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Grant kicks off of Madeira Terrace restoration
After decades of neglect, Madeira Terrace, Brighton’s Victorian boardwalk on a monumental gallery of ornate cast iron arches, has received a grant of £750,000 from Historic England to begin a much-needed restoration.
At 2,837-by-25 feet long, it is the world’s longest continuous cast iron structure. It was built between 1890 and 1897 after a design by the Brighton Borough Surveyor, Philip C. Lockwood. He crafted a dramatic gallery of 151 cast iron arches and balustrades to take make a challenging space — a cliff face in front of the sea — available to people for promenading and taking in the beautiful view at a time when sea bathing was newly fashionable.
The arches are intricately shaped with scalloped spandrels that create openwork sun screens. Keystones are shaped like decorative figures of Poseidon and Aphrodite. The walkway has four covered shelters and decorative cast iron benches. A former shelter hall on the eastern end of the terrace has an 11-window center bay with wings of seven-window bays on each side and an ornate entrance hall. A three-section lift tower rises from the walkway to the top section at road level.
The terrace and seafront were closed during World War II. This is when the regular maintenance (painting, repairs) of the terrace stopped. Maintenance kicked in again in the 1950s and the post-war boom of British seaside resorts kept Madeira Terrace packed with crowds. The structures were repaired and parts that were beyond repair were replaced with replicas cast at a historic foundry. Structural engineers inspected the complex every year and kept abreast of all critical issues. Budget cuts in the 1990s saw the end of the inspections, the annual painting and the regular repairs.
A 2012 assessment of the structural strength of the terraces found extensive corrosion and a high likelihood of collapse. Madeira Terrace was closed to the public and a high security fence erected to keep the foolhardy from trying their luck. In 2015, the terrace was placed on the Victorian Society’s Top Ten Most Endangered Victorian and Edwardian Buildings in England and Wales after Brighton Council announced that the original cast iron was in such bad condition that it could no longer be maintained and would have to be entirely replaced.
That tragedy was averted and the council was ultimately able to raise some money to repair some of the arches. It’s been hard going, though. The estimated cost to repair the whole stretch was £23 million, and Brighton tried twice to secure Heritage Lottery Funding but was denied. The grant from Heritage England will jumpstart Phase 1 of the multimillion-pound restoration of the landmark. Phase 1 will restore 28 of the 151 arches and bays and install a new accessible elevator.
“The restoration of Madeira Terrace is hugely important, not just for protecting our unique heritage, but for breathing new life into the east of the seafront. Historic England’s support is a crucial step in bringing this much-loved landmark back to its former glory and a welcome sign of confidence in Brighton.
“I, like many in our city, have watched the terraces deteriorate over time with great sadness. We’ve lost this vital public space east of the pier, and I’m delighted we’re revitalising it for a whole new generation. This is a historic turning point that will be a proud sign of what we can achieve together.”
Chris Ward, MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven
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