Gottfried Semper (German: [ˌɡɔtfriːt ˈzɛmpɐ]; November 29, 1803 – May 15, 1879) was a German architect, art critic, and professor of architecture, who designed and built the Semper Opera House in Dresden between 1838 and 1841. In 1849 he took part in the May Uprising in Dresden and was put on the government's wanted list. Semper fled first to Zürich and later to London.