Benjamin Henry Latrobe United States Capitol - 1360 Words

Benjamin Henry Latrobe: United States Capitol The United States of America was founded upon the motto E Pluribus Unum â€Å"out of many one†. Out of the 196 countries found in the world, the United States of America sticks out as the pinnacle. The United States is the most powerful country in the world and the most important building that resides in it is the United States Capitol. A number of architects were assigned with the task to design and oversee the building of the United States Capitol, but Benjamin Henry Latrobe played the most influential role in creating the building we know and love today. The United States Capitol is one of the most architecturally and fundamentally important buildings in the world because in it resides the†¦show more content†¦At the age of twenty, he took a tour around Europe studying the renowned buildings and architecture of the late-18th century, including the Pantheon in Rome. He was sent to Samuel Pepys Cockerell to formally study architecture and he took a Civil Engineering internship led by prominent John Smeaton. After learning this background knowledge of the field, Latrobe decided to start his own business. He was not very successful only receiving commissions from few minor projects and this led his business to bankruptcy. His first wife ended up dying due to childbirth, as a result, he decided to move to America in 1795 in hopes of starting fresh. This risk was very well rewarded. Benjamin Henry Latrobe ended up designing the Bank of Pennsylvania, St. John s Church, Decatur House, the Roman Catholic Cathedral and most importantly the United States Capitol. He ended up remarrying and had a son Henry Sellon Boneval Latrobe that too became a very successful architect. On September 3, 1820 at the age of 56, Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe died of yellow fever in New Orleans while completing the city s municipal water system started by his son. He was placed at Saint Louis Cemetery in New Orleans next to his son who had died three years earlier from th e same disease. The United States Capitol, the home of American democracy is one of the most recognizable buildings in the world. The building of the Capital reflects the