History
Arguably one of the most influential architects responsible for the cityscape of central London, Lieutenant-Colonel James Burton was the most successful property developer of Regency and Georgian London. Having built nearly 3,000 residential buildings in the city alone, Burton developed Bloomsbury, St John’s Wood, Regent Street, Regent’s Park and St James’s into the classically influenced neighbourhoods, shopping districts and public parks much loved to this day.
A part of Georgian London’s high society, Burton was an early member of the Athenaeum Club (of St James’s, which he was later responsible for developing) and a close friend of Queen Victoria and the Duchess of Kent; these patronages helped in establishing Burton as an eminent architect and wider town-planner.
His architectural style was inspired by Palladio and the Classical world and ruled by symmetry and proportion. Burton died in St Leonards on Sea in 1837 (an area he was widely known for developing into a fashionable seaside town). He was succeeded by his son, who went on to develop Hyde Park, Green Park and much of Victorian West London. He is buried in a pyramidal tomb (of his design) which stands to this day.

