The Great Westmen:
Architecture
CHRISTOPHER WREN
THE MAN THAT RE-MADE LONDON (Part 1)
English scientist, engineer, mathematician, architect
Born: 30 October 1632
Died: 8 March 1723
Born: 30 October 1632
Died: 8 March 1723
Christopher Wren was one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history, as well as an anatomist, astronomer, geometer, mathematician and physicist.
When we think of the designation “Renaissance Man,” a name that comes to mind is Leonardo da Vinci. The term denotes a Westman of broad skills and learning in the arts and sciences capable of integrating all that he knows into an exceptional creative expression. Throughout history there have been great artists and great scientists, but seldom do these two gifts come together in a single individual as they did in Christopher Wren. Before he was seventeen, had invented a weather clock, a pneumatic engine, a device for writing in the dark, and a new language for the deaf and dumb. He went to Oxford where he gained a reputation as a brilliant scientist and mathematician. He was the first to demonstrate the use of opium as an anesthetic and the use of a syringe in transferring blood from one dog to another. Later, his interest in optics led him to become a professor of astronomy. Issac Newton dubbed him the greatest geometer of his day.
Wren did not give his attention to architecture until he was 30. No information is available to explain the development of his interest in architecture, but his training in science and mathematics and his ability in solving practical scientific problems provided him with the technical training necessary for a man who was to undertake complex architectural projects. His temperament and education, and the society in which he moved, would naturally have inclined him to wide interests. Wren’s influence was such that his style of classical architecture is often called the Wrenassiance. He was knighted in 1673.
Part I is mostly a summary of this architectural achievements, sans St. Paul’s Cathedral. The design, construction, and significance of St. Paul’s deserves its own video segment.
When we think of the designation “Renaissance Man,” a name that comes to mind is Leonardo da Vinci. The term denotes a Westman of broad skills and learning in the arts and sciences capable of integrating all that he knows into an exceptional creative expression. Throughout history there have been great artists and great scientists, but seldom do these two gifts come together in a single individual as they did in Christopher Wren. Before he was seventeen, had invented a weather clock, a pneumatic engine, a device for writing in the dark, and a new language for the deaf and dumb. He went to Oxford where he gained a reputation as a brilliant scientist and mathematician. He was the first to demonstrate the use of opium as an anesthetic and the use of a syringe in transferring blood from one dog to another. Later, his interest in optics led him to become a professor of astronomy. Issac Newton dubbed him the greatest geometer of his day.
Wren did not give his attention to architecture until he was 30. No information is available to explain the development of his interest in architecture, but his training in science and mathematics and his ability in solving practical scientific problems provided him with the technical training necessary for a man who was to undertake complex architectural projects. His temperament and education, and the society in which he moved, would naturally have inclined him to wide interests. Wren’s influence was such that his style of classical architecture is often called the Wrenassiance. He was knighted in 1673.
Part I is mostly a summary of this architectural achievements, sans St. Paul’s Cathedral. The design, construction, and significance of St. Paul’s deserves its own video segment.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Hello, my name is Joseph Montag. I happen to have the same last name as the protagonist in the novel Fahrenheit 451. In the novel, Montag works as a fireman that destroys the cultural memory of his people by burning books. If
the book were written today he would also be tearing down statues. Realizing his folly, he has a change of heart and
instead of destroying the cultural memory of his people, he begins to save it.
As a Westman I endeavor to preserve our cultural memory and educate fellow Westmen as to the accomplishments of Westernkind. I feel it is important to keep our story alive and focused upon the marvelous achievements of us as a people. I never realized that the depth and breadth of our achievements was so wide and deep until I came to White wellbeing and began investigating what was hidden from me in plain sight. I had become deracinated and disconnected from my people. Now I am shaking off my White noir, taking pride in Westernkind and reconnecting with my people at multiple levels, both online and in real life.
I like researching and studying the stories of individual Westmen because it puts a human face on it and exposes the bond of kinship we all have to those Westmen that came before us. I hope these stories help you better understand and connect with Westernkind, with the Westman inside of you. It is our story, it is in us all, and each of us writes a new chapter everyday.
As a Westman I endeavor to preserve our cultural memory and educate fellow Westmen as to the accomplishments of Westernkind. I feel it is important to keep our story alive and focused upon the marvelous achievements of us as a people. I never realized that the depth and breadth of our achievements was so wide and deep until I came to White wellbeing and began investigating what was hidden from me in plain sight. I had become deracinated and disconnected from my people. Now I am shaking off my White noir, taking pride in Westernkind and reconnecting with my people at multiple levels, both online and in real life.
I like researching and studying the stories of individual Westmen because it puts a human face on it and exposes the bond of kinship we all have to those Westmen that came before us. I hope these stories help you better understand and connect with Westernkind, with the Westman inside of you. It is our story, it is in us all, and each of us writes a new chapter everyday.