'The genius of English architecture is the glory of England, second only to the printed word.'
Thus Sacheverell Sitwell (younger brother of Edith and Osbert Sitwell) concludes
British Architects and Craftsmen
, an absorbing survey of taste, design, and style from 1600 to 1830, first published to great critical acclaim in 1945. By including not only Sir Christopher Wren, Sir John Vanbrugh, William Kent and other great English architects, but also the craftsmen - the clockmakers, the silversmiths, the bookbinders, and the weavers of tapestry - he gives a remarkable and complete picture of this period.
Sitwell recalls the period with vivid and penetrating insight. Now recognised as a classic, considered by many to be the finest of Sitwell's books about art history - and with over two hundred illustrations drawn from photographs, prints and drawings - this is an essential book for all architects and lovers of fine buildings.