Baden-Powell House
| Baden-Powell House | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Modern architecture |
| Town or city | Kensington, London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Completed | 1961-07-12 |
| Cost | £ 400,000 |
| Client | The Scout Association |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Ralph Tubbs |
| Engineer | Harry Neal Ltd |
Baden-Powell House, colloquially known as B-P House, is a Scouting hostel and conference centre. The Baden-Powell House in South Kensington, London, was built as a tribute to Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting. The house, owned by The Scout Association, hosts a collection of Baden-Powell memorabilia, including the original Baden-Powell painting by David Jagger, Baden-Powell's Last Message to Scouts, and a granite statue by Don Potter.
The building committee, chaired by Sir Harold Gillett, Lord Mayor of London, purchased the site in 1956, and assigned Ralph Tubbs to design the house. The Foundation Stone was laid in 1959 by World Chief Guide Olave, Lady Baden-Powell, and it was opened in 1961 by Queen Elizabeth II. The largest part of the £400,000 costs was provided by the Scout Movement itself. Over the years several refurbishments have taken place, so that it now provides a modern place for all Scouts and Guides to come and stay in London for a reasonable cost.
History
| From address by HM the Queen[1] |
| Baden-Powell himself has gone, but his Movement remains and grows—a memorial more enduring than stone or steel. It is, however, fitting that, here in England, where he started it, there should be a house, bearing his name and serving the needs of the Movement, which can express our gratitude to him in a practical way. |
Acting upon a 1942 initiative by Chief Scout Lord Somers, a formal Baden-Powell House Committee was established in 1953 under the direction of Sir Harold Gillett, later Lord Mayor of London. The committee purchased the empty site of a bombed property in 1956 at the intersection of Cromwell Road and Queen's Gate in South Kensington, London at a cost of £39,000.[1]
The Scout Movement raised the major part of the funding of £400,000 for building and furnishing the building between 1957 and 1959. Money was raised through public appeals supported by publication in Scout Movement magazines, a collection of donations in 15,000 brick-shaped boxes, and 5,000 appeal letters signed personally by then Chief Scout Lord Rowallan.[1]
In a celebration on 1959-10-17 the Foundation Stone was laid by the World Chief Guide Olave, Lady Baden-Powell, with Lord Mayor Sir Harold Gillett, the new Chief Scout Sir Charles Maclean, and 400 other guests in attendance. A casket was buried under the foundation stone which held 1959 Scout mementoes, stamps, coins, photographs, etc., and a programme of the Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony.[1]
With 142 Queen's Scouts as Guard of Honour, and live broadcast by the BBC (commentator Richard Dimbleby), Baden-Powell House was opened on 1961-07-12 by Queen Elizabeth II, after which she toured the house with the Chief Scout, and the president of The Scout Association, Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, her uncle. A black marble panel with gold lettering was put on the balcony in the hall, to commemorate the event.[1]
Modern architecture
The house was designed by Ralph Tubbs in 1956, an eminent architect, whose works included the Dome of Discovery, the highlight of the 1951 Festival of Britain. Tubbs' floor plans and a model of his design were displayed during an appeal festivity on 1957-02-21 in the Egyptian Hall of the Mansion House.[1][2]
The architectural term for Tubbs' design style of the six storied Baden-Powell House is Modern architecture, which was mainstream architecture at the time. The form of Modern architecture selected was in the style of that pioneered by the Swiss architect Le Corbusier from the late 1920s onwards. At Baden-Powell House the first floor overhangs the ground floor, a Le Corbusier architectural trick to free the building from the ground.[3] The prototype for this form of architecture is the Pavillon Suisse[4] at the Cité Universitaire in Paris which was completed in 1932. Also Le Corbusier's Sainte Marie de La Tourette priory, near Lyon, has clear similarities in its facades with Baden-Powell House. At Sainte Marie two floors of monks cells, indicated by their small windows, cantilevered over the more open floors below[5] have a striking resemblance in both architecture and ethos with the upper hostel floors at Baden-Powell House. While Baden-Powell House was designed with more restraint, and the main visible building component is brick rather than concrete, the architectural philosophy is the same. The heavier evolution of Le Corbusier's style, as used at Baden-Powel House, was popular in England throughout the post-war years until replaced by the Brutalist style in the later 1960s.[3]
Baden-Powell House was build to Tubbs' design by Harry Neal Ltd, who received for this work the 1961 Gold Medal of the Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers.[1] At the opening the house received the building design award for ‘The building of most merit in London.'[6]
Thirty-five years after its opening, Baden-Powell House was refurbished in a six-month £2 million programme, providing all modern amenities such as private facilities for all rooms, double glazing, and air conditioning, as well as enhancing conference facilities for large and small events. Upon completion of the programme, the house was opened by the president of The Scout Association, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent on 1997-06-05. In 2002 a Starbucks coffee and sandwich bar was opened, as well as an outdoor roof garden adjacent to the meeting conference rooms on the second floor.[6][7]
Baden-Powell collection
Baden-Powell House was intended as a tribute to Baden-Powell. Therefore a notable collection of Baden-Powell memorabilia has always been on display for visitors in The story of B-P exhibition. This includes many drawings and letters by Baden-Powell himself, such as the original of his Last Message to Scouts, Laws for me when I am old and several first editions of his books. The exhibition also displays the original painting by David Jagger, as presented to Baden-Powell on 1929-08-29 at the Coming of Age 21st World Jamboree.[1] This painting was a personal favorite of Baden-Powell, and has been used as typical picture of him on numerous articles and publications throughout the scout movement.[8] A facsimile of the famous painting is on display in the Geneva headquarters building of the World Organization of the Scout Movement.[9]
The exhibition was augmented in 1971 by a bust of Baden-Powell, unveiled by Olave, lady Baden-Powell. On the exhibition's 25th anniversary in 1986, the Duke of Kent re-opened the exhibition in a new setting.[6] Regularly, the Baden-Powell House hosts temporary exhibitions on scouting subjects, including (in 1976) an exhibition of scouting stamps, scout books exhibitions, and similar.[1]
As introductory part of the collection, in front of Baden-Powell House a nearly 3 meter high statue of Baden-Powell has been erected, the only granite statue in London. The sculptor was Baden-Powell's personal friend Don Potter. It was unveiled on 1961-07-12 by the Duke of Gloucester, as part of the official opening of the house.[1]
The 21st century
| Souvenir badges of Baden-Powell House |
Run by The Scout Association, Baden-Powell House continues to provide the envisioned base for Scouts visiting London, and a Scout conference centre, in the middle of the London visitor area, actually neighbouring the Natural History Museum, Science Museum, Royal Albert Hall and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The full address is 65-67 Queen's Gate, London SW7 5JS, reachable by public transportation through South Kensington tube station and Gloucester Road tube station. The current warden is Ian Macdonald.
The building is entered through a wide glazed atrium which serves as a large foyer containing the cafe and the exhibition centre. From the atrium is a large hall which can serve as as an auditorium with seating for up to 300 persons. The first floor has a restaurant seating 100 guests, while on the second floor are meeting rooms with conference facilities for groups up to 80 delegates per room. The upper floors contain 180 hostel bedrooms. Baden-Powell House was designed specifically for members of the Scout Movement. Nonetheless, it has always been fully open to family members of Scouts at reduced prices prices and open to the general public at competitive commercial rates. In an average year, 30 thousand people spend the night, and 100 thousand meals are served in the restaurant.[6] Souvenir badges and other Baden-Powell House merchandise can be purchased from the reception desk.
From 1974 to 2001, Baden-Powell House was the headquarters of The Scout Association, for which a dedicated extension to the house was completed in 1976. In April 2001 the headquarters formally moved to new accommodation at Gilwell Park, but Baden-Powell House still facilitates various departments of The Scout Association. As the owner of Baden-Powell House, The Scout Association receives an annual income out of the revenues, with an annual turnover of estimatedly £2 to 4 million.[6][10]
Baden-Powell House is one of the four Scout Activity Centres of The Scout Association, together with Youlbury, Downe, and Gilwell Park.
See also
- Baden-Powell International House, 25-story hotel of The Scout Association of Hong Kong in Kowloon, Hong Kong[11]
- Ellsworth Augustus Scout House, the Boy Scouts of America hostel, in Mendham, NJ, United States
- Exhibition Road, Kensington, London
- International Scouting Collectors Association
- Jamboree on the Air, call sign for Baden-Powell House is GB3BPH[1]
- Kandersteg International Scout Centre
- Scout method
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Wood, Edward (1971). The story of B.-P.'s House. The Scout Association.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ "The Twentieth Century Society, Building of the Month February 2005". Retrieved 2006-07-08.
- ^ a b Cropplestone, Trewin (1963). World Architecture. Hamlyn. pp. Pages 331-333, caption 1002 and onward to 341.
- ^ "Images of the Pavillon Suisse". Retrieved 2006-07-05.
- ^ "La Tourette Monastery". Retrieved 2006-07-05.
- ^ a b c d e "Scoutbase Fact Sheet on Baden-Powell House" (PDF). Retrieved 2006-05-01.
- ^ "The Passing years, Milestones in the progress of Scouting" (PDF). The Scout Association. Retrieved 2006-05-01.
- ^ "Example of Jagger's painting on scout merchandise". Retrieved 2006-07-06.
- ^ "Robert Baden-Powell". Pinetree Web. Retrieved 2006-05-01.
- ^ Asplin, John (2005). Join the adventure. Annual Report 2004—2005. The Scout Association.
- ^ "Scouting Around the World, Monthly magazine" (PDF). March 2005. Retrieved 2006-07-10.
