Quadrangle (architecture)  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

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In architecture, a quadrangle is a space or courtyard, usually rectangular (square or oblong) in plan, the sides of which are entirely or mainly occupied by parts of a large building. The word is probably most closely associated with college or university campus architecture, but quadrangles may be found in other buildings such as palaces. Most quadrangles are open air, while a few have been glazed over often to provide additional space for social meeting areas or coffee shops for students.

The word "quadrangle" was originally synonymous with "quadrilateral", but this usage is now relatively uncommon.

Some modern quadrangles resemble cloister gardens of medieval monasteries, called garths, which were usually square or rectangular, enclosed by covered arcades or cloisters. However, it is clear from the oldest examples (such as Mob Quad) which are plain and unadorned with arcades, that the medieval colleges in Oxford and Cambridge were creating practical accommodation for college members. Grander quadrangles that look like cloisters came later, once the idea of a college was well established and benefactors or founders wished to create more monumental buildings.

In America, Thomas Jefferson's design for the University of Virginia centered the housing and academic buildings in a Palladian form around three sides the Lawn, a huge grassy expanse. Later, some American college and university planners imitated the Jeffersonian plan, the Oxbridge idea, Beaux-Arts forms, and other models. The University of Chicago's Gothic campus is also notable for its innovative use of quadrangles.Template:Fact All five barracks at The Citadel (military college) feature quadrangles with red-and-white squares (the colors of the South Carolina battle flag), which are used for formations by the Corps of Cadets.

Quadrangles are also found in traditional Kerala houses (Naalukettu) and is known as the Nadumittam ("Middle Space").

Notable quadrangles

• Saint David's Building Quadrangle, University of Wales, Lampeter
• Reading School, Berkshire.
• Blue Boar Quadrangle
• David R. Francis Quadrangle
• Memorial Quadrangle
• Mob Quad in Merton College, Oxford is one of the oldest quads in existence.
• Parliament Square, Trinity College, Dublin
• Peckwater Quadrangle
• Quadrangle (Harvard)
• The Dartmouth Green
• The Quadrangle
• Radcliffe Quadrangle, University College, Oxford
• Schenley Quadrangle, University of Pittsburgh
• Bascom Hill, University of Wisconsin–Madison
• Main Quad, Stanford University (pictured above)
• The Citadel (military college)
• Tom Quad
• The Quadrangle, University of Pennsylvania
• Upper Quad, Lincoln Hall, University of Nottingham
• Beit Quad, Imperial College London
• The Quadrangle, St. Joseph's College, London
• The Quadrangle, Royal College, Colombo
• The Terrazzo, United States Air Force Academy
• The Medical Quandrangle, Queen's University
• Lincoln Quadrangles, Indiana State University
• Windsor Castle's Upper Ward
• The Quadrangle ('the Quad'), University College London
• Padmanabhapuram Palace
• University of Alabama Quad