instead advocated the use of stucco.<ref name="Williams p.28"/> Decimus Burton entered the office of Nash in 1815,<ref name="Williams p.30"/> where he worked alongside [[Augustus Charles Pugin]], who detested the neoclassical style.<ref name="Williams p.21"/> Decimus established his own architectural practice in 1821.<ref name="Williams p.136"/>

In 1821, Nash invited Decimus to design [[Cornwall Terrace]] in Regent's Park, and Decimus was also invited by [[George Bellas Greenough]], a close friend of the Prince Regent, Humphry Davy, and Nash, to design [[Nuffield Lodge|Grove House]] in Regent's Park. Greenough's invitation to Decimus Burton was 'virtually a family affair', for Greenhough had dined frequently with Decimus's parents and Decimus's brothers, including [[Henry Burton (physician)|the physician Henry Burton]]. Greenough and Decimus finalized their designs during numerous meetings at the opera.<ref name="Williams p.38-39"/>

Decimus's design, when the villa had been completed, was described in ''The [[Proceedings of the Royal Society]]'' as, 'One of the most elegant and successful adaptations of the Grecian style to purposes of modern domestic architecture to be found in this or any country'. Subsequently, Nash invited Burton to design [[Clarence Terrace]], Regent's Park.<ref name="Williams p.40"/> Nash was appointed architectural 'overseer' for Decimus's [[Regent's Park]] projects:<ref name="Arnold 2">{{cite book|last1=Arnold|first1=Dana|title=Rural Urbanism: London Landscapes in the Early 19th Century |date=2005|publisher=Manchester University Press|page=58}}</ref> [[Cornwall Terrace]], [[York Terrace]], [[Chester Terrace]], [[Clarence Terrace]], the villas along the Inner Circle, including [[The Holme]] and the [[London Colosseum]] attraction,according to [[Thomas Hornor (surveyor)|Thomas Hornor's]] specifications.<ref name="DSA" /><ref name="ODNB3" /> However, to Nash's great annoyance, Decimus disregarded the latter's advice and developed the terraces according to his own style. As a result, Nash sought, unsuccessfully, to demolish and completely rebuild Chester Terrace.<ref name="Curl1999" /><ref name="ODNB3" /><ref name="ODNB1" /> Decimus subsequently eclipsed his master and emerged as the dominant force in the design of [[Carlton House Terrace]],<ref name="ODNB3" /> where he exclusively designed No. 3 and No. 4.<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/> Decimus also designed some of the villas of the Inner Circle: his villa for the Marquess of Hertford has been described as, 'decorated simplicity, such as the hand of taste, aided by the purse of wealth can alone execute'.{{sfn|Jones|2017|p=209}}

Decimus was a [[polymath]] and a [[philomath]] and extremely erudite in both arts and sciences, as was demonstrated by the diversity of his library – a part of which was auctioned off by his nieces after his death. The sale catalogue listed 347 separate lots, some of which ran into many volumes,<ref name="ODNB3" /> and demonstrated the diversity of his intellectual interests: it contained the complete Proceedings of the [[Camden Society]], in 135 volumes; and transactions of many of the learned societies of which Burton was a member; and the complete ''[[Histoire Naturelle]]'' (70 vols.) of [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon|G. L. L. Buffon]] and [[Bernard Germain de Lacépède]];<ref name="ODNB3" /> and standard works on classical architecture, such as the five volumes of [[Colen Campbell]], ''Vitruvius Britannicus'' by John Woolfe and [[James Gandon]], [[James Gibbs]]'s ''Book of Architecture'', and [[William Kent]]'s ''The Designs of [[Inigo Jones]]''; and numerous topographical views and surveys of cities and counties in the collection;<ref name="ODNB3" /> and foreign-language texts, including volumes by [[Charles Percier]] and [[Jean-Baptiste Rondelet]], and a complete set of [[Giovanni Battista Piranesi]]'s works, and several dictionaries. The absence of any ''[[Grand Tour]]'' early in Decimus's career meant that his books and casts were the sources for his early designs, which are technically formal in style.<ref name="ODNB3" /><ref name="Curl1999" /> However, he subsequently travelled extensively in [[Europe]] and [[North America]].{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=12-13}} His first tours were of [[France]] and [[Spain]], in 1826. He toured the [[Netherlands]] in 1846 and [[Germany]] in 1850.<ref name="ODNB3" /><ref name="Arnold2003" /> He toured [[Italy]], including [[Venice]].{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=12-13}} He toured [[Canada]] and the [[United States]], after departing [[Liverpool]] for [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]], with his cousin [[Thomas Chandler Haliburton]], a Tory MP and author. Burton collected casts, which informed his work, over 200 of which he donated to the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], which displayed 18 of the same in its British Galleries.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=12-13}}

Burton's other artistic possessions on his death were an oil painting of St. John, copied by [[Sir Joshua Reynolds]] from a work by [[Raphael]]; a model of the Temple on the Ilissus at Athens; a statuette of an Angel copied from an original by Thorwaldsen; framed drawings of 'A Royal Palace' by Joseph Gandy ARA (b. 1771), who had been described as 'an English Piranesi'; and a bronze lamp suspended from a snake's mouth.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} Although he was the leading exponent of [[Greek revival architecture]], Burton was uniquely and significantly influenced by [[Ancient Roman architecture]]. It was in his Georgian neoclassical work that he attained the acme of his excellence.<ref name="ODNB3" /> [[Dana Arnold]] (2002) described his Neoclassical work thus:

"''His use of the orders is always correct, but he showed a lack of pedantry in their application that sets him apart from some of his more doctrinaire contemporaries, such as [[John R. Hamilton (architect)|Hamilton]] and [[Robert Smirke (architect)|Smirke]]. From [[John Nash (architect)|Nash]] he had learned to combine the [[Greek revival architecture|classical]] and the [[picturesque]], and it is the picturesque that is predominant in much of his later work''".<ref name="Arnold2003" />

Burton has been described, by architectural scholar Guy Williams, as "rich, cool, well-dressed, apparently celibate, the designer and prime member of the [[Athenaeum Club, London|the Athenaeum]], one of London's grandest gentlemens' clubs"<ref name="Williams 1990 Inside Cover"/> where Burton "mixed with many of the greatest in the land, meeting the most creative as well as those with enormous hereditary wealth".<ref name="Williams p.66"/> By 1826, the name of Decimus Burton "was on the lips of everyone who cared at all about the arts and architecture": he was "very well liked [and] his modesty, politeness, and upright bearing were endearing" and "his integrity and professional competence were worthy of the greatest respect".<ref name="Williams p.51"/> Burton was treated by the aristocracy 'more as a friend than as a professional advisor'<ref name="Williams p.108"/> and his close friendships with, and patronage by, the aristocracy were undamaged by the vituperation of both his person and his neoclassical architecture by [[Augustus Pugin]] and his disciples. The ''Proceedings of the Royal Society'' commended Burton's "extreme amiability of character".<ref name="Williams p.108"/>

The Burtons' social circle included [[Queen Victoria|Princess Victoria]]; the [[Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|Duchess of Kent]];<ref name="Williams p.66"/> [[William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire]];<ref name="Williams p.84"/> [[John Wilson Croker]]; John Nash;<ref name="Williams p.38-39"/> [[Humphry Davy|Sir Humphry Davy]]; [[George Bellas Greenough]];<ref name="Williams p.38-39"/> Sir [[Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood|Sir Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood]]; and their [[Canadians|Canadian]] cousin, [[Thomas Chandler Haliburton]].<ref name="Williams p.127"/> Decimus and his siblings, Jane, James (born 1786), Septimus, the solicitor, Octavia, and Jessy, would host Thomas on his visits to London.{{sfn|Davies|2005|p=72}}<ref name="ODNB1" /><ref name="Arnold2003" />{{sfn|Curtis|Curtis|1994|p={{page needed|date=September 2021}}}}<ref name="ODNB2"/>

Burton was "on excellent terms" with [[Queen Victoria|Princess Victoria]], and with the [[Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld|Duchess of Kent]].<ref name="Williams p.66"/> The Princess and the Duchess, with several courtiers, had laid the foundation stone of a Decimus Burton School in [[Tunbridge Wells]], and, five weeks later, in autumn 1834, they had stayed, by Burton's invitation, at James Burton's private villa at [[St Leonards-on-Sea]], until several weeks into 1835.<ref name="Williams pp.66-67"/>

From 1818, Burton resided, with his father, at [[The Holme]], Regent's Park, which has been described as "one of the most desirable private homes in London",<ref name="Williams p.133"/> which was designed as the Burton family mansion by Decimus, and built by James Burton's own company.<ref name=ODNB1 /> The Holme was the second villa to be built in Regent's Park, and the first of those to be designed or constructed by the Burton family. The hallmark of the Burton design is the large semi-circular bay that divided the principal elevation, and which extended for two storeys.<ref name="Williams p.37"/> The original villa also had a conservatory of polygonal form, which used wrought iron glazing bars, then only recently patented, instead of the then customary wooden bars.<ref name="Williams p.37"/> The first villa to be constructed in the park was [[St. John's Lodge, London|St John's Lodge]] by John Raffield.<ref name="Williams p.37"/>

Burton bought from the Crown a plot at [[Spring Gardens]], [[St. James's Park]], at the east end of [[The Mall, London|The Mall]], where he constructed, in the Georgian neoclassical townhouse style, No. 10, 12, and 14 Spring Gardens, as both his townhouse and his principal office.<ref name="Williams p.55"/>{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=53}} The buildings no longer exist, but elevations of them appear in the former LCC's ''Survey of London'' Vol. XX, and views of their interiors have been preserved in [[Hastings Museum and Art Gallery]].{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=53}} At the end of 1834, Burton had two "comfortable well-staffed homes", one in Spring Gardens and one at Tunbridge Wells,<ref name="Williams p.66"/> where he had another office at No. 10 Calverley Parade, where the [[Tunbridge Wells Town Hall]] now stands.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=53}} Williams records that, for Burton, "Money was rolling in. Income tax was of no concern. [Decimus] had a brother who could look after his business affairs and see to his investments".<ref name="Williams p.66"/>

Burton retired in 1869,<ref name="DSA_HMB" /><ref name="NAFD" /> and subsequently resided at his homes at Gloucester Gardens, [[Kensington]], and St. Leonards Lodge, St. Leonards-on-Sea, which adjoined 'The Uplands' and 'The Lawn' developments which he had designed.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} He never married nor had issue.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} He died in December 1881, at [[Gloucester Road, London|1 Gloucester Road, Kensington]], and was buried in [[Kensal Green Cemetery]], alongside his brother [[Henry Burton (physician)|Henry Burton]], and his sister Jessy Burton.<ref name="Williams p.130"/>{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} Decimus was the last of his siblings to die.<ref name="Williams p.130"/><ref name="Tomb of Decimus Burton">{{National Heritage List for England|num=1389239|desc=Tomb of Decimus Burton}}</ref> Over his grave is a tapering sarcophagus of grey [[Cornish granite]], on a stepped base, with a shallow pyramidal cover.<ref name="Tomb of Decimus Burton"/> His tomb was Grade II listed building in 2001.<ref name="Tomb of Decimus Burton"/> On his death, his property, including his extensive library and all of his architectural drafts and notes passed to surviving members of his family, mostly to his nephew Alfred Henry Burton (d.1917)<ref name="Williams p.157"/> or his two unmarried nieces, Helen and Emily Jane Wood, who subsequently sold their share, despite that he had left his library to the [[Royal Institute of British Architects]], of which he had served as president.<ref name="ODNB3" /> However, Burton donated 200 of his extensive collection of casts, which informed his work, to the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]], which displayed 18 of the same in its British Galleries.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=12-13}} Amongst Burton's possession on his death were an oil painting of St. John, copied by Sir Joshua Reynolds from a work by Raphael; a model of the Temple on the Ilissus at Athens; a statuette of an Angel copied from an original by ThorwaldsenThorvaldsen; framed drawings of 'A Royal Palace' by Joseph Gandy ARA (b. 1771), who had been described as 'an English [[Giovanni Battista Piranesi|Piranesi]]'; and a bronze lamp suspended from a snake's mouth.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} An obituary notice said "No architect was better known, and none was better respected, for he was amiable, considerable, and gentle to all".{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=58}}

During the second half of the 1820s, the [[Commissioners of Woods and Forests]] and the King resolved that [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]], and the area around it, must be renovated to the extent of the splendor of rival European capital cities, and that the essence of the new arrangement would be a triumphal approach to Buckingham Palace, which had been recently completed.<ref name="Williams p.49"/> The committee of the project, led by the Prime Minister, Lord[[Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool]], and advised by [[Charles Arbuthnot]], President of the Board of Commissioners of Woods and Forests, selected Decimus Burton as the project's architect: in 1828, when giving evidence to a Parliamentary select committee on the Government's spending on public works, Arbuthnot explained that he had nominated Burton 'having seen in the Regent's Park, and elsewhere, works which pleased my eye, from their architectural beauty and correctness'.<ref name="Williams p.49"/> Burton intended to create an urban space dedicated to the celebration of the [[House of Hanover]], national pride, and the nation's heroes.<ref name="ODNB3" />

The renovation of Hyde Park, [[Green Park]], and [[St James's Park]], began, in 1825, with the demarcation of new drives and pathways, subsequent to which Burton designed new lodges and gates, viz. Cumberland Gate, Stanhope Gate, Grosvenor Gate, the Hyde Park Gate/Screen at [[Hyde Park Corner]], and, later, the Prince of Wales's Gate, [[Knightsbridge]], in the classical style. There were no authoritative precedents for such buildings, which required windows and chimney stacks, in the classical style, and, in the words of Guy Williams, 'Burton's reticent treatment of the supernumerary features' and of the cast iron gates and railings, was 'greatly admired'.<ref name="Williams pp.49-50"/>

At Hyde Park Corner, the King required that "some great ceremonial outwork that would be worthy of the new palace that lay to its rear", and accepted Burton's consequent proposal for a sequence comprising a gateway and a classical screen, and a triumphal arch, which would enable those approaching Buckingham Palace from the north to ride or drive first through the screen and then through the arch, before turning left to descend [[Constitution Hill, London|Constitution Hill]] and enter the forecourt of Buckingham Palace through Nash's [[Marble Arch]].<ref name="Williams p.50"/> The screen became the [[Romanesque revival architecture|Roman revival]] Hyde Park Gate/Screen at [[Hyde Park Corner]], which delighted the King and his Committee, and which architectural historian Guy Williams describes as 'one of the most pleasing architectural works that have survived from the neo-classical age'.<ref name="Williams p.50"/> The triumphal arch became the [[Wellington Arch]] at [[Constitution Hill, London|Constitution Hill]] into [[Green Park, London]], which has been described as 'one of London's best loved landmarks'.<ref name="Williams p.11"/> Burton designed the arch's iron gates, which were constructed by Bramah and Co. of Pimlico.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=18}} Burton's original design for the triumphal arch, which was modelled on the [[Arch of Titus]] at Rome, on which the central and side blocks of the Screen had been modelled, was more technically perfect, and coherent with the Screen, than that of the arch that was subsequently built: this original design, however, was rejected by the committee – who had envisaged a design based on the [[Arch of Constantine]] (on which Nash's Marble Arch had been modelled) – because it was not sufficiently ostentatious. Burton created a new design, "to pander to the majestic ego", which was much larger and modelled on a fragment found in the Ancient Roman forum, which was accepted on 14 January 1826, and subsequently built as the present [[Wellington Arch]].<ref name="Williams p.51"/>

The arch at Constitution Hill was left devoid of decorative sculpture as a result of the moratorium in 1828 on public building work, and, instead, despite the absolute objection of Burton, was mounted with an ungainly [[Equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington, Aldershot|equestrian statue of the [[Duke of Wellington]] by [[Matthew Cotes Wyatt]], the son of the then recently deceased [[James Wyatt]], who had been selected by statue's commissioner, and one of its few subsequent advocates, Sir [[Frederick Trench (British Army officer)|Frederick Trench]]. Matthew Cotes Wyatt was not competent: Guy Williams contends that he was 'not noticeably talented', and the ''Dictionary of National Biography'' that 'thanks to royal and other influential patronage, Wyatt enjoyed a reputation and practice to which his mediocre abilities hardly entitled him'.<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/> Trench, and his patrons the Duke and Duchess of Rutland, had told the public subscribers to the statue that the statue would be place on top of Burton's triumphal arch at Hyde Park Corner: Burton expressed his opposition to this proposal 'as plainly and as vehemently as his nature allowed' consistently over successive years, because the ungainly statue would 'disfigure' his arch, for which it was much too large, and the surrounding neighbourhood, because it would have to be placed, contrary to all classical precedent, across, instead of parallel with, the roadway under the arch.<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/>

Burton had envisaged that his arch would be topped with only a small quadriga whose horses would have been parallel with the road under the arch. Burton's objections were extensively endorsed by most of the aristocratic residents of London.<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/> A writer in ''The Builder'' asked Lord[[Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning|Charles Canning]], the First Commissioner for Woods and Forests, to ban the project: "''We have learnt, and can state positively, that Mr. Burton has the strongest objection possible against placing the group in question on the archway... and that he is taking no part whatever in the alteration proposed to be made in the upper part of the structure to prepare it to receive the pedestal... Mr. Burton, through the mildness which characterizes him, has not expressed this opinion so loudly and so publicly as he ought to have done.... an opinion prevails very generally, that he is a party to the proceedings, and this has induced many to be silent who would otherwise have spoken...''".<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/> The Prime Minister, Sir [[Robert Peel]], contended that another site would be preferable, and proposed, on behalf of the Crown, to offer any other site, but the statue's subscribers rejected all alternative proposals. Every single MP except Sir Frederick Trench wanted the statue to be placed elsewhere.<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/>

Decimus Burton himself wrote, "''The arch would, I consider, suffer greatly in importance if the colossal statue in question be placed there, because it would become a mere pedestal. The want of proportion in the proposed surmount, compared with the columns and other details of the architecture, would show that they had been designed by different hands, and without reference for each other. ...I have desired to witness the completion of this building, as originally designed by me, and as approved by the [[Lords Commissioners of the Treasury|Lords of the Treasury]], yet I would prefer that the building should remain for the present in its forlorn and bare state, rather than a colossal equestrian statue should be placed upon it... I fear that if this appropriation of the building should be decided upon, a proposition would soon be made for removing altogether the facades of columns, the slender proportions of which would appear so incongruous and out of proportion compared with the prodigious dimensions of the statue''".<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/>

Burton had realized that the disciples of Pugin and advocates of Pugin's anti-classicism would remove all classical elements from his arch if permitted the opportunity to do so. The Government placed the Wellington statue on the arch in autumn 1846: Williams contends that the product was 'ridiculous'.<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/> ''The Builder'' contended, "down, unquestionably, it must come. As the network of timber is removed, spar by spar, from before it, so do the folly of the experiment, the absurdity of the conjunction, and the greatness of the sacrifice become apparent. Its effect is even worse than we anticipated – the destruction of the arch by the statue, and of the statue by its elevation on the arch, more complete. Every post brings us letters urging renewed efforts to remove tethe figure to another site". The contestation about the prospective removal of the statue became national. However, the Government failed to remove the statue, despite that they had professed, when it had been placed, that they would do so if it provoked the aversion which it had provoked. Foreign intellectuals who visited London identified the incongruous fusion of the statue and the arch as "spectacular confirmation" of the "artistic ignorance of the English".<ref name="Williams pp.85-94"/> Architectural historian Guy Williams writes that "''[the] arch at Hyde Park Corner is a visible reminder of one of the fiercest attacks that have ever been launched in the worlds of art and architecture. The face of London might have been very different now – freer, perhaps, of the 'monstrous carbuncles' so disliked by the present Prince of Wales – if the attacked party [Decimus Burton] had been a little more pugnacious, and so better equipped to stand his ground''".<ref name="Williams p.11"/>

In 1847 the problem of accommodating [[Queen Victoria]]'s expanding family was becoming acute. It was "solved" in two steps by Decimus Burton and W.A. Nesfield. With his eye for landscape, Burton had John Nash's triumphal monument, originally intended as the entrance to the palace, relocated to the north eastern corner of Hyde Park. He consulted on filling in the Buckingham Palace forecourt, creating new interiors and the palace [[Facade]]courtyard we know today. The Royal Family were able to move in to more spacious premises. Moving the arch, stone by stone, was left to the engineering skills of [[Thomas Cubitt]] and took four years. The siting at the Cumberland Gate entrance to the park was eventually completed in 1851.<ref>{{PastScape|mname= Marble Arch|mnumber = 1492760|access-date=6 December 2018}}</ref>

During 1882, traffic congestion at Hyde Park Corner motivated advocacy for Burton's triumphal arch to be moved to the top of Constitution Hill to create space for traffic. In response to this advocacy, Burton's great-nephew Francis Fearon compiled and published a pamphlet that advocated the removal of the Wellington statue from the arch in the event of the removal of the arch to another location: Fearon contended that the arch should be 'relieved once and for all of its unsightly load'.<ref name="Williams pp.131-133"/> The campaign led by Fearon was successful: Wyatt's incongruous statue was removed to [[Aldershot]], and its place on Burton's arch, which was moved to Constitution Hill in 1883,<ref name="ODNB3" /> was occupied by a Quadriga by Captain [[Adrian Jones (sculptor)|Adrian Jones]]. Jones' statue is not nearly as elegant as Burton's designed statue intended for the arch, but it is more coherent with the arch than Wyatt's statue, and its figures, unlike those of Wyatt's statue, are aligned with the roadway under the arch.<ref name="Williams pp.131-133"/>

By the end of 1829, Burton had completed [[London Zoo]], which had opened in April 1828,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=34}} to fervent commendation.<ref name="Williams p.54"/> Guy Williams records, "''From all sides, Decimus Burton's Zoo buildings received the highest praise. They were playful - witty, even - while being architecturally beyond reproach. They made a visit to the Zoo an aesthetic, as well as an educational, pleasure. They brought a suggestion of foreign lands to the flattish expanses at the foot of Primrose Hill''".<ref name="Williams p.54"/> Burton laid out the Zoo in the picturesque style, and designed the early animal houses in the [[cottage orné]] style.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=34}} As a consequence of the success of his London Zoo designs, Burton received more commissions than he were able to complete himself, and, consequently, employed assistants, began to train pupils, and bought a plot at [[Spring Gardens]], [[St. James's Park]], at the east end of The Mall, where he constructed Nos. 10, and 11, and 12 Spring Gardens as both his townhouse and his office.<ref name="Williams p.55"/>

The [[Athenaeum Club, London|Athenaeum]] was founded in 1824 at the instigation of [[John Wilson Croker]], then [[Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty|Secretary to the Admiralty]], who was primarily responsible for the organisation and early development of the club. In 1823, Croker wrote to Sir Humphry Davy, "''I will take the opportunity of repeating the proposition I have made to you about a Club for Literary and Scientific men and followers of the Fine Arts. The fashionable and Military Clubs... have spoiled all the Coffee Houses and Taverns so that the artist, or mere literary man... are in a much worse position''".<ref name="Williams pp.43-45"/>

Croker suggested 30 names for the club's organizing Committee, including the [[George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen|Earl of Aberdeen]], the [[George Ashburnham, 3rd Earl of Ashburnham|Earl of Ashburnham]], [[George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer|Earl Spencer]], [[Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston|Lord Palmerston]], Sir [[Thomas Lawrence]], [[Francis Chantrey]], and Robert Smirke the Younger: all of those invited, except [[Richard Payne Knight]], accepted.<ref name="Williams pp.43-45"/> The first meeting of the Athenaeum, with 14 men present, was held at the rooms of the [[Royal Society]] on 16 February 1824, where a committee was formed that resolved: first, that temporary premises would be rented at 12 Waterloo Place, which had been constructed by the company of Club member [[James Burton (property developer)|James Burton, the pre-eminent London property developer]]; and, second, that Decimus Burton, then 24 years old, would be commissioned to design a permanent clubhouse.<ref name="Williams pp.43-45"/> The Trustees of the Club who employed Burton were the Earl of Aberdeen, former Prime Minister and President of the [[Society of Antiquaries of London]]; Sir Thomas Lawrence, President of the Royal Academy; and Sir Humphry Davy, President of the Royal Society. Decimus continued to work for the club until 1864, and designed Croker's villa at [[Stokes Bay]], near [[Gosport]], in around 1840.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=15-16}} Burton's Athenaeum clubhouse is in the Neoclassical style, with both Ancient Greek, Ancient Roman, and Renaissance Italian elements:{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=21-22}} it has a Doric portico with paired columns, and has been described by architectural scholar Guy Williams as 'a building of remarkable grace and astonishing novelty' with a central staircase that is 'distinctly Egyptian in flavour'.<ref name="Williams pp.46-48"/> The Corinthian-columns of the entrance hall, informed by those of the Athenian [[Tower of the Winds]], are Greek: the barrel-vaulted ceiling Roman. [[John Summerson]] contends design were informed by that of [[Baldassare Peruzzi]]'s 17th century [[Palazzo PietroMassimo Massimialle Colonne]] in Rome.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=21-22}}

Burton made himself responsible for the design of as many of the decorative features of the club as possible, including the clock-cases and the pendant light-fittings.<ref name="Williams pp.46-48"/> When the Clubhouse was completed in April 1830, the members of the Club Committee stated, "''[They] are bound to express their entire satisfaction at the manner in which the work has been carried out by Mr. Burton. They can testify, and indeed the foregoing Accounts evince, the general accuracy of his estimates and they trust that the Club at large, as well as the public, must be satisfied of his professional skill, and the beauty of his architectural designs''".<ref name="Williams pp.46-48"/> Decimus Burton subsequently became the "prime member of [[Athenaeum Club, London|the Athenaeum]], one of London's grandest gentlemen's clubs",<ref name="Williams 1990 Inside Cover"/> of which his father James was also a member.<ref name="Athenaeum Club, Home"/> The cast of the [[Apollo Belvedere]] positioned in the recess at the top of the principal staircase at the Athenaeum was a gift to the club from Decimus.<ref name="Grand Staircase">{{cite web|website=The Victorian Web |title=Grand Staircase, The Athenaeum Club |url=http://www.victorianweb.org/art/architecture/athenaeum/14.html}}</ref> There is a photographic portrait of Decimus, taken in 1873, preserved at the club,<ref name="Arnold2003"/> and the Club retains some furniture designed by Decimus.<ref name="Athenaeum Club, Home"/> Another early member was [[Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood|Sir Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood]], a close friend of the Burtons.{{sfn|Curtis|Curtis|1994|p={{page needed|date=September 2021}}}}

Burton was commissioned to develop the Calverley Estate by John Ward, an MP for whom he had designed his first neoclassical country residence. Great Mount Pleasant, a mansion owned by the [[Duke of Leeds]], had been used by the Princess Victoria and the Duchess of Kent. The villas constructed by Burton on the Calverley Estate were intended for the gentry, and each would be able to accommodate several servants.<ref name="Williams pp.56-59"/> Burton's design is predominantly Georgian neoclassical in style, but includes elements of the Italianate-, Old English or Tudor-, neogothic-,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=24-25}} and cottage orne {{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=34-35}} styles. Burton designed 24 villas, the first of which was completed in autumn 1828: nearly twenty years would pass until the last villa of the series were complete. Burton also constructed a series of Tudor-style servants' cottages, and three grand entrances to the estate: the Victoria Gate, and the less ornate Keston Lodge and Farnborough Lodge.<ref name="Williams pp.56-59"/>

In 1832, Calverley Park Crescent, designed by Burton, modelled partially on those at [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] and [[Buxton]], was constructed at Calverley. The Crescent contained 17 shops, and covered areas for spectators.<ref name="Williams pp.56-59"/> Burton's development of the Calverley Estate contained elements of the neoclassical-, the Old English-, and the neogothic styles, and was highly commended: it has been described as "a landmark in English domestic architecture" and the "prototype garden suburb".{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=8}}

M. Wilson contends that 'Decimus Burton's laying out of the Calverley Estate is the best surviving embodiment of Early Victorian seriousness and refinement'.{{sfn|Jones|2017|p=287}} [[Christopher Hussey (historian)|Christopher Hussey]], of ''[[Country Life (magazine)|Country Life]]'', commended Burton's 'restrained eclectism' in the Calverley developments.{{sfn|Jones|2017|p=35}} Williams contends that the Calverley Estate be 'one of the great architectural successes of the nineteenth century' and that 'Decimus Burton's reputation could be assured by his work here alone',<ref name="Williams pp.56-59"/> and describes Burton's villas at the estate as 'domestic masterpiece[s]'.<ref name="Williams p.134"/> Henry Russell Hitchcock described Burton's Calverley Estate as 'the finest extant example' of its kind.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=24-25}} Sir John Soane's friend John Britton described Burton's Calverley as a 'beautiful pleasure garden'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=34-35}}

Dr. Philip Whitbourn OBE FSA FRIBA contends that Burton has been inaccurately 'sometimes stereotyped as [one] feeling no enthusiasm for the Gothic Revival' and that 'it is as a master not only of the neoclassical but also of the [[picturesque]] that Decimus Burton should be remembered'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=34-35}} William Willicombe's subsequent designs on the Calverley Estate, including Lansdowne Road and Calverley Park Gardens, were informed by Burton, with whom he had worked on Burton's earlier parts of the town.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=58}}

Burton was commissioned to design [[Trinity Theatre|Holy Trinity Church]] at Tunbridge Wells in the neo-gothic style: he unwisely accepted the commission despite that he was 'neither by temperament nor training' qualified to design a work in this style, of which he knew little, and his design was censured,<ref name="Williams p.56"/> in addition to commended as a 'beautiful structure' and a 'handsome structure' which 'reflects great credit on the architect'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=42}} A more unanimously successful attempt to design in the neogothic style was [[St Mary's Church, Goring-by-Sea]], which he redesigned, for the Tory MP [[David Lyon (British politician)|Tory MP David Lyon]], between 1836 and 1838.<ref name="Williams p.143"/><ref name="ucl" />

Burton created a design for a new neoclassical [[Houses of Parliament]].<ref name="Williams p.62"/> Decimus Burton and his pupils commended the purchase of the [[Elgin Marbles]] for the nation, and the erection of a neoclassical gallery in which they could be displayed to the same, and subsequently contended that the destruction of the Houses[[Burning of Parliament]] byin the fire of 1834 were an opportunity for the creation of a splendid neoclassical replacement of the Houses of Parliament, in which the Elgin Marbles could be displayed: they expressed their aversion that the new seat of the British Empire would "be doomed to crouch and wither in the {{sic|groi|nings|nolink=y}}, vaultings, tracery, pointed roof, and flying buttresses of a Gothic building…":<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/> a building of a style that they contended to be improper ‘to the prevailing sentiment of an age so enlightened’. In contradistinction to the neo-gothic style, they commended those who had ‘built St. Paul's Cathedral, to the satisfaction of an applauding posterity, in the more beautiful and universal style of Roman architecture’.<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/>

However, the Prime Minister, [[Sir [[Robert Peel]], wanted, now that he were premier, to disassociate himself from the controversial John Wilson Croker, who was a founding member of the Athenaeum, close associate of the Burtons, an advocate of neoclassicism, and repudiator of the neo-gothic style: consequently, Peel appointed a committee chaired by [[Edward Cust]], a detestor of the style of Nash and [[William Wilkins (architect)|William Wilkins]], which resolved that the new Houses of Parliament would have to be in either the ‘gothic’ or the ‘Elizabethan’ style.<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/>

[[Augustus Pugin|Augustus W. N. Pugin]], the foremost expert on the Gothic, had to submit each of his designs through, and thus in the name of, other architects, [[James Gillespie-Graham]] and [[Charles Barry]], because he had recently openly and fervently converted to Roman Catholicism, as a consequence of which any design submitted in his own name would certainly have been automatically rejected;<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/> the design he submitted for improvements to [[Balliol College, Oxford]], in 1843 were rejected for this reason.<ref name="Williams p.150"/> The design for Parliament that Pugin submitted through Barry won the competition.<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/> Subsequent to the announcement of the design ascribed to Barry, [[William Richard Hamilton]], who had been secretary to Lord [[Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin|Elgin]] during the acquisition and transportation of the Elgin Marbles,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=7}} published a pamphlet in which he censured the fact that ‘gothic barbarism’ had been preferred to the masterful designs of Ancient Greece and Rome: but the judgement was not altered, and was ratified by the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|Commons]] and the [[House of Lords of the United Kingdom|Lords]].<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/> The commissioners subsequently appointed Pugin to assist in the construction of the interior of the new Palace, to the design of which Pugin himself had been the foremost determiner.<ref name="Williams pp.69-75"/> The first stone of the new Pugin-Barry design was laid on 27 April 1840.<ref name="Williams p.147"/>

During the competition for the design of the new Houses of Parliament, Burton, "the land's leading classicist",<ref name="Williams p.83"/> was vituperated with continuous invective, which Guy Williams has described as an "anti-Burton campaign",<ref name="Williams p.129"/> by the foremost advocate of the neo-gothic style, [[Augustus Pugin]],<ref name="Williams pp.67-78"/> who was made enviously reproachful that Burton "had done much more that Pugin's father ([[Augustus Charles Pugin]]) to alter the appearance of London".<ref name="Williams p.75"/> Pugin attempted to popularize advocacy of the neo-gothic, and repudiation of the neoclassical, by composing and illustrating books that contended the supremacy of the former and the degeneracy of the latter, which were published from 1835.<ref name="Williams pp.75-77"/>

In 1845, Pugin, in his ''Contrasts: or a Parallel Between the Noble Edifices of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries and Similar Buildings of the Present Day'', which the author had to publish himself as a consequence of the extent of the defamation of society architects therein, satirized John Nash as "Mr Wash, Plasterer, who jobs out Day Work on Moderate Terms", and Burton as "Talent of No Consequence, Premium Required", and included satirical sketches of Nash's Buckingham Palace and Burton's triumphalWellington arch at Hyde ParkArch.<ref name="Williams pp.75-77"/> Consequently, the amount of commissions received by Burton declined,<ref name="Williams pp.83-84"/> although he retained a close friendship with the aristocrats amongst his patrons, who continued to commission him.<ref name="Williams p.108"/> Burton completed a new portico, hall, and staircase for the [[William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire]]'s residence near [[PiccadillyDevonshire House]];<ref name="Williams pp.83-84"/> additions to [[Belgrave Square|10 Belgrave Square]] for the second [[William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire|2nd Earl of Burlington (later the 7th Duke of Devonshire)]];<ref name="Williams p.146"/> the enlargement of [[Grimston Park]], Yorkshire, for [[John Hobart Caradoc, 2nd Baron Howden]] and the Russian [[Catherine Bagration|Princess Bagration]]; additions to [[Syon House]] for Lord[[Algernon Prudhoe (later thePercy, 4th Duke of Northumberland)|Lord Prudhoe]]; and a new town, [[Fleetwood]], in [[Lancashire]], for [[Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood|Sir [[Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood]].<ref name="Williams pp.83-84"/>

Decimus was primarily responsible for the 'Great Stove' [conservatory] at [[Chatsworth House]] for the 6th Duke of Devonshire, for which [[Joseph Paxton]] has been erroneously attributed primary responsibility and credit.<ref name="Williams pp.97-99"/> Architectural historian Guy Williams is unequivocal: Decimus Burton was "[the] designer of the Great Stove at Chatsworth". Burton, who was advisor to the [[Royal BotanicalBotanic Society]], also designed the 'Winter Garden' glasshouse of the Royal Botanic Society in Regent's Park, and the [[Palm House, Kew Gardens|Palm House]], originally named 'the Stove', and [[Temperate House, Kew Gardens|Temperate House]] at Kew Gardens.<ref name="Williams pp.100-102"/> The constructed Palm House is the consequence of the collaboration of Burton and Richard Turner: 'Decimus Burton contributed his considerable flair for creating refined and elegant structures and Richard Turner a singular talent for metal fabrication'.<ref name="Williams pp.103-104"/> Burton's Palm House has been described as "one of the boldest pieces of 19th century functionalism in existence - much bolder indeed, and hence aesthetically much more satisfying than [[The Crystal Palace|Crystal Palace]] ever was".{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=51}}

Dr. Philip Whitbourn OBE FSA FRIBA contends that Burton's Palm House 'could have a just claim as the world's most important surviving Victorian glass and iron structure'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=51}} Joseph Paxton's Crystal Palace was derived almost entirely from the glasshouse work of Decimus Burton and [[Richard Turner (iron-founder)|Richard Turner]].<ref name="Williams p.114"/> Subsequent to his retirement there, Decimus designed and constructed several buildings at St Leonards-on-Sea.<ref name="Williams p.127"/> Burton's Temperate House at Kew, which is double the size of his Palm House and the world's largest surviving Victorian glass structure,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=52}} was only completed after his death, in 1898, and has become one of his most popularly acclaimed works:<ref name="Williams p.129"/> Williams writes of the Temperate House, "''It makes one wonder how much the appearance of London might not have been improved if [[Augustus Pugin|Augustus W. N. Pugin]] had never started his anti-Burton campaign''".<ref name="Williams p.129"/> Burton's other works at Kew include the Museum No.1, the Campanile, and the Main Entrance Gates to [[Kew Green]]. Burton's Glasshouses at Kew constituted the UK's case for Kew to be made an [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]] in 2002.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=52}}{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=56-57}}

From 1830 to 1834, Burton studied at [[Clifford's Inn]]. The architectural historian, Sir [[Nikolaus Pevsner|Sir Nikolaus Pevsner]], believes that Decimus was the designer of the Gatehouse and the Inn buildings.{{sfn|Bradley|Pevsner|2002|pp=293–294}}

Burton trained his nephew, [[Henry Marley Burton|Henry Marley Burton FRIBA]] (1821–1880)<ref name="Williams p.129"/> the son of his eldest brother, William Ford Burton.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} Henry Marley Burton succeeded to Decimus's architectural practice subsequent to Decimus's retirement.<ref name="Williams p.129"/><ref name="Arnold2003" />{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=56}} In 1866, Henry Marley was commissioned by [[John George Dodson, 1st Baron Monk Bretton]] to design a mansion at Coneyborough. Decimus had previously designed Bineham in [[Chailey]] for Dodson's brother-in-law, [[John Blencowe|John George Blencowe]]. Burton also taught the architects [[Henry Currey (architect)|Henry Currey FRIBA]],{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=49}}{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=57-58}} George Mair,{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=57-58}} [[John Crake]],{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=57-58}} [[Arthur William Hakewill]],{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=57-58}} and [[E.J. May|Edward John May FRIBA]],{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=57-58}}<ref name="Williams p.130"/> who was his last pupil.<ref>{{cite web|last=Grant|first=Sandra|publisher=The Bedford Park Society |work=Architecture and architects|title=E J May|url=https://www.bedfordpark.org.uk/suburb/architecture/#may}}</ref><ref name="LORD MONK BRETTON"/><ref name="DSA"/>

Despite the fact that he had left his library to the [[Royal Institute of British Architects]], of which he had served as president, most of it was deposited instead with his two unmarried nieces, Helen and Emily Jane Wood, who subsequently sold it, and the remainder was distributed among other family members. As a consequence, according to [[Dana Arnold]], there is a gross imbalance between the ‘scale and significance’ of Decimus Burton's work and the amount of documentary evidence about it that has come into the public domain. Given the fragmentary nature of written sources concerning his work, he has tended to be relegated, quite undeservedly, 'to the margins of architectural histories’. However, Burton's works in London, especially those around Hyde Park, Green Park, Regent's Park, remains a lasting and resplendent memorial.<ref name="ODNB3" /> His reputation has increased since the commencement of the 20th century,<ref name="Williams pp.132-134"/> during which a ''Burtons' St Leonards Society'' has been founded in St Leonards-on-Sea to 'encourage the preservation of the work of James and Decimus Burton and to prevent development unsympathetic to its character', which has successfully thwarted several attempts to create new developments that would have violated the beauty of the Burtons' project.<ref name="Williams pp.132-134"/> Architectural historian Guy Williams writes that "''[the] arch at Hyde Park Corner is a visible reminder of one of the fiercest attacks [on Decimus Burton and neoclassicism, by [[Augustus Pugin]]] that have ever been launched in the worlds of art and architecture. The face of London might have been very different now – freer, perhaps, of the 'monstrous carbuncles' so disliked by the present Prince of Wales – if the attacked party [Decimus Burton] had been a little more pugnacious, and so better equipped to stand his ground''".<ref name="Williams p.11"/>

The recently completed restoration (2018) of the [[Temperate House]] at London's Kew Gardens has prompted a re-evaluation of Burton's [[Landscape architect|horticultural designs]].{{sfn|Coulter|1996|p={{page needed|date=September 2021}}}} Douglas Murphy contends that Burton's use of "Iron and glass, through shedding ornament and aiming for efficient performance over capricious pomp, was retroactively understood as the historic forerunner of [[Modern architecture|Modernism]], meaning that what had been thought of as mere engineering was allowed to enter the pantheon of true architecture. Burton's name was now fortunately attached to some of the most significant works of that type".<ref>{{cite web|title=The Contradictory Career of Decimus Burton|last=Murphy|first=Douglas| work=Apollo: The International Art Magazine|date=26 March 2018| access-date=1 April 2018| url=https://www.apollo-magazine.com/decimus-burton-at-kew-gardens/}}</ref>

Burton's legacy on either side of the [[Irish Sea]] endures. In April 2017 the [[Hearsum Collection]], in collaboration with [[The Royal Parks]] and Ireland's [[Office of Public Works]], mounted an exhibition at Dublin's [[Phoenix Park]] entitled ''Parks, Our Shared Heritage: The Phoenix Park, Dublin & The Royal Parks, London'', demonstrating the historical links between [[Richmond Park]] (and other Royal Parks in London) and Phoenix Park.<ref name="Fallon">{{Cite news |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/homes-and-property/gardens/park-yourself-in-dublin-s-finest-garden-1.3025382 |title=Park yourself in Dublin's finest garden |last=Fionnuala Fallon |date=1 April 2017 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |access-date=2 April 2017}}</ref> This exhibition was also displayed at the [[Mall Galleries]] in London in July and August 2017.<ref name="Mall">{{cite web |url=https://www.mallgalleries.org.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/parks-our-shared-heritage |title=Parks – Our Shared Heritage |date=July 2017 |publisher=[[The Mall Galleries]] |location=London |access-date=22 September 2017}}</ref>

* [[St Mary's Church, Bradford Peverell|St Mary's church]], [[Bradford Peverell]] (1850)

* [[Adelaide Crescent]], [[Hove]], Brighton, (1831 – 1834, for [[Sir Isaac Goldsmith]]).<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/> The style that Burton used here was the progenitor of that which [[Osbert Lancaster]] subsequently termed 'Kensington Italianate'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=49}} (Only numbers 1–10 were built in Burton's style: the remainder were completed from 1850 to a much grander design)

* Furze Hill Villa, Brighton, (1833, for [[Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmith]])<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[Holy Trinity Church, Eastbourne|Holy Trinity Church]], [[Eastbourne]] (1837-9, later extended)

* [[St Augustine's Church, Flimwell|St. Augustine's Church]], [[Flimwell]] (1839)

* [[Worth Park Gardens|Worth Park]], Sussex, (additions, 1833, for [[Joseph Montefiore]])<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[The Holme]], Inner Circle, Regent's Park (1818). From 1818, Burton resided, with his father, at [[The Holme]], Regent's Park, which has been described as 'one of the most desirable private homes in London',<ref name="Williams p.133"/> which was designed as the Burton family mansion by Decimus, and built by James Burton's own company.<ref name=ODNB1 /> The Holme was the second villa to be built in Regent's Park, and the first of those to be designed or constructed by the Burton family.<ref name="Williams p.37"/> The hallmark of the Burton design is the large semi-circular bay that divided the principal elevation, and which extended for two storeys.<ref name="Williams p.37"/> The original villa also had a conservatory of polygonal form, which used wrought iron glazing bars, then only recently patented, instead of the then customary wooden bars.<ref name="Williams p.37"/> The first villa to be constructed in the park was St. John's Lodge by John Raffield.<ref name="Williams p.37"/>

* The original [[Winfield House]] (1825) for the[[Francis Seymour-Conway, 3rd Marquess of Hertford]], which became known as 'St. Dunstan's Villa'.<ref name="Williams p.137"/> Burton's creation was described as, 'decorated simplicity, such as the hand of taste, aided by the purse of wealth can alone execute'.{{sfn|Jones|2017|p=209}} Burton's creation was subsequently reconstructed as a building with a modern exterior.<ref name="Williams p.137"/> In 1819, Burton had also designed for the same commissioner a South Villa, the designs of which were exhibited at Royal Academy in 1822 and in 1825, the manuscript drawings of which are now in the Library of the [[Architectural Association School of Architecture|Architectural Association]], London.

*Parliamentary Mews, Prince's Street, [[Westminster]] (1825).<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/> Remodelled in 1853 and 1854, also by Decimus Burton, after which they were named 'Stationery Office'.<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*[[Wellington Arch]], [[Hyde Park Corner]], (1827)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*3 [[Carlton House Terrace]], for Lord[[Baron de Clifford]], (1828)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*4 [[Carlton House Terrace]], for Lord [[Charles Stuart, 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay|Stuart de Rothesay]], (1828)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*Magazine of the [[Grenadier Guards]], [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]], (redesign) (1830)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*[[Temple Church, London]] (restoration, with SidneySydney Smirke) (1841–1843)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=45}}

*[[Devonshire House]], [[Piccadilly]], (additions: portico, hall, staircase),(1843)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*Lodge for the Prince of Wales's Gate, [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]], (1846)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*The Ferns, Victoria Road, [[Kensington]], (1864), (improvements, for E.[[Edward W.William Cooke R. A.]]), (1864)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[Nuffield Lodge|Grove House]] (subsequently called 'Nuffield Lodge') Regent's Park<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[St. John's Lodge (London)|St. John's Lodge]], (for John Mabberley MP) (let in 1829 to the [[ArthurRichard Wellesley, 1st DukeMarquess of WellingtonWellesley|Marquess of Wellesley]], who employed Burton to enlarge it.

* [[London Colosseum]], Regent's Park, (1823–1827).<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/> It was informed by the design of the Roman [[Pantheon, Rome|Roman Pantheon]],{{sfn |Elmes |1852|p=144}} but also by Grecian principles, and had a [[Doric order|Doric]] portico.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=19}} Its dome was larger than that of [[St. Paul's Cathedral]].{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=19}} It was described as 'one of the finest and best proportioned of Greco-Doric in the Metropolis'.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|pp=21-22}} It was demolished in 1875.{{sfn|Whitbourn|2003|p=19}}

* [[Kew Gardens]]. Layout of the gardens and paths, the [[Palm House, Kew Gardens|Palm House]] (1844–48) (at the time the largest greenhouse in the world), Main Gate (1846, renamed ''The Elizabeth Gate'' in 2012 to mark the [[Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II]]), the Water Lily House (1852), The Museum, (1857, extended 1881), Thethe [[Temperate House, Kew Gardens|Temperate House]], (1859–1863) (the flanking wings, also part of Burton's design, were not built until 1897–98)

*Headmaster's House, [[Harrow School]], (1840, enlarged by Burton in 1845 and 1846)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*Lodges, Gates, at [[Chiswick House]]; additions to the Grove; additions to Sutton Court, Chiswick (1835, for 6th Duke of Devonshire)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*[[Calverley Estate]], [[Royal Tunbridge Wells]], (commenced 1828)<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

*[[Holy Trinity Church, Tunbridge Wells|Holy Trinity Church]], (1827–1829) [[Royal Tunbridge Wells]]{{sfn|Homan|1984|p=106}}

* Bentham Hill House, [[Southborough, Kent]] (1830–3) a small [[country house]] in [[George Devey|Deveyesque]] style for Alexandre Pott, now converted into flats. It has been termed DB's most picturesque house.<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[Great Culverden Park|Culverden House]], [[Royal Tunbridge Wells|Tunbridge Wells]], Kent (1830), demolished to make way for the [[Kent and Sussex Hospital]]. All that remains of the Burton designed estate is the woodland part of the grounds

* East Cliffe House (additions), Ramsgate, Kent, for Sir [[Moses Montefiore]]<ref name="Williams pp.135-157"/>

* [[Queens Terrace Gardens]], Queen's Terrace, Fleetwood

* [[Fleetwood]], Town Hall

* [[Cobh|Queenstown]], [[Co.County Cork]], the invitation to make improvements to the sea-side resort in the 1840s was made by [[George Brodrick, 5th Viscount Midleton]]

* Martinstown House, [[CoCounty Kildare]] (1833)<ref>{{cite web|title= Dictionary of Irish Architects, 1720–1940|url = https://www.dia.ie/architects/view/783/BURTON%2C+DECIMUS+%23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title= Chapelized Gate Lodge, Phoenix Park|date=5 February 2010|url=http://archiseek.com/2010/1833-chapelizod-gate-lodge-phoenix-park-dublin/|place = Dublin}} [accessed 5 December 2018]</ref>

<ref name="BSLS">{{cite web|title=Who were the Burtons?|url=http://www.burtonsstleonardssociety.co.uk/history_-_the_burtons.html|website=The Burtons' St Leonards Society|access-date=18 June 2016|archive-date=8 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190908112908/http://www.burtonsstleonardssociety.co.uk/history_-_the_burtons.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

*{{cite web|title=The Contradictory Career of Decimus Burton|last=Murphy|first=Douglas| work=Apollo: The International Art Magazine|date =26 March 2018| access-date = 1 April 2018| url = https://www.apollo-magazine.com/decimus-burton-at-kew-gardens/}}

*{{cite web|title= Burton Collection|first=Kew|last=National Archives|work=Collection of documents and letters relating to James and Decimus Burton, from family donations|place= held at [[Hastings Museum and Art Gallery]] |url=http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/5bedf9a1-b3f3-4a51-beee-9fa6cb9dd830}}

*{{cite web|title=Burtons' St Leonards History|work= 1066 online Hastings & St Leonards the online guide |url=https://www.1066online.co.uk/hastings-history/burtons-st-leonards/}}

*{{cite journal|doi=10.1098/rspl.1882.0002|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society of London|date= 1883 |volume= 34 |issue=220–223|pages= 220–223|title=Obituary notices of fellows deceased |url=http://rspl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/34/220-223/0.full.pdf+html?sid=defc5388-6f26-4ee2-9e46-a14dc194bc5|doi-access=free}}{{Dead link|date=January 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

[[Category:19th-century British architects]]