Description of Historic Place
Grant Block is situated on sloping landscaped lawns adjacent to Hatley Castle. It is a three-storey, symmetrical, flat-roofed, concrete structure. Its striking white exterior has horizontal massing that is bisected by the slightly projecting central block housing the main entrance. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.
Heritage Value
Grant Block is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values.
Historical Value:
Grant Block is a useful example of a building associated with the expansion of the Canadian Navy during the Second World War. The construction of the Grant Block increased the autonomy from Britain in the area of officer training.
Architectural Value:
Grant Block is a good example of a structure combining simple Art Deco massing and materials with Tudor and Gothic elements. Its use of the Deco style is exhibited through its symmetry, flat roof and use of reinforced concrete. The restrained Gothic decoration complements the adjacent Hatley Castle and preserves the clean lines of the Art Deco design.
Environmental Value:
Grant Block retains its formal relationship to Hatley Castle and its formal gardens. Sited on sloping, landscaped lawns immediately to the north of the castle, it is reached by a flight of stone steps. As a highly visible element in its own setting, Grant Block is a landmark on the college grounds.
Sources:
Kate MacFarlane, Grant Block, Building 24, Royal Roads Military College, Victoria, British Columbia. Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office Report 99-030
Grant Block, Royal Roads Military College, Victoria, British Columbia.
British Columbia. Heritage Character Statement 99-030
Character-Defining Elements
The following character-defining elements of the Grant Block should be respected, for example:
Its Art Deco style design and good quality materials and craftsmanship, such as:
-The flat-roofed, three-storey rectangular form and low massing.
-The symmetrically arranged façade, the projecting three-storey central block and the two-storey pavilions to the east and west sides of the building front.
-The main entrance with double doors and flanking windows, recessed under a segmental arch.
-The large oriel window above the entrance, and the three multi-paned windows above it on the third floor.
-The numerous mullioned windows, the regular placement of pilaster buttresses rising up to the third-storey, and the crenellation along the roofline.
-The small tower which projects from the top of the three-storey central block.
The manner in which the Grant Block reinforces the character of Hatley Castle and the formal park grounds as evidenced by:
-The Grant Block’s restrained Gothic decoration, which complements the adjacent Hatley Castle.
-Its comparitive relationship to the grounds through its careful siting in the formal landscape.
