News
HRH makes a speech at the New Buildings in Old Places conference at St James's Palace
31st January 2008
The Prince of Wales called for Britain’s historic landscapes to be protected today during a speech at the New Buildings in Old Places conference at St James’s Palace.The event, sponsored by The Prince’s Regeneration Trust, The Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment, The National Trust and Historic Royal Palaces, was aimed to discuss the issues around new developments in historic places.
In his speech The Prince said the U.N.E.S.C.O. World Heritage Status of historic places like Edinburgh’s Old Town, the Tower of London and Westminster has been threatened by construction of new buildings nearby.
The Prince spoke of the need to protect what precious heritage we have left. He said: “For some unaccountable reason we seem to be determined to vandalize these few remaining sites which retain the kind of human scale and timeless character that so attract people to them and which increase in value as time goes by. What is it, Ladies and Gentlemen, about our outlook which perpetuates desire deliberately to desecrate such places? You would think, wouldn’t you, that we might have outgrown this kind of attitude by now…?”
“Thus, in chasing the corporate tenant or the buy-to-let investor, we may not only be destroying our heritage, but killing the goose that lays the golden egg for we will destroy what makes our cities and towns so attractive to tourists in the process.
The Prince went on: “Interestingly, London currently holds almost a two per cent share of world tourism and London tourists spent £7.5 billion here in 2006, according to Visit London, with visitor surveys attesting to the fact that the Tower of London and St. Paul’s Cathedral are Britain’s top paid attractions. Nevertheless, speculative towers are currently proposed in the environs of both the Tower and St. Paul’s…”
The Prince suggested the areas such as Canary Wharf was the place for high-rise blocks rather than places where they overshadowed historic buildings such as St Paul’s Cathedral.
The Prince shared with delegates his own architectural principles, developed over 20 years, which have been put into place in Poundbury, the urban extension of Dorchester, built on Duchy of Cornwall land.
He said: “Firstly, recognition that sustainability actually means building for the long-term – 100 years, rather than 20 years;
“Secondly, because of this, it is worth building in an adaptable and flexible manner, reassessing and re-using existing buildings wherever possible;
“Thirdly, it is worth building in a manner that fits the place, in terms of materials used, proportion and layouts and climate, ecology and building practices;
“Fourthly, it is worth building beautifully, in a manner that builds upon tradition, evolving it in response to present challenges and utilising present day resources and techniques;
“And, finally, it is worth understanding the purpose of a building, or group of buildings, within the hierarchy of the buildings around it and responding with an appropriate building type and design. Doing this often implies the composition of a harmonious whole, rather than the erection of singular objects of architectural or corporate will which merely panders to ego-centric imperatives.”
The Prince cited the examples of Paris and Berlin where the height of buildings has been restricted in order to protect the built heritage of the respective capitals.
He said this kind of approach: "Can help to achieve a far more coherent sense of harmony and civic self confidence than the alternative 'free-for-all" that will leave London and our other cities with a pockmarked skyline."
Click here to read the speech or click here to watch an edited video of the speech.
Click here to read more about The Prince's work on the Built Environment.