Public expectations ran high for Britain’s International Exhibition of 1862. However, this ‘World’s Fair’ was dogged by difficulties during its brief lifetime.

Following the Great Exhibition of 1851’s phenomenal success, with its glittering Crystal Palace, the Society of Arts proposed a series of exhibitions every ten years.

But as the tenth anniversary approached, war broke out between France and Austria. The Society of Arts put its proposal on ice. At last, in February 1861 Queen Victoria granted a charter of incorporation for the exhibition, and fundraising began for an 1862 exhibition.

Then in April 1861, the American Civil War broke out. Would it be a truly international exhibition if America could not attend?

But the biggest blow of all was the death of Albert, the Prince Consort, in December. Albert’s vision and leadership had proved vital for the success of the Crystal Palace. A period of national mourning put a damper on the new project. Nevertheless, building works were already far advanced.

Following protracted negotiations, the Society of Arts was given a suitable site at South Kensington, free of charge, by the 1851 Exhibition Commissioners. The laying-out of the ground began on 9 March 1861, and construction started in early April.

From the beginning, the exhibition building was envisaged on different lines from its predecessor. This was a permanent edifice, for future similar exhibitions. Henry Cole, a leading member of the Society of Arts and indefatigable fundraiser, was keen to include an art gallery and concert hall.

Because of time pressure, the 1862 Commissioners decided against a competition for the best building design. The architect chosen was Captain Francis Fowke of the Royal Engineers, designer of the Industrial Museum of Scotland. Critics were baffled by the failure to consult architectural stars like Joseph Paxton and Charles Fox (both of Crystal Palace fame).

Fowke chose a solid brick construction; too much light would damage the priceless art treasures in the exhibition. The contractors were Charles and Thomas Lucas, and John Kelk.

The main exhibition building comprised a ‘nave’ and two transepts; each intersection was surmounted by an immense glass dome. The eastern transept or annexe was for agricultural implements. The western annexe was the machinery hall.

This monumental brick edifice – 1,150 feet long – adjoined the recently planted Royal Horticultural Society’s gardens. Over 17 million bricks were used, with over six miles of iron girders for supports.

The vast, monotonous brickwork disappointed critics. One splenetic writer in the Saturday Review (3 May 1862), referring to the giant domes, dubbed it ‘the Dishcover Palace’.

The domes were ‘the largest that have yet been executed, being 160 feet in external diameter’ (Report of the Commissioners of the Exhibition of 1862, 1863). Their construction was extremely difficult; ‘the height of the dome inside, from the top of the raised floor, is 200 feet’. Each dome contained 120 tons of ironwork.

The domes’ construction was so dangerous that the workmen went on strike, only returning when given an extra sixpence per day (The Builder, 4 January 1862).

On average, between 1,300 and 1,400 men per week worked on site. Despite setbacks, the speed of construction was truly impressive: a source of great national pride. The exhibition buildings were ready by February 1862.

When the exhibition opened on May Day, neither Queen Victoria nor any of her children attended. They were still in deep mourning for Prince Albert. Her Majesty was instead represented by the Duke of Cambridge. After a solemn opening ceremony, and a magnificent concert under the eastern dome, the doors were opened to the public.

The exhibition really was a global showcase for the wonders of industry, commerce and agriculture. The building had over 1.1 million square feet of display space.

Manufacturers came from all over the world, including Africa, Australia, Europe, China, and South America; even North America, despite the war.

However, international harmony was not evident. The French built high wooden partitions around their exhibition, cutting off their neighbours’ light, causing great resentment.

The machinery annexe was by far the noisiest area. Locomotives, steam hammers, spinning and weaving machines, marine engines and even brick-making machines thundered, hissed and roared.

Science and industry had made great strides since 1851. The Bessemer process, which converted pig iron into steel, was ‘one of the grandest instances of progress made in manufactures’.

The largest Bessemer converter at this date, at the Atlas Steel-works, Sheffield, could convert four tons of iron into steel in 20 minutes. Now steel parts for industry and construction were cast far more cheaply than before – crank-shafts, boiler-plates, tyres, etc. Many of these were on show.

Another advance (from c.1860) was the use of coal instead of expensive coke for locomotive engines, saving railway companies money and increasing efficiency. Design changes meant the smoke emitted was ‘consumed’. High-speed, general-traffic and heavy locomotives were displayed.

Unlike the 1851 fair, which was dedicated to peace, weapons like an Armstrong gun and small arms from Birmingham were included.

The peaceful arts were represented by glass, porcelain, tiles, fancy ironwork, exotic minerals, floorcloths, furniture and fabrics, lighthouses and lifeboats. Nearly 7,000 medals were awarded to exhibitors.

The sheer variety of goods resembled an enormous bazaar. It was ‘The greatest advertisement that history records… the Palace of Puffs’, according to the Saturday Review, 3 May 1862.

With over 20,000 exhibitors, visitors struggled to grasp the sheer scale of the show. Exhibits were so crowded together in some areas that the ladies, who wore crinolines, could not get through.

The roof leaked, too, so on wet days the more fragile exhibits were covered in tarpaulins. Luckily, the rainwater drained away through (unplanned) holes in the wooden flooring. Unwary visitors caught their feet in gaps, and even fell through the boards: ‘Two or three severe accidents have already occurred’ (The Times, 21 May 1862).

The picture galleries, lit by clerestory windows in the roof, were a great favourite with visitors. Paintings by British artists like Thomas Gainsborough, Sir Joshua Reynolds and contemporary foreign artists were displayed.

Despite its critics, the exhibition demonstrably had pulling power. Over 6.2 million visitors attended – the highest attendance on any one day was 67,891, on 30 October. All these visitors needed food and drink; the Royal Horticultural Society built tea rooms in their gardens for refreshments.

Parties of children from schools and other institutions, like the Female Orphan Asylum at Southampton, attended. Most schoolchildren came from the London area and south-east England, but some were from as far away as Leeds.

Officials believed that visitor numbers would have been even higher if the royal family (itself an attraction) had attended. The cotton famine (owing to the American Civil War) also depressed attendance from northern manufacturing towns like Manchester.

Unfortunately, the exhibition’s expenditure on buildings and repairs (£448, 631) exceeded the £459,631 income from ticket and catalogue sales. John Kelk made up the £11,000 shortfall from his own pocket.

The exhibition officially closed on 1 November, but remained open for a fortnight to enable exhibitors to sell their goods. Visitors could buy whichever wares they liked, provided they could physically carry them!

The exhibition building was never used again. The massive red-brick ‘elephant’ was unloved – ‘the eyesore of Brompton’. Two years later, it was dynamited by a team of Royal Engineers. Some building materials were salvaged and used to construct Alexander Palace at Muswell Hill.

Captain Fowke witnessed the demolition of the building he created. However, as Fowke won the competition to design the projected new Natural History Museum, he probably wasn’t too disappointed.

Although London hosted four more international exhibitions between 1871 and 1874, it’s still the fairy-tale Crystal Palace of 1851 which is remembered as a national triumph.

The Science Museum and Natural History Museum now occupy part of the site of the 1862 Exhibition. {