Why was the barbican important

Flats were distributed between three storey towers — known as Shakespeare, Cromwell and Lauderdale — and a series of 13 seven-storey blocks.

Aimed at young professionals, the residences feature simple layouts with compact kitchens and bathrooms. Balconies branch off bedrooms and studies, as well as living rooms, and give the towers their unique profiles. Externally, the raw concrete surfaces were bush-hammered to reveal the rough texture of the aggregate. With the Corporation of London as a client, the project was intended to create a mixed society of residents, but the change in politics brought in during Margaret Thatcher's term as Britain's prime minister inevitably led to the majority of homes being sold to private owners and landlords.

Fenella Beevor moved to the Barbican in with her late husband. Forty years later, she says it's gradually developed into a settled and welcoming community. The Barbican Centre was revisited ahead of its 25th anniversary by British architecture firm Allford Hall Monaghan Morris , with a scheme that rationalised what many felt to be the estate's only failing — orientation. A combination of radical surgery and a series of robust insertions complemented the massive interior landscape rather than trying to compete with it, while clarifying and improving access to the multiple venues," he added.

Dezeen Weekly is a curated newsletter that is sent every Thursday, containing highlights from Dezeen. A medieval castle barbican had central importance in the parts of a medieval castle which were used for defence purposes. Since it consisted of a narrow passage, the invading army passing through it was an easy target for arrow, stones, and other missiles in addition to boiling liquids.

Due to its multiple and effective defence purposes, a medieval castle barbican was also called a Death Trap. Copyright - - - Medieval Chronicles. Share this:. More Info. Popular Pages Home. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy. Public car parks are located within the Barbican centre. The estate also contains three of London's tallest residential towers, at 42 storeys and metres ft high. The top two or three floors of each block comprise three penthouse flats.

The Shakespeare Tower, completed in was named after William Shakespeare and the Lauderdale Tower, completed in was named after the Earls of Lauderdale.

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