Life

He was born at Ashton-under-Lyne

Ashton-under-Lyne

Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...

, Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

, the son of John Hayes Petit, by Harriet Astley of Dukinfield Lodge, Lancashire. He was educated at Eton College

Eton College

Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....

, and contributed to the Etonian. He was elected to a scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge

Trinity College, Cambridge

Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...

, in 1822, graduated B.A. in 1823 and M.A. in 1826, and on 21 June 1850 was admitted ad eundem at Oxford. He took holy orders in 1824, but was never a parish priest.

Petit was one of the founders of the British Archæological Institute at Cambridge in 1844. He was also Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, an honorary member of the Institute of British Architects, and a governor of Christ's Hospital

Christ's Hospital

Christ's Hospital is an English coeducational independent day and boarding school with Royal Charter located in the Sussex countryside just south of Horsham in Horsham District, West Sussex, England...

. A learned writer, he was best known as an artist.

He died at Lichfield

Lichfield

Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...

 on 2 December 1868, and was buried in St. Michael's churchyard, where there was a monument with a Latin inscription to his memory.

Works

Petit sketched old churches, and spent much time visiting them. In 1839 he made his first extensive tour on the continent. The results appeared in his ‘Remarks on Church Architecture’ (1841, 2 vols.), with illustrations. To the journal of the British Archæological Institute he contributed an account of St Germans Cathedral in the Isle of Man

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...

 and other papers.

In 1846 he published ‘Remarks on Architectural Character;’ and in the same year a lecture delivered on 24 February 1846 to the Oxford Society for promoting the study of Gothic architecture

Gothic architecture

Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....

, under the title ‘Remarks on the Principles of Gothic Architecture as applied to ordinary Parish Churches.’ It was succeeded by the ‘Architecture of Tewkesbury Abbey Church,’ 1846; ‘Architectural Notes in the Neighbourhood of Cheltenham,’ and ‘Remarks on Wimbourne Minster,’ 1847; ‘Remarks on Southwell Minster,’ with numerous good illustrations, 1848; ‘Architectural Notices relating to Churches in Gloucestershire and Sussex,’ 1849; ‘Architectural Notices of the curious Church of Gillingham, Norfolk,’ and an ‘Account of Sherborne Minster,’ 1850. In 1852 Petit published an ‘Account of Brinkburn Priory,’ a paper on coloured brickwork near Rouen

Rouen

Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...

, and some notices on French ecclesiastical architecture. On 12 July 1853 he read before the Architectural Institute of Great Britain a paper on the ‘Architectural History of Boxgrove Priory,’ which was published the same year, together with some ‘historical remarks and conjectures’ by W. Turner.
In 1854 appeared Petit's major work, ‘Architectural Studies in France’. It was illustrated with woodcuts and facsimiles of anastatic drawings by the author and his companion Philip Henry Delamotte

Philip Henry Delamotte

Philip Henry Delamotte was a British photographer and illustrator.Delamotte was born at Sandhurst Military Academy, the son of Mary and William Alfred Delamotte. Philip Delamotte became an artist and was famous for his photographic images of The Crystal Palace of 1851. He eventually became...

. It threw light on the evolution of the Gothic style in France, and on the differences between English and French Gothic. A new edition, revised by Edward Bell

Edward Bell

Edward Bell is an English singer-songwriter, who has been active since 2003.-Life and career:Bell became a probationer at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle in 1995, and was surpliced in 1996...

, F.S.A., with introduction, notes, and index, appeared in 1890 (text unaltered). but the illustrations were reduced in size, and a few added from Petit's unused woodcuts.

In 1854 Petit published a valuable lecture on ‘Architectural Principles and Prejudices.’ In 1864–5 he travelled in the East, and brought home drawings. He produced a few etchings on copper. His oil paintings, which were not many, were collected by Albert Hartshorne and B. J. Hartshorne, with many of his water-colour sketches. A poem by Petit, entitled ‘The Lesser and the Greater Light,’ was printed for the first time by his sister in 1869.

The Staffordshire Museums and Art Gallery now have many of his works.