Brunswick Square: the original plan of a house reveals secrets

One of the most important surviving drawings by Charles Augustin Busby, the Regency architect of Brighton & Hove, is now in the possession of The Regency Town House. It answers one of the questions any visitor to Brunswick Square might ask themselves: what did one of these splendid houses first cost when it was newly built?

The 1827 drawing depicts the floor plans and front elevation for a house in the Square. It is hand-coloured and measures some 36 by 24 inches. For many years the drawing was centrepiece of the collection of Anthony Dale, founder of the Regency Society and author of Fashionable Brighton.

With the financial help of American Express it was bought for £6,000 by The Brunswick Town Charitable Trust on behalf of The Regency Town House* archive.

Following conservation work, the drawing will join the archive at The Regency Town House in the heart of Busby's greatest architectural achievement, Brunswick Town, and but a few doors away from the actual building depicted.

The story behind the drawing is interesting.

The building of Brunswick Town was a co-operative arrangement between Busby as architect, the Reverend Thomas Scutt as landowner and the speculators who bought into the project and funded the construction of the individual properties.

A part of Busby's role was to produce seductive, hand-coloured 'client drawings' to show how the finished houses might look. The equivalent of today's glossy printed brochures, these were intended to encourage the speculators to buy into the project and, if required, enable them to sell-on the property while still unfinished.

One of the estate's most active speculators was Charles Elliott and this particular drawing depicts one of his houses in Brunswick Square. What makes it especially interesting is that it also carries the details of Elliott's arrangement with his builder, George William Sawyer, who states that he will finish the property for £3,000 and signs the document to this effect on 5th July 1827. (That's £2,460,000.00 in today's money using average earnings as a measure of worth.)

Also on the sheet, in Busby's hand, can be seen the names given to the various rooms in the property, while the developers have added notes about the cost of wall paper, their choices for floor finishes and fitted bedroom furniture.

This drawing is the only know fully worked-up elevation for a Brunswick property and some 183 years after it was first made.

You may not be able to currently afford one of the houses in Brunswick Square, sadly, but a copy of the drawing may be more within reach: original size prints (36"x 24"), fundraising issue limited to 100 copies - £99 each (This issue identified by the stamp of the Regency Towm House in the top left corner, the print number and the Curator's signature). Half original size prints (24"x 18") - £55 each. Quarter original size prints (18"x 12") - £29 each.

* The Regency Town House is a grade 1 Listed terraced home of the mid-1820s being developed as a heritage centre and museum to focus on the architecture and social history of Brighton & Hove between the 1780s and 1840s.

To order a drawing or for further information please contact the Curator, Nick Tyson via nick@rth.org.uk or +44 (0) 1273 206306.