What Is Victorian Architectural Style?

Jacobethan Style

• The Jacobethan style brings together elements of Britain's two greatest national architectural styles: Elizabethan and Jacobean. It became popular in England starting in the late 1830s, and is considered to be one of the most uniquely "English" styles of architecture. This style's characteristics are flattened "Tudor" arches, ornate balustrades, terra-cotta inlays, numerous porches and balconies and octagonal (rather than round) towers and chimneys. Large, sweeping curves and arches are preferred, and it is rare to find sharp edges or corners.

Neo-Renaissance Style

• The Neo-Renaissance style, which became popular in the 19th century in Britain and elsewhere in Europe, did not draw its inspiration from Classical Greek or Roman architecture, but from the architectural imaginings of the neo-classical Italian artists of the Renaissance. Thus, elements were copied from buildings in Florence and Venice. Elements of this style include: ornate windows, pediments and arcades; entablatures above windows, story levels, and columns; and Italian glazed tiling on the exteriors and roofs. Because of Renaissance artists' focus on the beauty and symmetry of nature, many Neo-Renaissance buildings have rows of symmetrical features repeated across numerous levels, including the placement of windows, doors, arches and spires.

Queen Anne Style

• Queen Anne Style was the English version of early Baroque architecture originating in the early 18th century that gained popularity and saw a revival in the late Victorian era. This revival included a number of new industrial age elements including steel, ironwork and brightly colored exterior paint. The most recognizable characteristic of this style is the use of a central triangular pediment on the roof above the main entrance to the building which is offset from the rest of the roof. Many of the most recognizable American examples of Victorian era mansion architecture display Queen Anne style.

Scots Baronial Style

• Popular in Scotland during the Victorian era, this architectural style was a British form of the Gothic Revival of the 19th century. Heavily ornate porches and balconies were common, with medieval and heraldic artistic motifs above the door. Windows were small and without exterior decoration, but buildings often featured towers, turrets and battlements resembling medieval castles. Roof edges were usually crenelated, as were chimneys. Ironically, many of the elements borrowed from medieval castle architecture such as extra towers and stone floors, were considered unfashionable by Victorian standards of comfort, and so Scots Baronial Style would be confined to the damp chill of Scotland.