James of Saint George facts for kids
Master James of Saint George (born around 1230, died 1309) was a very important architect from a place called Savoy. Today, Savoy is a region partly in France and partly in Italy. People describe him as "one of the greatest architects of the European Middle Ages." He was mainly in charge of designing the huge castles that King Edward I of England built in North Wales. These include famous castles like Conwy, Harlech, and Caernarfon, all started in 1283. He also designed Beaumaris on Anglesey, which began in 1295.
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Where Did Master James Come From?
We don't have many old papers that tell us exactly about James's early life. But we have strong clues that he was born in a town called Saint-Prex around the year 1230. We know for sure that his father, John, was also a master builder.
Many clues about his father, like when he died and his building style, suggest that John was Jean Cotereel. Jean Cotereel was the builder of the church in Saint-Prex and the big Lausanne Cathedral. It's really interesting to see how similar the round windows at Canterbury Cathedral are to those at Lausanne Cathedral. Also, the main window of Lausanne Cathedral looks a lot like the eastern hall window at Conwy Castle, which James built later.
Building Castles in the Alps
James's building career started when he worked for Peter II, Count of Savoy. He helped build Yverdon-les-Bains Castle. At first, James worked with his father, John. But by 1265, records show James working alone. This probably means his father had passed away.
After learning from his father, James then worked with an engineer named Jean de Mézos. Jean had worked for King Henry III of England. James helped with building projects at Salins-les-Thermes in 1267-1268.
When Peter II died in 1268, James started working for the next ruler, Philip I, Count of Savoy. Philip liked to live closer to the city of Lyon. So, he began building a new palace castle at Saint-Georges-d'Espéranche. James was the master builder for this castle. His name "Saint George," which he used later in England, comes from this very castle. We know James even had a house in Saint-Georges before he moved to England.
King Edward I of England probably met Master James of St George in 1273. Edward was returning from a big journey called a Crusade and visited Savoy. On June 25, 1273, King Edward visited Saint-Georges-d'Espéranche.
James was in charge of building several castles for Philip I between 1270 and 1275. These included castles at Saint-Georges-d'Espéranche, La Côte-Saint-André, Voiron, and Saint-Laurent-du-Pont. It's very likely that building these castles, which had round towers and even an octagonal tower, helped King Edward decide to hire James for his castles in Wales. One of James's last projects in Savoy might have been at Châtel-Argent in 1275.
There's a short time when we don't have records of James's work, between 1275 and 1278. Some historians think he might have been working for the family of Otto de Grandson, who was close to both King Edward I and the Savoy family. This work could have included Grandson Castle and Lucens Castle.
A historian named A. J. Taylor solved a long-standing mystery. He discovered that the French "Jacques de Saint-Georges" and the English "Master James of Saint George" were the same person! Taylor traveled from Wales to Savoy and was the first to notice how the castles in Wales were influenced by buildings in Savoy. For example, he pointed out the toilets (called garderobes) at La Bâtiaz Castle, the windows at Chillon Castle, and the town walls at Saillon.
Building Castles in Britain
After a short war in 1277 between King Edward I of England and Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, James was called from Savoy to England. He was asked to work for the king. The first English records of James of St George are from April 1278. They say he was "going to Wales to put in order the works of the castles." This means he was the master builder in charge of designing and managing the castle projects in Wales.
He traveled to Wales to visit the castles of Flint and Rhuddlan. At this time, four new castles were being built: Flint, Rhuddlan, Builth, and Aberystwyth. From 1277 to 1280, James mainly oversaw the building of Rhuddlan Castle and a canal for the River Clwyd. Then he worked on Flint Castle. Flint Castle is quite similar to Yverdon-les-Bains Castle, which Master James built earlier.
Around 1285, James was made the Master of the Royal Works in Wales. This important job gave him control over all parts of building castles like Conwy, Caernarfon, and Harlech. One example of how he brought ideas from Savoy to Wales is the three-pointed tops of the castle walls, called merlons. You can see these at both the Castello di San Giorio di Susa in Italy and at Conwy Castle. We now have old documents that directly connect Master James to both Susa and Conwy Castle.
Harlech Castle was started in 1283 and mostly finished by 1289. On July 3, 1290, James of St George was made the boss of Harlech Castle, called the Constable. He held this job until December 14, 1293.
His last castle in Wales was Beaumaris, which started in April 1295. One historian called it Master James's "most perfectly conceived castle." It was still not finished when he died in 1309. James added a clever new defense to Beaumaris. The outer gate was not lined up with the inner gate. This meant any attacker who got through the first gate would have to walk across an open area, always turning right. This path made them easy targets for the castle's defenders.
James of St George also joined King Edward I in Scotland around September 1298. In February 1302, James was put in charge of new defenses at Linlithgow Palace. He also worked at Stirling during a big battle in 1304.
We don't have records of James's wife, Ambrosia, getting money after he died. This probably means she died before him. He was survived by his two sons, Giles and Tassin of Saint George.
Master James in Media
Master James appears in the animated parts of a TV show based on David Macaulay's book, Castle. In the show, he builds a made-up castle called Aberwyvern. The live-action parts of the show feature David Macaulay visiting some of the real castles that James built.
