Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

NatWest Bank and associated office chambers, 1910-1911 by Reeve and Reeve of Margate

Monument Types

• BANK (FINANCIAL) (Modern to Unknown - 1910 AD)

Full description

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From the National Heritage List for England

"Summary

NatWest Bank and associated office chambers, 1910-1911 by Reeve and Reeve of Margate.


Reasons for Designation

The NatWest Bank and associated office chambers, erected in 1910-1911 to the designs of Reeve and Reeve of Margate, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* a striking building of refined architectural character which, given its relatively small size, achieves an assured presence; * a nicely detailed composition with sculptural embellishments using Portland stone worked to a high standard of craftsmanship; * it stands as a good example of a bank of this period exhibiting the transitional ‘Wrennaisance’ style that led towards early neo-Georgian architecture.

Group value:

* with a number of C18, C19 and early C20 Grade II listed buildings in the immediate vicinity, representing a co-location of diverse buildings of different types and dates.




History

Ramsgate is situated on the east coast of the Isle of Thanet, facing France and the Low Countries. Originating as a fishing village within the medieval parish of St Laurence, Ramsgate’s development from the C16 was driven by the strategic importance of its coastal port. Ramsgate became associated with the Cinque Ports as a limb of Sandwich from the C14. Late C17 trade with Russia and the Baltic resulted in a wave of investment and rebuilding in the town. In 1749 the construction of a harbour of refuge from storms in the North Sea and Channel was approved, and a cross wall and inner basin were completed in 1779 to the design of John Smeaton. Later improvements included a lighthouse of 1794-1795 by Samuel Wyatt and a clock house of 1817 by Wyatt and George Louch. From the mid-C18 Ramsgate became increasingly popular as a seaside resort, its expansion being accelerated by road improvements and faster sea passage offered by hoys, packets and steamers. During the Napoleonic Wars Ramsgate became a busy garrison town and a major port of embarkation. The arrival of the South Eastern Railway’s branch line in 1846 opened up Ramsgate to mass tourism and popular culture, bringing a range of inexpensive, lively resort facilities. New schools, hospitals and services were also built. The thriving town attracted diverse faith communities; Moses Montefiore founded a synagogue and a religious college at East Cliff Lodge, while AWN Pugin St Augustine’s Church and the Grange as part of an intended Catholic community on the West Cliff. Ramsgate remained a popular holiday destination until the advent of cheap foreign travel in the post-war decades. Falling visitor numbers were exacerbated by the decline of the town’s small trades and industries, fishing and boat-building. However, a ferry and hovercraft port and the large marina created in the inner harbour in the 1970s have continued to bring life to the area.

In England, banking was the preserve of goldsmiths up until the late C17. Sir Richard Hoare (1648- 1719) is considered to be the ‘father of the banking profession’ and the Bank of England was established in 1694. During the C18 banks (like warehouses) were private houses with business rooms on the ground floor. Banks were built in great numbers to fuel the economy in the C19. Image and appearance mattered, with outward impressiveness being pursued as the embodiment of reliability, confidence and security. After the financial reforms of the 1840s, banks began to assume a more standard guise: as with exchanges, the common formula for larger banks is a grand entrance leading into a banking hall with offices off to the side. Italianate or Renaissance designs became the favoured idiom, with effort being concentrated on front elevations and public areas, above all the banking hall. Rear areas tend to be much more utilitarian, with increasingly sophisticated strong rooms; employees often lived above banks for security reasons C20 banks retained their prominence on the high street, embodying solidity and respectability. Classical designs gave way to more contextual styles, with neo-Georgian a particular favourite by the 1920s.

Westminster Bank Ltd was established in Southwark in 1836 as Surrey, Kent and Sussex Banking Co. Branches were almost immediately opened in several major towns and cities across the country. The head office was moved to 71 Lombard Street, City of London, in 1837 and in 1839 the bank was renamed London and County Banking Company. From the early 1890s the bank began a long association with architect W. Campbell Jones, who designed many branches in London, Henley-on-Thames and Colchester. When the London and County Bank joined with the Westminster Bank in 1909, he continued to do some work for the new company (now renamed as the London, County and Westminster), and the style of their buildings began to move away from Renaissance towards neo-Georgian, influenced perhaps by AC Blomfield’s work for Barlcays Bank. This transitional style is well evidenced in the branch and associated chambers at 53 High Street, Ramsgate, which was built to designs of local architects, Reeve and Reeve of Margate, in 1910-1911. Presently the company is better known by its modern name, NatWest, a result of the merger with the National Provincial bank in 1968. " (1)

<1> Historic England, National Heritage List for England (Index). SKE29372.

Sources and further reading