Francis Fowke was born on 7 July 1823 in Belfast. He was educated at Dungannon College and at a military tutor’s for two years. In 1839 he entered the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, where his drawing ability led him to a commission with the Royal Engineers. He was made second lieutenant on 18 June 1842, eventually being given the rank of captain on 23 February 1856. He married Louisa Rede in 1845 and they went on to have five children, two of whom died in infancy. Shortly after his marriage Fowke was sent to Bermuda, where he served for four or five years. Upon returning to England he was stationed in Devonport, Plymouth, where he prepared the working drawings for the Raglan barracks, built 1854-6.

In 1854 Fowke was invited to assist in managing the machinery section of the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855 and when his superior was ordered to the Crimea, Fowke was appointed in his place. He stayed in Paris during the year of the exhibition and carried out a series of experiments on the strength of colonial woods. He was awarded the Legion of Honour for his work on the exhibition, but was unable to wear the decoration as it was awarded for civil and not military service. Fowke’s work on the 1855 exhibition led to a close association with the head of the British Commission, Henry Cole, who at the time was inspector-general of the Department of Science and Art in London. Fowke joined the department in 1856 and was made an inspector in 1857. By 1860 Fowke had also been appointed architect and engineer of the Department of Science and Art and he was given the roles of superintendent of construction of the South Kensington Museum in 1862 and science referee for the museum in 1863.

Fowke designed a number of buildings, including the conservatory, council chamber, and south arcade of the Royal Horticultural Society Gardens at South Kensington (since demolished). The buildings of the International Exhibition of 1862 were erected to his designs on the same site, their main feature being two gigantic glass domes. Although the exhibition buildings were considered a success in terms of lighting, ventilation, and internal arrangement, they were criticized for stylistic shortcomings and were eventually demolished. Fowke’s reputation was however restored when he was awarded first prize in a public competition to design a natural history museum on the site of the demolished exhibition buildings. He also produced a design for the Royal Albert Hall, however before plans for either project could be executed Fowke died of a burst blood vessel at his official residence at the South Kensington Museum on 4 December 1865. Both buildings were completed, albeit with some changes, posthumously.

As well as being known as an architect, Fowke produced numerous inventions, including the widely used ‘bellows’ camera, a portable military fire-engine (awarded a medal at the 1862 exhibition), and a collapsible canvas pontoon exhibited in Paris in 1855.