Statement of Special Interest
An integral part of the hospital site, this 1930s wall with a niche containing fragments of stonework of early 16th century date marks the south boundary of the garden ground of Southbank house (now demolished) which was built in the early 1930s as the residence of the Medical Superintendent. It was almost certainly designed by the prominent practice Auldjo Jamieson and Arnott. The size and scale of this wall are unusual in an urban context and might be more commonly found enclosing a country house estate of which relatively few were built in the 1930s. The wall with carved panels is one component of the Astley Ainslie which is an unusual hospital site for its suburban garden character which has largely been retained with a number of buildings which have been little or moderately altered.
The walls date from about 1930 and are contemporary with the villa formerly located on this part of the site. Southbank was ready for occupation in 1932. The house and the garden wall appear on the large scale Ordnance Survey map, surveyed in 1931-32 and published in 1933. The house is also evident on a site plan drawn up by Auldjo Jamieson and Arnott and dated June 1932. The Ordnance Survey map of 1931-32 shows the niche in the wall, and while the niche may be of slightly different design from the rest of the wall it is likely that they are close in date. The installation of the fragments is credited to Lieutenant Colonel John Cunningham who was the first medical superintendent of the hospital and was appointed in 1929.
Walls of this date are not rare, however the scale of the wall and good quality of the details as well as the important 16th century fragments inserted are unusual. Its position has respected the planting on the site and underlines the value the hospital Governors laid upon the landscape features.
The Astley Ainslie was constituted in 1921 when the Board of Governors purchased about 31 acres of ground of the Canaan estate by means of an endowment by David Ainslie, who had acquired considerable wealth as a farmer and sheep breeder. The hospital was to accommodate convalescents from the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
As pressure on hospital beds steadily grew during the 19th century, convalescent hospitals became a way of moving recovering patients out and freeing up beds for more acute cases. Typically these were situated on the outskirts of cities and towns where patients could benefit from fresh, clean air. The Canaan estate near the southern edge of Edinburgh at this date met these criteria, the villas having large well-wooded and landscape gardens. The Astley Ainslie was unusual in that it was not a subscription or voluntary hospital but simply ran on its initial endowment. In Scotland in 1870, there were just seven convalescent homes, mainly in the West, with an annual admission rate of 4000 patients. By the 1930s this had risen to over sixty convalescent homes that cared for more than 34,000 people annually.
In the area initially purchased through the Ainslie bequest there were three villas with gardens: Canaan Park, Canaan House and Millbank. The first hospital unit, opened in 1923 as an experimental unit for female patients was Canaan Park, a 19th century villa which had been adapted and extended for hospital use. New detached pavilions were added from 1929 and during the 1930s as were other related buildings such as the nurses' home, the school and the occupational therapy block. In 1930 the villa of Millbank which had been occupied by a family in life-rental became available. The house was demolished and Millbank Pavilion built on the site. The garden ground to the north was used to build Southbank and the wall built to mark the south boundary if this.
During the Second World War the Astley Ainslie was closed to lay convalescent patients and became a military hospital. A series of wooden huts were constructed on the site in 1940. The military hospital status continued until 1 October 1945 when the hospital returned to its former function. That same year, on the death of its owner, St Roque with its large grounds was added to the site and Morelands to the east of the site was added two years later. In 1948 the hospital and its grounds were vested in the Secretary of State for Scotland. Its endowment funds were handed over to a Board of Management. New units added since then include a children's unit (1965), a disabled centre (1979) and two day hospitals (1971 and 1983).
In the second half of the 19th century and in the early 20th century hospitals which specialised in particular conditions grew in number. By the 1930s most major towns had convalescent hospitals. (This trend was reversed after the Second World War when general hospitals with specialist departments took their place). Of the handful that were purpose-built as general convalescent homes in Edinburgh, (the Astley Ainslie, Corstorphine and one in Gilmerton), only the Astley Ainslie continues to provide rehabilitation for patients as well as providing care for older people. The site is unusual in that the original layout and area of the site has been largely retained and new buildings have been inserted discretely into the landscaped grounds.
The preeminent practice Auldjo Jamieson and Arnott were almost certainly responsible for the design of Southbank and for the wall which demarcated the southern boundary of the grounds of the villa. In the late 1920s the practice became unofficial architects to the Institution and one can be largely confident it is their design. The treatment of the wall is similar to other buildings (such as the Assistant Superintendent's House) by the practice on the site. The gate in the centre enabled the superintendent to access the other areas of the hospital grounds.
Ernest Arthur Auldjo Jamieson worked as an assistant with Sydney Mitchell and on the latter's retirement inherited his practice in 1909 or 1910. He must have been well-respected by the eminent Sydney Mitchell in that he was given the opportunity to do this. Jamieson was soon joined by James Alexander Arnott as partner and they continued to operate under the title Sydney Mitchell & Wilson until at least 1926 after which the practice name became Auldjo Jamieson and Arnott.
Listed building record and statutory address updated in 2014. Previously listed as 143 Grange Road, Astley Ainslie Hospital, Garden Wall incorporating carved panels to north of Millbank Pavilion.