Thomas Allason

Engraving by Thomas Allason; Picturesque Views Of The Antiquities Of Pola, published by John Murray in 1819. Allason's 1823 plan for the development of the Ladbroke Estate, consisting of a large central circus with radiating streets and garden squares, or "paddocks". Thomas Allason (1790–1852) was an English architect, surveyor and landscaper, noted in particular for his work at Connaught Square and the Ladbroke Estate in Kensington.

Early life

Allason was born in London, England, in 1790. He studied architecture under William Atkinson (1774/5–1839), and won the silver medal of the Royal Academy School in 1809.

In 1814 Allason visited Greece. He claimed to have been the first to spot entasis on the shafts of Greek columns, although Charles Robert Cockerell (1788–1863) and Carl Haller von Hallerstein (1774–1817), whom Allason had met while in Athens, had also observed this.

Allason was a skilled draughtsman and in 1819 he published a series of engravings entitled Picturesque Views of the Antiquities of Pola in Istria. The plates themselves were engraved by WB. Cooke, George Cooke, Henry Moses, and Cosmo Armstrong. The book was published by John Murray in 1819.

Architecture

Few of Allason's buildings have survived into the modern era. Perhaps his most enduring legacy is his work on Connaught Square, and on the Ladbroke Estate in Kensington, London. In 1821 James Weller Ladbroke inherited his family's then largely rural estate on the western edges of London, and soon set about planning its development. Ladbroke left the actual business of developing his land to the firm of City solicitors, Smith, Bayley (known as Bayley and Janson after 1836), who worked with Allason to develop the property. However, the financial crisis of 1825 forced his plans to be greatly scaled down, and this original bold vision would never be fulfilled. Nonetheless, eventually around fifteen of these communal garden squares would be built, and they continue to contribute to the unique character of Notting Hill to this day. Another son, Alfred, was grandfather of the Conservative politician James Allason.