Crystal Palace, Sydenham

The Crystal Palace, designed by Joseph Paxton, was originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great exhibition in 1851. After the exhibition, the palace was relocated to South London and rebuilt on Sydenham Hill. It was there from 1854 until 1936 when it was destroyed by a fire. The nearby residential area was renamed Crystal Palace after the landmark and the park that surrounds it, which had previously been a football stadium between 1895 and 1914. Related BRANCH Article: Anne Helmreich, “On the Opening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, 1854”

Coordinates

Latitude: 51.421048100000
Longitude: -0.067309000000

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Timeline of Events Associated with Crystal Palace, Sydenham

Date Event Manage
10 Jun 1854

Sydenham Crystal Palace opens

Sydenham Crystal Palace on Fire

Opening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham on 10 June 1854. Image: The Crystal Palace on fire (30 November 1936; author unknown). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

The resurrection of the Crystal Palace of 1851 in its new setting at Sydenham, with an expanded architectural complex and enhanced functional brief, embodies the Victorian emphasis upon visuality as a means of acquiring and conveying knowledge. In addition, the new Crystal Palace was shaped by prevailing concepts of rational recreation and beneficial commerce that insisted that private and public interests could be simultaneously satisfied and lead to a stronger nation and even Empire.

Articles

Anne Helmreich, "On the Opening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, 10 June 1854"

Related Articles

Audrey Jaffe, "On the Great Exhibition"

Aviva Briefel, "On the 1886 Colonial and Indian Exhibition"

Anne Clendinning, “On The British Empire Exhibition, 1924-25″
12 May 1911

Festival of Empire

View of the Festival of EmpireOpening of the Festival of Empire on 12 May 1911. Image: Festival of Empire at the Crystal Palace in South London, taken from the replica Canadian parliament building (1911; author unknown). This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

Located at the Crystal Palace, Sydenham, the Festival of Empire, originally scheduled for 1910 but postponed due to the death of Edward VII, was a physical manifestation of imperial rhetoric. British colonies and dominions were represented by three-quarter size replicas of their Parliamentary buildings housing exhibits of products of those countries as well as scenes recreating the physical environment of select locales, such as a Maori village. The Festival of London, part of the Festival of Empire, featured historical pageants and reinforced London’s role as the chief locus of empire

Articles

Anne Helmreich, "On the Opening of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, 10 June 1854"

Related Articles

Aviva Briefel, "On the 1886 Colonial and Indian Exhibition"

Anne Clendinning, “On The British Empire Exhibition, 1924-25″