skip to content

Department of Architecture

 

Biography

James Campbell is an architect and architectural historian. He was Head of Department from October 2019 to October 2023, leading the Department through the COVID-19 outbreak, creating its new Digital Fabrication Lab and overseeing the expansion of the Department.

An architect by training, before becoming an academic he practised in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and the United States.

Professor Campbell is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and Chairman of the Construction History Society. He is Director of Studies and Fellow in both Architecture and History of Art in Queens’ College.

He and Frank Salmon together formed the MSt in Building History, a part-time course on architectural history run jointly with English Heritage which has been running for over ten years. More recently he designed and created the new MSt Apprenticeship in Architecture, the first purpose-designed apprenticeship in the University.

As well as writing books and publishing academic articles, he has appeared on a number of television and radio programmes including Divine Designs (Channel 5), Modern Marvels (the History Channel), Making History (Radio 4), Ancient Megastructures (National Geographic Channel), the Today Programme (Radio 4), Robert Elms show (Radio London), The One Show (BBC 1) and Excess Baggage (Radio 4). His programme for The Essay (Radio 3) on the architecture of Robert Hooke was featured on Pick of the Week (Radio 4).

Research

Professor Campbell's research is broadly in the field of Material Culture. He is interested in tracing the development of objects in the world and our relationship to them. His research focuses on four main areas:

1) construction history;

2) seventeenth- and eighteenth-century architecture (particularly Wren, Hawksmoor and Soane)

3) the history and development of libraries.

4) The history and development of water infrastructure and its outward display in fountains

His interest in the seventeenth-century started with his doctoral thesis which looked at Wren and development of seventeenth-century carpentry. This resulted in number of articles on carpentry and an AHRC-funded Post Doctoral post looking at seventeenth-century brickwork.  This in turn led to his first book, Brick: a World History(2003), an overview of the research that has been carried out on brick in building construction through the ages, produced in collaboration with architectural photographer Will Pryce. When it was released it was featured as Guardian ‘book of the week’. It recognised as the established work on the subject and is currently available in nine languages and has been released in a new edition in 2016. He has written and lectured widely on the history of brickwork.

His interest in seventeenth-century building construction and Wren also led to his second book, Building St Paul's  (2007) which provides a concise introduction to the seventeenth-century building world. It has remained in print and a revised paperback edition was released in January 2020. He has published widely on the seventeenth century building world and particularly on carpentry and on building finance in academic journals.

His third book, The Library: a World History (2013) is the first book to tell the story of library buildings through the ages from the beginning of writing to the present day. Richly illustrated again with pictures by Will Pryce, it was chosen by reviewers in both the Evening Standard and Spectator as one of their books of the year. The first print run of 10,000 copies sold out in 2 months. It has since been reprinted several times in expanded editions and been translated into Chinese, French, German, Dutch, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese and Russian. It is published by Thames and Hudson in the UK and University of Chicago Press in the United States. 

He has also produced works on building conservation and is on the editorial panel of the Journal of Architectural Conservation. In 2014 he edited Staircase: History Repair and Conservation with Michael Tutton and Jill Pearce. This book, published by Routledge, brought together writers from many disciplines, in which he wrote the chapters on the history of the staircase in Britain and the safety of stairs. The sequel, Door: History, Repair and Conservation also with Michael Tutton, was published by Routledge in Spring 2020, in which he wrote the chapters on the history of the door in Britain and on safety and geometry in door design. He is currently working with Michael Tutton on a revised version of Windows: History, Repair and Conservation. 

As Chair of the Construction History Society, he organises its annual conferences,  co-edited the proceedings of the Second International Congress on Construction History and has edited eight volumes of proceedings for annual conferences held between 2014 and the present day. 

For the last three years he has been cataloguing part of the collection of Soane's drawings at the Soane Museum which is being prepared as a monograph for publication.

He is Principal Investigator on a project on the world-wide historical development of water infrastructure and fountains, funded by the Seear fund at Queens'. This is working towards a book: Water and Civilisation which is due for completion in 2025.

Publications

Key publications: 

Doors: History, Repair and Conservation edited with Michael Tutton (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020), ISBN 978-1-138-12115-7 (412 pages)

Staircase: History, Repair and Conservation(Abingdon: Routledge, 2014) edited book with Michael Tutton and Jill Pearce,ISBN 978-1873394977 (440 pages)

The Library: a World History(London: Thames & Hudson, 2013) ISBN 978-0500342886(320 pages). Simultaneously co-published in the USA as: The Library: a World History (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013) ISBN 978-0226092812 (320 pages.), 

 Brick: A World History(London and New York: Thames & Hudson, 2016) ISBN-978-0-500-34319-7 (320 pages), second revised edition of book listed below (2003).

 Building St Paul’s(London: Thames & Hudson, 2007) ISBN 978-0-500-34244-2 (176 pages). 

Other publications: 

‘The significance of John Theophilus Desagulier’s Course of Experimental Philosophy to the history of hydraulics and what it reveals about the first pump-driven fountains’ in Iron, Steel and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction: the proceedings fo the seventh conference of the construction history societyJames W.P. Campbell, Nina Baker, Karey Draper, Michale Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Natcha Ruamsanitwong and David Yeomans (eds.), (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2020) ISBN 978-0-9928751-6-9, pp.331-347 (17 pages)

Iron, Steel and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction: the proceedings fo the seventh conference of the construction history societyLead editor, with Nina Baker, Karey Draper, Michale Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Natcha Ruamsanitwong and David Yeomans (eds.), (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2020) ISBN 978-0-9928751-6-9 (714 pages)

James W.P. Campbell and Amy Boyington, ‘The problems of meaning and use of the pier mingens motif in fountain design 1400–1700’, in Studies in Garden History and Designed Landscapes, 40, volume 2 (April 2020), pp.110-127 (18 pages), DOI: 10.1080/14601176.2019.1675987

 

‘The Historical Development of the Door From the Middle Ages to the Present Day’ in Doors: History, Repair and Conservationedited with Michael Tutton (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020), ISBN 978-1-138-12115-7,  pp. 89-142, doi:10.4324/9781315651224-4 (54 pages)

‘The Design, Geometry, Accessibility and Safety of Doors’ in  Doors: History, Repair and Conservationedited with Michael Tutton (Abingdon: Routledge, 2020), ISBN 978-1-138-12115-7, pp. 249-272) (24 pages).

Water, Doors and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction. The Proceedings of the Sixth Conference of the Construction History Society. Construction History SocietyLead editor with Nina Baker, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Sabine Kuban, Michael Tutton, David Yeomans (Eds.) (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2019) ISBN 978-0-9928751-5-2 (734 pages). 

James W.P. Campbell and Amy Boyington, ‘The Influence of the de Caus brothers on Hydraulic Engineering and Fountain Design in Seventeenth-Century England’ in Water, Doors and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction. The Proceedings of the Sixth Conference of the Construction History Society. Construction History Society.  J. W. P. Campbell, Nina Baker, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Sabine Kuban, Michael Tutton, David Yeomans (Eds.) (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2019) ISBN 978-0-9928751-5-2, pp.254-271 (18 pages).

Water, Doors and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction. The Proceedings of the Sixth Conference of the Construction History Society. Construction History Society. . J. W. P. Campbell, Nina Baker, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Sabine Kuban, Michael Tutton, David Yeomans (Eds.) (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2019) ISBN 978-0-9928751-5-2, pp. i-vi (7 pages). 

Yiting Pan and James W P Campbell ‘12th-Century Chinese Soft-Doors and English Medieval Tracery Doors: A Useful Reminder of the Dangers of Visual Comparison’ in  Water, Doors and Buildings: Studies in the History of Construction. The Proceedings of the Sixth Conference of the Construction History Society. Construction History SocietyJ. W. P. Campbell, Nina Baker, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Sabine Kuban, Michael Tutton, David Yeomans (Eds.) (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2019) ISBN 978-0-9928751-5-2, pp.254-271 (18 pages).

‘The Finances of the Carpenter in England, 1660-1710: A Case Study on the implications of the Change from Craft to Designer-Based Construction’. in A. Becchi, R. Carvais, & J. Sakarovitch (Eds.), L’Histoire de la construction / Construction History. Tome II. Relevé d’un chantier européen / Survey of a European Building Site(Vol. 2, pp. 697-736). Paris: Classiques Garnier. doi:10.15122/isbn.978-2-406-08245-3, reprinted from Campbell (2005) below.

Campbell, J. (2018). Building a Fortune: The Finances of the Stonemasons Working on the Rebuilding of St Paul’s Cathedral 1675-1720. In L’Histoire de la construction / Construction History. Tome II
Relevé d’un chantier européen / Survey of a European Building Site(Vol. 2, pp. 901-919). Paris: Classiques Garnier. doi:10.15122/isbn.978-2-406-08245-3, reprinted from Campbell (2009) below.

James W.P. Campbell and Karey Draper, ‘Doors in English published books on architecture and building construction 1550–1800’ In Building Knowledge, Constructing Histories, Volume 1 Proceedings of the 6th International Congress on Construction History (6ICCH 2018), July 9-13, 2018, Brussels, Belgium(Vol. 1, pp. 591-600). Brussels: CRC Press.

Bill Addis, B and James W.P. Campbell(2018). Construction History in the United Kingdom. In A. Becchi, R. Carvais, & J. Sakarovitch (Eds.), L'Histoire de la Construction / Construction History Releve D'Un Chantier Europeen / Survey of a European Building Site(Vol. 1, pp. 467-520). Paris: Classiques Garnier. doi:10.15122/isbn.978-2-406-08242-2

 Karey Draper and James W.P. Campbell. ‘Armstrong Huts in the Great War’ in  Studies in the History of Services and Construction: the proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the Construction History Society(Cambridge: Construction History Society) 2018 lead editor, co-edited with Nina Baker, Amy Boyington, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Henrik Schoenefeldt, Michael Tutton and David Yeomans, ISBN 978-0-9928751-4-5, pp.463-475 (13 pages)

 Ming Shan Ng and James W.P. Campbell, ‘The Unpublished Carpentry Archives of Cecil Hewett (1926-1998): A survey of his letters and drawings in the Essex Record Office in Chelmsford’ in Studies in the History of Services and Construction: the proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the Construction History Society2018 lead editor, co-edited with Nina Baker, Amy Boyington, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Henrik Schoenefeldt, Michael Tutton and David Yeomans, ISBN 978-0-9928751-4-5 , pp.475-486 (12 pages)

 Studies in the History of Services and Construction: the proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the Construction History Society(Cambridge: Construction History Society), 2018 lead editor, co-edited with Nina Baker, Amy Boyington, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Henrik Schoenefeldt, Michael Tutton and David Yeomans, ISBN 978-0-9928751-4-5 (545 pages pages)

 ‘Sir John Soane and the Freemasons: the New Temple and the Lost Ark’ in Soane’s Ark: Building with Symbols(London: Factum Foundation for Technology in Conservation, September 2017) ISBN 978-84-697-4855-8, pp. 32-49 (18 pages).

 Yiting Pan and James W P Campbell, ‘A Study of Western Influence on Timber Supply and Carpentry in South China in the Early 20th Century’, Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering16(2):· May 2017, DOI: 10.3130/jaabe.16.247, pp.247-254  (8 pages)

 ‘Three Oxford Roofs from the Late Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Century attributed to Dean Henry Aldrich, in Campbell et al. (eds), Building Histories: the proceedings of the Fourth Construction History Society Conference(Cambridge: Construction History Society), 2017, ISBN 97809928751-3-8, pp.173-185 (13 pages)

 Building Histories: the proceedings of the Fourth Construction History Society Conference(Cambridge: Construction History Society), 2017lead editor, co-edited with Nina Baker, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Treve Rosoman, Michael Tutton, and David Yeomans, ISBN 97809928751-3-8 (513 pages).

 James W. P. Campbell & Amy Boyington, Fountains and water: the development of the hydraulic technology of display in Islamic gardens 700–1700 CE, Studies in the History of Gardens & Designed Landscapes, 38:3(March 2017), 247-267, DOI: 10.1080/14601176.2018.1452827, pp.247-267 (21 pages) 

 ‘Libraries in Motion’, Early Modern Viewers and Buildings in Motion, Old Divinity School, St John’s College, Cambridge, Saturday 25 February 2017. 

 St Paul’s Cathedral: Archaeology and History The London Journal · May 2017, DOI: 10.1080/03058034.2017.1329388

 “Yingguo de fengtu jianzhu [Vernacular Architecture in the United Kingdom]”, Jianzhu Yichan [Chinese journal: Heritage Architecture] 3, no.3 (Aug. 2016), ISSN 2095-7289, DOI: 10.19673/j.cnki.ha.2016.03.006, , pp.54-67 (14 pages).

 Brick: A World History(London and New York: Thames & Hudson, 2016) ISBN-978-0-500-34319-7 (320 pages), second revised edition of book listed below (2003).

Dutch Edition: Baksteen: Geschiedenis-Architecturr-Technnieken(Thoth & Lannoo: 2016) ISBN 978-9068686944(320 pages).

Spanish Edition: Ladrillo: Historia Universal (Blume: 2016), ISBN978-8498018813(320 pages).

Further Studies in Construction History: the proceedings of the Third Construction History Society Conference(Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2016lead editor, co-edited with Nicholas Bill, Michael Driver, Michael Heaton, Yiting Pan, Michael Tutton, Christine Wall and David Yeomans, ISBN 9780992875121 (492 pages). 

“Willis and Cambridge” in Alexandrina Buchanan, James W.P. Campbell, Javier Giron and Santiago Huerta,Robert Willis: Science, Technology and Architecture in the Nineteenth Century(Madrid: Instituto Juan de Herrara, 2016), ISBN 978-84-9460-000-5, 1-18, (18 pages).

 “Christopher Wren and Robert Hooke” in Patrick Derham (ed.), Loyal Dissent (Buckingham: University of Buckingham Press, 2016), pp.77-98 (21 pages).

Studies in Construction History: the proceedings of the Second Construction History Society Conference(Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2015)lead editor, co-edited with Karey Draper, Amy Boyington, Amy DeDonato, Gabriel Byng and Wendy Andrews, Yiting Pan, ISBN978-0992875114 (350 pages), lead editor and wrote introduction i-vi (6 pages).

co-authored (40%) with Yiting Pan (60%), “The Influence of English books on building Construction on early 20thCentury Chinese Building Manuals” in Studies in Construction History: the proceedings of the Second Construction History Society Conference, (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2015), pp. 33-42 (10 pages). My contribution textual editing, argument and English background (50%).

Staircase: History, Repair and Conservation(Abingdon: Routledge, 2014) edited book with Michael Tutton and Jill Pearce,ISBN 978-1873394977 (440 pages), wrote introduction, pp. 1-9 (9 pages) chapters two “The History of the British Staircase.” pp. 75-140(66 pages) & chapter 6“The Safety and Geometry of Staircases” pp.245-265 (21 pages).

Proceedings of the First Conference of the Construction History Society(Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2014), lead editor, co-edited with Wendy Andrews, Nicholas Bill, Karey Draper, Patrick Fleming and Yiting Pan, ISBN 978-0-9928751-0-7 (482 pages), wrote introduction pp.i-ii (2 pages).

co-authored (10%) with Yiting Pan (90%) “Timber supply in colonial China, 1840-1940”, in  Proceedings of the First Conference of the Construction History Society (Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2014), ISBN 978-0-9928751-0-7 pp.323-342 (19 pages)

 “The Supply of Stone for the Rebuilding of St Paul’s Cathedral 1675-1710”, Construction History, 28 No.2 (2013), ISSN 0267-7768, pp.23-50 (27 pages) 

The Library: a World History(London: Thames & Hudson, 2013) ISBN 978-0500342886(320 pages). Simultaneously co-published in the USA as: The Library: a World History (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013) ISBN 978-0226092812 (320 pages.), also re-released as an enlarged US edition (328 pages) in January 2014. Translated into other languages as follows:

French Edition: Les Bibliothèques, Une histoire mondiale, translated by Odile Menegaux, Christian Vair & Jézabel Traube(Paris: Citadelles & Mazenod, 2013), ISBN:  9782850885747 (320 pages), enlarged edition (328 pages) published July, 2014.

German edition: Die Bibliothek. Kulturgeschichte und Architekture von der Antike bis heute, translated by Barbara Delius (Munich:Knesebeck, 2013), ISBN: 978-3-86873-611-3 (320 pages).

Dutch edition:  De bibliotheek: hoogtepunten uit de wereldgeschiedenis, translated by Auke van den Berg & laf Brenninkmeijer (Bussum: Thoth, 2013), ISBN 978-9082038712 (320 pages), enlarged edition (328 pages) published in July, 2014.

Spanish edition: La biblioteca. Un patrimonio mundial, translated by Carlos Herrero Quirós, (San Sebastien, Spain: Nerea, 2014), ISBN 978-84-15042-83-9(328 pages).

Italian edition:  La biblioteca. Una storia mondiale, translator not credited, (Turin, Italy: Giulo Einaudi editore, 2014), ISBN 978-88-06-22347-2 (328 pages).

Japanese Edition: Utsukushii chi no isan: sekai no toshokan, translated by Kashira, Eishi (Tokyo: Kawade Shobo Sinsha Ltd, 2014) ISBN 9784309255552 (328 pages). 

Korean Edition: 세계의도서관(Seoul: Sahoi Pyoungnon Academy, 2015) SIBN 979-1-85617-39-8 (328 pages).

Brazilian Edition (Portuguese) A biblioteca: uma história mundial (San Paulo: Ediçoes Secsc, 2015) translated by Thais Rocha, ISBN 978-85-7995-179-4 (328 pages).

Chinese edition, Library Buildings: a World History (Zhejiang: Peoples’ Fine Art Publishing House, 2015) ISBN 978-7-5530-4455-7 (328 pages). 

 “The First Complete List of All the Models Made for the Construction of St Paul's Cathedral, London 1675-1720”, R. Carvais, A. Guillerme, V. Negre, & J. Sakarovitch (Eds.), Nuts and Bolts of Construction History, (Paris: Picard, 2012) 3 vols., Vol. 1 (pp. 173-183), ISBN 978-2-7084-0929-3. (11 pages)

 “Was Wren a Mason”, Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, 125 (2012), ISBN 978-1-905318-89-6, pp.15-60 (45 pages).

 co-authored (15%) with M. Makrodimitri (85%), “Heritage conservation and environmentally sustainable performance of historic structures. Upgrade of heating in listed church buildings” in Rogério Amoêda Sérgio Lira Cristina Pinheiro (eds.) Proceedings of the 3rdInternational Conference on Heritage and Sustainable Development, Porto, Portugal, 19-22 June(Barcelos: Green Lines Institute, 2012), ISBN 978-989-95671-5-3, pp.1949-1958(9 pages)

 co-authored (25%) with S. Papavasileiou (35%), M.Makrodimitri (35%), K. Steemers (5%), “The Construction and Integration of Heating Systems in Churches in the United Kingdom from the 17thto the Early 20thcentury”, R. Carvais, A. Guillerme, V. Negre, & J. Sakarovitch (Eds.), Nuts and Bolts of Construction History, (Paris: Picard, 2012) 3 vols., vol. 3, pp.277-287 (10 pages) 

 co-authored (15%) with M. Makrodimitri (80%), K. Steemers (5%), “Sustainability and Heritage Conservation. Assessment of Environmental performance and Energy Management for English Churches”, in M'Sirdi, N., Namaane, A., Howlett, R.J., Jain, L.C., eds., Sustainabilityin Energy and Buildings(Berlin: Springer Publishing, 2011.  SIST 12 (6) pp.353-364, ISBN: 978-3-642-27508-1 (11 pages)

 “Introduction” including a biography of Henry Adams, for the facsimile edition of H. Adams, Adams' Building Construction(Shaftsbury: Donhead, 2011), ISBN 978 1 873394 93 9, pp. 1-11 (11 pages) 

 “Christopher Wren: scientist, architect and engineer”, in Kenneth Powell (ed.), The Great Builders (London: Thames and Hudson, 2011), ISBN 978-0-500-25179-9, pp.51-59 (8 pages).

 co-authored (10%) with M. Makrodimitri (90%), “Sustainability and heritage conservation. Environmental performance of large hall structures. Assessment of thermal comfort in historic churches.” In Margali Bodart and Arnaud Evrard (eds). Proceedings of 27th International conference on Passive and Low Energy Architecture – PLEA 2011 (Louvain: Louvain University Press, 2011),2 vols., Vol. 1pp.757-762 (6 pages). 

 co-authored (15%) with M. Makrodimitri (80%), K.Steemers (5%), “Sustainability in the historic built environment. Upgrade of environmental performance of listed structures. The historic churches in the UK.” Proceedings of international scientific conference CISBAT 11 (Lausanne: EPFL, 2011) 2 vols., vol.1ISBN 978-2-8399-0907-5, pp.529-535 (6 pages) 

 “Building a Fortune: The Finances of the Stonemasons Working on the Rebuilding of St Paul’s Cathedral 1675-1720.” in Proceedings of the Third International Congress on Construction History(Berlin: Neunplus1, 2009), ISBN 978-3-936033-31-1pp. 297-305 (8 pages).

 “Wren, architectural research and the history of trades in the early Royal Society” in Jonathan Mallinson (ed.), Architecture, Cultural History, Autobiography (Oxford: Voltaire Foundation (SVEC): 2008), ISBN,978-0-7294-0934-6, pp. 9-27 (19 pages).

 Building St Paul’s(London: Thames & Hudson, 2007) ISBN 978-0-500-34244-2 (176 pages). 

Proceedings of the Second International Congress on Construction History(Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2006), jointly edited with seven others, ISBN 0-7017-0203-6, ISBN 0-7017-0204-4, & ISBN 0-7017-0205-2, 3 Volumes (3471 pages).

“The Finances of the Carpenter in England 1660-1710: a Case Study on the Implications of the Change from Craft to Designer-Based Construction”, in Simonetta Cavaciocchi (ed.), L’Edilizia Prima della Rivoluzione Industriale. Secc.XIII-XVIII (Prato: Instituto Internazionale di Storia Economica “F.Datini”, 2005) ISBN 88-00-72237-7, pp. 313-346 (34 pages).

 “Between Archaeology and Architectural History: Studying Bricks and Carpentry”, in Peter Draper (ed.) Current Work in Architectural History: Papers read at the Annual Symposium of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain 2004, (London: Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain, 2005), pp.64-70 (7 pages). 

 “The Construction of the New Cathedral” co-author (85%) with Robert Bowles (15%), in Derek Keene, Arthur Burns and Andrew Saint (eds), St Paul’s: the Cathedral Church of London 604-2004, (London: Yale University Press, 2004), ISBN 0-300-09276-8, pp. 207-219 (13 pages, large format).

 Entries for “Francis Price” and “William Salmon” in C. Matthew, B. Harrison et al. (eds.) New Oxford Dictionary of National Biography [DNB] (OUP: 60 vols., vol. 45, pp. 290-291 (1 page) & vol. 48, pp. 735-736 (1 page).

 “Nicholas Hawksmoor’s Building Notebook”, Construction History, 20 (2004 [appeared 2006]), ISSN 0267-7768, pp. 21-44 (24 pages), ISSN 0267-7768

 Brick: A World History(London and New York: Thames & Hudson, 2003) ISBN-0-500-34195-8 (320 pages). Available translated into eight other languages as follows: 

Chinese Edition: Brick: a World History(Zhejiang:  Peoples’ Fine Art Publishing House, 2016) ISBN 978-7-5340-4454-0 (320 pages).

Portuguese Edition: Historia Universal do Tijolo (Caleidoscopio: 2005), ISBN 972-8801-75-0 (320 pages).

Spanish Edition: Ladrillo: Historia Universal (Blume: 2004), ISBN 84-9801-013-6 (320 pages).

Hungarian edition : Ategla: Vilagtotenete  (Kussuth Kaido, 2004), ISBN 963-09-4566-5 (320 pages).

French edition: L’Art et L’Histoire de la Brique Batiments Privés et Publics du Monde Entier (Citadelles & Mazenod, 2004), ISBN 2-85088-208-9 (320 pages). Reprinted twice.

German Edition: Backstein: Eine Architekturgeschichte – Von Den Arfangen Bis Zur Gegenwart (Knesebeck, 2003) ISBN 3-89660-189-X (320 pages).

Dutch Edition: Baksteen: Geschiedenis-Architecturr-Technnieken (Thoth & Lannoo: 2003) ISBN 90-6868-338-1 (320 pages).

Italian Edition: Il Mattone e la sua storia: 8000 anni di architettura (Bolis Edizioni: 2003) ISBN 88-7827-116-0 (320 pages).

Re-released in a new second edition in 2016 (see above).

“The study of bricks and brickwork in England since Nathaniel Lloyd” in Proceedings of the First International Congress on Construction History, edited by Santiago Huerta (Madrid: Instituto Juan de Herrara, 2003), pp. 479-489, reprinted in the Construction History Society Newsletter, no. 66 (June 2003), pp. 31-38 (8 pages). 

 “Robert Tatersal – the Eighteenth-Century Bricklaying Poet”, British Brick Society Information, 90 (February 2003), ISSN 0960-7870, pp. 20-26 (7 pages).

 “Sir Christopher Wren and the Development of Structural Carpentry in the Seventeenth Century”, Architectural Research Quarterly, vol 6, no.1 (2002), ISSN 1359-1355, pp. 49-66 (18 pages). 

 “Seventeenth-Century Bricklayers’ Contracts: Wren’s City Churches”,British Brick Society Information, 87, (February 2002) ISSN 0960-7870, pp. 10-21 (12 pages) reprinted in the Construction History Newsletter, No. 64 October 2002, pp. 7-12 (6 pages, large format).

 "The Carpentry Trade in Seventeenth-Century England", Georgian Group Journal, XII, (2002), ISSN 0963-1070, pp. 215-237 (23 pages).

 “More on Pug Mills”, British Brick Society Information, 89 (November 2002) ISSN 0960-7870, p. 17 (1 page).

 “The Manufacture and Dating of English Brickwork 1600-1720” with Andrew Saint, Archaeological Journal, no. 159 (2002), ISSN 0066-5983, pp. 170-193 (24 pages).

 “A Bibliography of Works on Brick published in England before 1750” (with Andrew Saint), Construction History, 17 (2001), ISSN 0267-7768, pp. 17-30 (14 pages).

 “Naming the Parts of Post-Medieval Roof Structures”, Vernacular Architecture, 31 (2000) ISSN 0305-5477, pp. 45-52 (7 pages).

 “Almshouse Chapel, Gamlingay”, Church Archaeology, 2 (1998), ISSN 1366-8129, pp. 55-56 (2 pages).

 

 

Teaching and Supervisions

Teaching: 

In the architecture department, he teaches architectural history. He previously taught Building Construction and Management Practice and Law. He also lectures on the Apprenticeship and Building History courses and in History of Art.

Research supervision: 

Applications for PhDs, MPhils and MArch

Dr Campbell welcomes applications from any potential research students interested in researching any aspect of the history of building construction or the history of library design from all parts of the world. Unless they already hold a relevant research degree (an MPhil, not an MArch), successful applicants will normally be required to sit for an MPhil or MSt in the first instance on the successful completion of which they may be allowed to proceed to the PhD. Interested applicants should send a detailed research proposal. This should include a timeline for research and proposed sources. The potential student is expected to have visited the sources and established their accessibility and the project’s viability before application. 

Current PhD Students

Lei Song, A Comparative Study of the Development of Water Infrastructure in England and China 1500-1800 (2021-present)

Di Zhao, The Development of Railway Infrastructure in China 1890-1940 (2021-present)

Luka Pajovic, Sir Christopher Wren, St Stephen Walbrook and the Development of Vaulted Ceilings and Domes 1600-1800 (2021-present)

India Wright, Legal London Lost: the Architecture of the Inns of Court and Chancery 1600-1800  (2022-present)

Pandora Layton, Round Church Towers in East Anglia- a survey (2022-present)

 

Completed PhD Students

Georgia Politi, The life and work of Sir Horace Jones, PRIBA (2019-2023)

Natcha Ruamsanitwong, Leslie Martin and Architectural Education (2019- 2023)

Jana Schuster, The Architectural Patronage of the 2nd Duke of Montagu, 1709-49 (2017- 2023)

Karey Draper, Wartime Huts: The Development, Typology and Identification of Temporary Military Buildings in Britain 1914-1945 (2013-2017)

Amy Boyington, The Role of Women in Eighteenth-Century Architectural Design (2014-2017)

Wendy Andrews, The Cowtan Order Books, 1824-1938: An Analysis of Wallpaper and Decorating Records and Their Use as Historical Sources(2013- 2017)

Yiting Pan, Colonial Architecture in late 19th and early twentieth century Shanghai  (2011-2016)

Magdalini Makrodimitri, Heating Historic Churches (2009-2017)

Nicholas Bill, The Development of the Engineering of Timber Railway Bridges in the 19th century (2010-2013)

Professor of Architecture and Construction History
Seear Fellow in Architecture and History of Art, Queens’ College
Director of Studies for Queens' (on sabbatical 2023-2024)

Contact Details

01223 332958