Who we are
Our origins
The Society was established in 1956 after a suggestion by the American architectural historian, Turpin C Bannister, to Frank Jenkins, a British architect and scholar who had gone to work with Bannister at the University of Illinois. Initially conceived of as a chapter of the American Society of Architectural Historians (of which Bannister had been a founder-member in 1940), it was determined in 1956 that the British Society would be autonomous. We are currently developing a new section of the website to allow you to explore our history and the history of the discipline in the UK. The Society’s founders were largely architects, academics and curators. Early and active members included Sir John Summerson, Sir Howard Colvin, Dorothy Stroud, Helen Rosenau, Christopher Hussey, John Gloag, Bruce Allsopp and William A Singleton, the latter of the Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies, York, which became the unofficial home of the Society. Though the early years of the Society were male-dominated, women have made - and continue to make - a significant contribution to our society and the discipline and we also hope to draw greater attention to this over the coming months and years.
All Places, All Periods, All Welcome
Today we are the leading subject and professional association for architectural history and architectural historians in all their professional contexts (including higher education, heritage and practice), and we are the leading forum for lifelong learning for all with an interest in the history of the built environment. Our members and their interests cut across periods and borders - our work has a global reach. To find out more click here.
Inclusive, Representative, Creative
Our work is informed by our shared values and principles. We aim to be agile, transparent and inclusive; we embrace and seek to foster a diverse membership and discipline representative of wider society; and we try to be collaborative and creative in problem-solving, programming and fostering partnerships with other organisations in our sectors. As a registered charity, we rely on subscriptions from our members, as well as donations, legacies and grants from charitable trusts. To join and support our work click here.
The SAHGB is a charitable company (a 'company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital'), registered in England and Wales with company no. 810735. It is also registered as a charity in England and Wales, no. 236432. Its registered office is 70 Cowcross Street, London, EC1M 6EL. This link provides the latest set of Annual Accounts, presented with an annual report of the Society’s activities.
Its Constitution is contained in its Articles of Association. It is run and overseen by an Executive Committee, who also serve as trustees of the charity, elected by the members annually at the General Meeting. This file displays the Governance structure of the SAHGB.
President: Prof Elizabeth McKellar
Chair: Dr Elizabeth Darling
Honorary Secretary: Dr Doreen Bernath
Treasurer: Mr Luca Jellinek
Editor, Architectural History: Dr Emily Mann
Education Officer: Dr Luca Csepely-Knorr
Communications Officer: Natalie Arrowsmith
Programmes Officer: Dr Stephen Gage
Administrator: Kathryn Schofield
If you would like to learn more about how you can get involved with our work click here.
Practical Information
Dr Ann Marie Akehurst
Dr Doreen Bernath
Dr Barnabas Calder
Professor Christine Casey
John Cattell
George Entwistle
Dr Alistair Fair
Wendy Fish
Tanvir Hasan
The Board of Trustees
The governance arrangements agreed at the 2021 EGM included the creation of a new body, The SAHGB Council. This group of eminent experts in our field and allied architectural disciplines is led by the President and is intended to help advise us as well as to advocate for architectural history and heritage in the public realm.
Professor Emeritus Malcolm Airs OBE, Oxford University (Past President)
Mr Bob Allies OBE, Allies and Morrison & British School at Rome
Professor Gary Boyd, Queen’s University, Belfast
Ms Gillian Darley OBE, author & journalist
Ms Helen Dorey MBE, Deputy Director, Sir John Soane's Museum
Professor Murray Fraser, Professor of Architecture and Global Culture, University College, London (Past Chair)
Professor Miles Glendinning, University of Edinburgh
Dr Liz Green, Senior National Curator Wales, National Trust
Mr Richard Griffiths, Richard Griffiths Architects
Mr Edwin Heathcote, Financial Times & The Cosmic House
Dr Olivia Horsfall Turner, Senior Curator Architecture and Design, Victoria & Albert Museum
Professor Emeritus Maurice Howard OBE, Sussex University (Past President)
Professor Emerita Deborah Howard, Cambridge University (Honorary Patron)
Sir Donald Insall CBE, Donald Insall Associates (Honorary Patron)
Professor Emeritus Neil Jackson, Liverpool University (Past President)
Dr Anna Keay OBE, Director, Landmark Trust
Dr Deborah Mays, Head of Listing, Historic England
Mr Charles O’Brien, Series Editor Buildings of England
Sir Charles Saumarez Smith CBE, Royal Academy of Arts
Mr Matthew Slocombe, SPAB, Secretary of the Joint Committee of the National Amenity Societies
Professor Leslie Topp, Birkbeck, University of London
Professor Ola Uduku, Liverpool University
Dr Diane Watters, Historic Environment Scotland & Edinburgh University
Ms Barbara Weiss, Barbara Weiss Architects
Professor Jianfei Zhu, Newcastle University
The SAHGB Council
Our Donors and Benefactors
Prof. Malcolm Airs
H. B. Allen
Allies & Morrison
Graham Child
S. Evans
Lily Jencks
James Morris
John R. Murray
Allan Murray - Jones
Barnsbury Charitable Trust
The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust
The Drake Trust
The Ernest Cook Trust
The Follett Trust
Thriplow Charitable Trust
The Arnold Hayward Stevenson Educational Trust Fund
The Right Honourable, The Lord Lloyd-Webber
The Duke and Duchess of Wellington Charitable Trust
David Young
The late Geoff Brandwood
The late E. E. Mary Cosh
The late Annabel Ricketts
The late Jonathan Vickers
and many other members and supporters, past and present.