Hatley Park is a 228.84 hectare estate situated on the edge of Esquimalt Lagoon, with Hatley Castle, a Tudor Revival-style manor house, as the centrepiece of an evolved Edwardian landscape that is comprised of four zones: the gardens, the recreation spaces, agricultural lands and forest. More
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. More
The Gymnasium is a wood frame building on a concrete pier and joist foundation, and features a gambrel roof, shingled side walls, a simple open plan, and large span timber trusses. The Gymnasium is located on College Road below Hatley Castle, on a hillside at the edge of the forested zone of the Royal Roads University. More
The Nixon Block is a monumental, asymmetrical, four-storey, reinforced concrete building, designed in a stripped collegiate Gothic style, and features three-storey bay windows, a stylized crenellated parapet, and formed concrete details such as decorative reliefs and buttresses. Built in 1954-6 into a hillside which slopes down to the road below, the Nixon Block’s main entrance is on the upper terrace and leads into the central wing, while the southern wing is on terraced land extending towards the forest. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building. The Nixon Block is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values. The Nixon Block is associated with the post-WWII expansion of the Canadian Armed Forces and professional training programs. The Nixon Block was built during the second phase of development of the Royal Roads University campus in order to accommodate the increased numbers of cadets joining the Forces. Its construction also signaled a shift in the location of training programs from the base at Esquimalt to the Royal Roads University. The Nixon Block is a good example of a stripped collegiate Gothic style. As such, the building features elements influenced by the modern aesthetic such as the footprint and massing of the building, as well as elem e nts influenced by the Tudor Revival Style such as the stylized crenellated parapets, the three-storey mullioned bay windows, the engaged buttresses, and the decorative shields. Good quality materials and craftsmanship are evident in the handling of the modern concrete work and the period details. Located within the grounds of J. Dunsmuir’s former Edwardian estate, the formality of the architectural style of the Nixon Block reinforces the pastoral character of this Edwardian era estate as it has evolved into a military university. Together with the Grant Block, the Nixon Block serves as a backdrop to Hatley Castle and is familiar to the faculty and the students of the university
The Stable / Garage RR4 is a handsome two-storey, U-shaped building designed in the Tudor Revival style, and features wide-eave dormer windows, half-timbering, ventilation cupolas, and terra-cotta load-bearing walls with white stucco cladding. More
The Swimming Pool is a modern two-storey, white concrete structure that is composed of horizontal cubic volumes and features a flat roof, ribbon windows, cantilevered stairs and broad overhanging eaves. The Swimming Pool is built into a hillside and is located on a service road, in a forested zone of the Royal Roads University. More