'SCOTLAND'S FAVOURITE BUILDING'
Princes Square opened in its current format as a shopping and dining destination in 1988.
The original buildings consisted of a 4 storey merchant square built in yellow sandstone and completed in 1841. The then owner, James Campbell, was knighted by Queen Victoria and later became Lord Provost of Glasgow. In celebration of the birth of the Prince of Wales, later to become Edward VII, he named his new building Princes Square.
The Grade B listed buildings were developed by GRE Properties Ltd in the 1980s. The brief then was to preserve and restore the original buildings but create a modern shopping and dining centre of quality and distinction with an emphasis on style – which remains within the centre today.
ONE OF THE MOST INTELLIGENT PIECES OF URBAN RENEWAL
- BILL BRYSON
Bill Bryson describes the Princes Square building perfectly and it appears that many are in agreement. In 2016 Princes Square was named as ‘Scotland’s Favourite Building’ by Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs. The title was awarded as part of the Royal Incorporation of Architects’ ‘Scotstyle’ competition, which celebrated 100 years of architecture in Scotland. The building has won many design prizes from RIBA and the Civic Trust among others but this one was awarded as a result of a public vote.