• About
    • Ethics policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Ownership, funding and corrections
    • Complaints procedure
    • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact
  • Support
  • Newsletter
Brighton and Hove News
27 September, 2023
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Opinion
    • Community
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Food and Drink
  • Sport
    • Brighton and Hove Albion
    • Cricket
  • Newsletter
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Opinion
    • Community
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Food and Drink
  • Sport
    • Brighton and Hove Albion
    • Cricket
  • Newsletter
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
No Result
View All Result
Brighton and Hove News
No Result
View All Result
Home News

In praise of Eugenius Birch, engineer behind Eastbourne and Brighton’s West Pier

by bhnews
Thursday 31 Jul, 2014 at 6:11AM
A A
5

Elegant, exalted, masterfully engineered – but sadly not eternal. Eugenius Birch’s piers once graced the length of south England’s coastline from Margate to Plymouth, but yesterday one more fell victim to the flames.

Eastbourne Pier’s graceful domed hall, which by the 21st century was an arcade room, was destroyed in a matter of hours by a fierce blaze.

In an echo of its sister, the West Pier, just an iron skeleton is all that is left of the hall.

Eugenius Birch
Eugenius Birch

Both were designed by Birch, as was Hastings Pier which also succumbed to fire in 2010.

In the aftermath of that blaze, Howard Jacobson wrote a fond tribute to him, saying: “We are massively in his debt. The seaside looks the way it looks, actually and ideally, thanks in no small measure to Eugenius Birch.”

Birch was an engineer, and with his brother built railways, bridges and viaducts across England. He also travelled to India to build railways for the East Indian Railway Company – a trip which doubtless influenced the oriental design of his masterpiece, Brighton’s West Pier.

He returned to the UK just as the boom in British pier building was beginning, and his first commission, Margate Pier, was a resounding success.

As well as stylish, his piers were also stable thanks to his patented technique of screw-piling the iron supports into the sea bed rather than hammering them in.

Writer Jonathan Glancy called them “robust but whimsical structures … he knew how to build delightfully and well. His works adorn rather than destroy views from our promenades. They heighten rather than diminish the strength of the sea.”

But this does not mean they were invincible – of his 14 piers built between 1856 and 1884, just Blackpool’s North Pier now operates – and that was left in tatters by last December’s storms.

Eastbourne Pier in 2009 by Snapshooter46
Eastbourne Pier in 2009 by Snapshooter46

The pier in Eastbourne was constructed slightly differently, being built on stilts that rest in cups on the sea-bed allowing the whole structure to move during rough weather.

It is home to a rare example of a camera obscura, which is housed at the seaward end and appears to have escaped yesterday’s blaze.

Meanwhile, Birch’s reputation survives in Brighton thanks to the aquarium (now the Sea Life Centre) and its elaborate stonework and brick vaults.

Sadly, as of August last year his name no longer graces the front of a Brighton and Hove bus after number 842 was sold on.

Perhaps the last word should go to Mr Jacobson, who finished his paean to piers thus: “All hail Eugenius Birch! But his works will vanish, and we will all be the poorer of soul, if we don’t put up a fight to save them.”

The West Pier in 2000 by Jim Linwood from Flickr
The West Pier in 2000 by Jim Linwood from Flickr
ShareTweetShareSendSendShare

Comments 5

  1. Frances Hunt says:
    9 years ago

    Indeed Eugenius Birch should have a place among all those wierd and whimsical Victorians, like Lewis Carroll, William Morris, Ruskin, The Pre-Raphaelites – all those thinkers outside the box. He in particular was more than his art – his work stood up to tides and gales for 150 years. So sad to be losing it as it all had a sense of freedom and joy to it.

    I’m glad though that you mentioned the Brighton Sea Life Centre which is a sort of mirror image of his piers but just as worth a nostalgic look. It is hidden underground now, holding creches of sea and its creatures instead of standing among them. The part of it which survived a rebuild in 1926 and the awful mammal pools of the 1960’s has recently been extensively restored, funded entirely by the current owners.

    You have to swallow its zoo function and an overlay of modern presentation- most of its visitors pay for that and not for a look at its architecture, or even Sea Life’s green activities in research and conservation. However as you pass the wierd and wonderful of the sea, and beings you mostly find on your plate not at eye level, you can look upwards too. The vaults and their columns are all embossed with individual carvings and the ironwork is as good as anything on the piers. The Victorian brickwork still manages to support Marine Parade and those vaults were built well enough to survive when the new technology of concrete and steel from the 20’s crumbled from salt water and age.

    Go and support what is left of Eugenious Birch’s spirit by paying a visit and telling Sea Life they’ve done a good job.

    Reply
  2. Frances Hunt says:
    9 years ago

    Indeed Eugenius Birch should have a place among all those wierd and whimsical Victorians, like Lewis Carroll, William Morris, Ruskin, The Pre-Raphaelites – all those thinkers outside the box. He in particular was more than his art – his work stood up to tides and gales for 150 years. So sad to be losing it as it all had a sense of freedom and joy to it.

    I’m glad though that you mentioned the Brighton Sea Life Centre which is a sort of mirror image of his piers but just as worth a nostalgic look. It is hidden underground now, holding creches of sea and its creatures instead of standing among them. The part of it which survived a rebuild in 1926 and the awful mammal pools of the 1960’s has recently been extensively restored, funded entirely by the current owners.

    You have to swallow its zoo function and an overlay of modern presentation- most of its visitors pay for that and not for a look at its architecture, or even Sea Life’s green activities in research and conservation. However as you pass the wierd and wonderful of the sea, and beings you mostly find on your plate not at eye level, you can look upwards too. The vaults and their columns are all embossed with individual carvings and the ironwork is as good as anything on the piers. The Victorian brickwork still manages to support Marine Parade and those vaults were built well enough to survive when the new technology of concrete and steel from the 20’s crumbled from salt water and age.

    Go and support what is left of Eugenious Birch’s spirit by paying a visit and telling Sea Life they’ve done a good job.

    Reply
  3. Pingback: Eastbourne Pier
  4. Pingback: Eastbourne Pier
  5. John Martel says:
    7 years ago

    I attended a lecture in Weston-s-Mare this week where the work of Eugenius Birch was a major subject. However the person giving the talk was very unhappy about the fact, that try as he might, he had been unable to find an image of the great engineer. Please can anyone supply said image.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Frances Hunt Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Most read

£1k a month garden cabin rental provokes outrage

The Sisters Of Mercy live concert report from the Roundhouse

Football match-day guest parking permits look likely to be scrapped

Former Brighton schoolboy revels in playing for England alongside his heroes

Fire damages house in Brighton

Brighton solicitors merge with Chichester firm

Hove lettings agent banned from driving after drunken smash

Firefighters rescue man from home in Hove

Hanover low-traffic neighbourhood runs out of road

Body found hours after Brighton sea search ends

Arts and Culture

  • All
  • Music
  • Theatre
  • Food and Drink
‘Run Like Hell’ it’s Peter And The Test Tube Babies

‘Run Like Hell’ it’s Peter And The Test Tube Babies

27 September 2023
Green Door Store’s ‘2 3 4 Fest’ a resounding success! (Part Two)

Green Door Store’s ‘2 3 4 Fest’ a resounding success! (Part Two)

27 September 2023
Green Door Store’s ‘2 3 4 Fest’ a resounding success! (Part One)

Green Door Store’s ‘2 3 4 Fest’ a resounding success! (Part One)

27 September 2023
Top music awards go to Bjork, Wet Leg and … a Brighton record shop

Top music awards go to Bjork, Wet Leg and … a Brighton record shop

27 September 2023
Load More

Sport

  • All
  • Brighton and Hove Albion
  • Cricket
De Zerbi repays Bloom’s calculated gamble

De Zerbi relishes reunion with former players as Brighton face Chelsea

by PA sport staff
26 September 2023
1

Roberto De Zerbi said that he would hug Moises Caicedo and Robert Sanchez with pleasure before Brighton and Hove Albion...

Sussex come up short against Middlesex in County Championship

Honours even on bowlers’ day at Hove

by Will Symons
26 September 2023
0

Sussex - 202 Gloucestershire - 136 for 6 Gloucestershire ended the opening day of their final fixture of the season...

Former Brighton schoolboy revels in playing for England alongside his heroes

Former Brighton schoolboy revels in playing for England alongside his heroes

by Duncan Bech - PA England rugby correspondent
25 September 2023
2

Marcus Smith finished England’s World Cup rout of Chile in the same back line as Owen Farrell and George Ford...

Southern Vipers thrash Thunder by eight wickets at Hove

Southern Vipers win Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy

by Jeremy Blackmore - ECB Reporters Network
24 September 2023
0

The Blaze 200-8 Southern Vipers 203-5 Southern Vipers won by five wickets Emily Windsor again led Southern Vipers to cup...

Load More
July 2014
M T W T F S S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  
« Jun   Aug »
ADVERTISEMENT
  • About
  • Contact
  • Support
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy
  • Complaints
  • Ownership, funding and corrections
  • Ethics
  • T&C

© 2023 Brighton and Hove News

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Opinion
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
  • Sport
    • Cricket
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
  • About
  • Contact

© 2023 Brighton and Hove News

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.