::: wills memorial (bristol 8)

the wills memorial building  is a neo gothic building situated near the top of park street on queens road in bristol

it is a landmark building of the university of bristol

it was designed by sir george oatley and built as a memorial to henry overton wills III

begun in 1915, it is considered one of the last great gothic buildings to be built in england

architecture commentator nikolaus pevsner described it as: “a tour de force in gothic revival, so convinced, so vast, and so competent that one cannot help feeling respect for it.”

in 1940, during the bristol blitz of world war II, the great hall was badly damaged by a german bomb-blast. it was restored in the 1960’s

cleaning work began in 2006 costing £750,000

this revealed the engraving “IO TRIVMPHE” intended as a tribute to the architect of the building sir george oatley. the engraving had remained hidden for over 80 years and recognises the role of sir isambard owen (then vice-chancellor) in the realisation of oately’s plans

at 215 feet, it is twice the height of the cabot tower