Bromley Unitary
Development Plan Proof of Philip
Kolvin Crystal Palace
Park Crystal Palace
Campaign Section
4
"As inspiring as the Parthenon
. as important as
Stonehenge."
The Architectural Review, on the Crystal Palace.[10]
4 A Planning History of
the Park 4.1 The Crystal Palace started
its life in the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park in 1851, and
was dismantled at the end of the exhibition. Its designer,
Joseph Paxton, formed the Crystal Palace Company, redesigned
and greatly enlarged the Palace, and set it in Penge Place
at Sydenham1 in 1854. The Park was carved out of a largely
undeveloped area of wood, meadow, parkland and common that
formed the setting of the historic mansion of Penge Place,
none of which now remains. 4.2 The building and grounds
were a major attraction. The exhibitions in the building
itself comprised tropical palms, plaster replicas of
Egyptian, Assyrian, Greek and Arabic architecture set in a
series of courts, and a concert auditorium. These were
complemented by ambitious landscaping in the grounds
designed by Edward Milner and water engineering by Isambard
Kingdom Brunel. A depiction of the building is at Appendix
5. 4.3 While the size of the
building has occasionally been prayed in aid by Bromley, it
is fair to point out that the conditions in Victorian
England were very different from now. First, the Palace was
set in open countryside: one could ride to it from Central
London without leaving heath or common land. Second, the
urban pressures which have necessitated the preservation of
parkland did not then exist. Third, the motor car had not
been invented. Fourth, there were two railway stations
serving the site: the high level station which led through
an elaborate subway to the Palace has been demolished and
built over. 4.4 The building, which was
the first large scale glass building and came to define
architectural modernity for a century or more, secured a
strong place in the affections and cultural heritage of the
nation. Queen Victoria was a great admirer,
recording: 4.5 The name "Crystal Palace"
was not official: it was a nickname given by Punch and
secured through common acclaim. It was, in fact, a
crystalline Palace. 4.6 The Park was the first
municipal park to exhibit horticulture on a substantial
scale. Indeed, in one year, 50,000 scarlet pelargoniums were
planted, and in 1854, the Cottage Gardener noted the
collections of calceolarias, lobelias, petunias, verbenas,
gaultherias, alyssums, nemophilas, salvias, heliotropes,
dwarf rhododendrons and azaleas, displays which influenced
exhibitions across the rest of the
country.[12] 4.7 Large firework events took
place in the Park. Performers were attracted here. For
example, the tight rope walker Blondin fried an egg at great
height. Handel's Messiah was attended by 81,000 people in 2
days. The F.A. Cup Final came to be played here for many
years from 1895, and later motor racing became a popular
spectator sport. Pisarro painted the building and Zola fled
here from the Dreyfus affair. The Company's School of
Practical Engineering and School of Art, Science and
Literature were housed in buildings on the south-west
boundary, the former now housing the museum. 4.8 It is right to point out
that the building never paid, partly because of the
over-ambition of Paxton himself in the original conception,
and partly because the building was too far from Central
London. The Crystal Palace Company twice went bankrupt, in
1887 and 1909. But when, in 1936, it burned to the ground,
Churchill rightly encapsulated the mood of the nation by
mourning "the end of an era." 4.9 There was a general
recognition that the Crystal Palace had helped to define the
Victorian era, raising and embodying our national
aspirations. Tennyson wrote of it: 4.10 The London News Chronicle
stated: "The Crystal Palace was built for the promotion of
universal happiness and brotherhood, to summon all nations
to the peaceful field of a noble competition, where all
might strive who could do most to embellish, improve and
elevate their common humanity." 4.11 In purely architectural
terms, the building embodied a quantum leap. The
Architectural Review stated that it had liberalised
architecture and provided the "first structural renaissance
of architecture since the middle
ages."[13] 4.12 As a purely subjective
observation, the Park still exhibits a sense of place and of
history. There are great sweeping views across the terraces,
and striking remains of stairs, sphinxes and other features.
People locally still feel extremely attached to the memory
of the Palace and to the Park, which was its
seat. 4.13 The history of the Park
since the Palace burned down is one of fragmentation and
failure. 4.14 In 1941, Brunel's water
towers were demolished out of fear that they were acting as
a beacon for the Luftwaffe. 4.15 In 1964, the National
Sports Centre was built, the argument at the time being that
this was in lieu of substantial construction on the top
site. The Centre, which is now badly dilapidated, is needed
locally if not regionally, but is widely disliked. There is
a plethora of internal fencing and level changes which
create an unfriendly, somewhat illegible, environment. The
facilities themselves are now very run down. Most
importantly, the Centre is built directly across Paxton's
central axis, which is harmful to the entire landscaping
conception of the Park. Moreover, the Centre extends
laterally across the Park, practically severing the Park, so
that it actually functions largely as two parks, with a
green strip to the north linking the two. 4.16 In 1986, the Park was
devolved to Bromley, with the demise of the old Greater
London Council. 4.17 In 1987, planning
permission was given for the erection of a hotel/leisure
complex and/or conference centre or other recreational
buildings (87/1733). 4.18 In 1989, permission was
given for a 150-bed hotel, multi-screen cinema, health club
and other leisure facilities (89/1690). 4.19 In 1993, permission was
given for a 101-bed hotel with conference facility,
multi-screen cinema, bowling centre, nightclub and other
leisure facilities (93/0063). 4.20 In 1995, permission was
given for a 140-bed hotel and conference facility,
multi-screen cinema, bowling centre, nightclub and other
facilities (93/0178). 4.21 In 1998, permission
was given for the multiplex cinema which launched the
Crystal Palace Campaign (97/0858). 4.22 It is interesting to note
that none of these large commercial schemes came to
fruition, which is probably a partial reflection on the lack
of strategic roads serving this site and its out of town
centre location. 4.23 It is also interesting to
note that it was only the last scheme which aroused
significant objection. Having spent five years working with
local people, I can say that there was a general lack of
awareness of the earlier proposals, predominantly because
most affected by them were not Bromley residents and were
not consulted upon them. One thing the Campaign set out to
do was to ensure that there was general knowledge about the
multiplex proposals, and the strength of the Campaign bears
testament to the strength of the community response. But
also, it is quite clear that the 1990s saw a real growth in
public concern about green issues in general and parkland
protection in particular, so that what might have passed
muster a decade ago is now seen in a new light. 4.24 The multiplex scheme was
part of a mix of developments proposed for the Park, all of
which have failed to a greater or lesser degree: 4.25 One does not recount the
recent failures with any sense of relish. But they do
underline the need to start with a blank sheet of paper and
work up a framework masterplan for the sustainable
regeneration of the whole Park, in partnership with the
local community, other local authorities and regional and
national bodies including, for example, English Heritage,
the Greater London Authority and Sport England. 4.26 In this context, it is
worth pointing out that none of the top site planning
permissions were ever implemented, and all have expired.
Bromley formally resolved to do nothing to perpetuate the
multiplex permission on the grounds that there was no
prospect of the development coming forward. There is,
therefore, for the first time in 16 years, an opportunity to
stand back and write planning policies which reflect the
proper future for this important park unconstrained by
existing permissions.
"The effect is
quite wonderful. The sun shining in through the transept
gave a fairy-like appearance. The building is so light
and graceful, in spite of its immense size."
She brought a
vast design to pass
When Europe and the scattered ends
Of our fierce world did meet as friends
And brethren in her halls of glass.
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Contents
Notes:
[10] - Quoted in A Thing in
Disguise, the Visionary Life of Joseph Paxton, Kate Colquhoun (Fourth
Estate, 2003).
[11] - The name and area became known as Crystal Palace only
after the Crystal Palace was built there.
[12] - The Victorian Garden, Tom Carter (Bell & Hyman,
1984).
[13] - Quoted in A Thing in Disguise, the Visionary Life of
Joseph Paxton, Kate Colquhoun (Fourth Estate, 2003).
©Philip Kolvin