England's Lost Houses

England's Lost Houses
Author: Giles Worsley
Publisher: White Lion Publishing
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2002
Genre: History
ISBN:

Of all the photographs in Country Life's archives, none are more poignant or intriguing than the images of houses that have been lost. This text puts the lost country houses of England in historical context and explains why so many were destroyed.

The Country Houses of Shropshire

The Country Houses of Shropshire
Author: Gareth Williams
Publisher: Boydell & Brewer
Total Pages: 761
Release: 2021
Genre: Architecture and society
ISBN: 1783275391

A gazetteer of the many fine Shropshire country houses, which covers the architecture, the owners' family history, and the social and economic circumstances that affected them.

Felling the Ancient Oaks

Felling the Ancient Oaks
Author: John Martin Robinson
Publisher: Aurum Press
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012-02-01
Genre: Architecture, Domestic
ISBN: 9781845136703

A stunning visual record of England's most spectacular and scenic country estates that were broken up for sale and lost for ever. A sweeping country estate, with grand house and spectacular gardens and park, would not be the first impression of a visitor to modern suburban Watford. But well into the twentieth century that was exactly what was there – the magnificence of the Cassiobury estate, of which only a modest municipal park survives. Underneath the expanse of Rutland Water lies the once splendid Normanton estate, while Deepdene in Surrey is now memorialised only by an ugly office block. Fortunately, at least photographs live on to remind us of how the landscape looked before death duties, mining subsidence and sometimes the plain impecuniousness of the black sheep in the family took their toll and forced the break-up of all too many historic landed estates. In this elegiac book, a successor to Aurum’s Lost Victorian Britain, John Robinson surveys 20 of the most egregious losses, from Costessy in East Anglia to Lathom in Lancashire, and shows how the deer park, the home farm, the parterre and the cottage garden gave way to the power station, the motorway and the caravan park.

Lost Country Houses of Norfolk

Lost Country Houses of Norfolk
Author: Tom Williamson
Publisher: Boydell Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2022-06-24
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 9781783276998

Norfolk is a county sadly rich in "lost" country houses; this account and gazetteer offer a comprehensive account of them.

The Last Garden in England

The Last Garden in England
Author: Julia Kelly
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 384
Release: 2021-01-12
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1982107847

From the author of the international bestsellers The Light Over London and The Whispers of War comes “a compelling read, filled with lovable characters and an alluring twist of fates” (Ellen Keith, author of The Dutch Wife) about five women living across three different times whose lives are all connected by one very special garden. Present day: Emma Lovett, who has dedicated her career to breathing new life into long-neglected gardens, has just been given the opportunity of a lifetime: to restore the gardens of the famed Highbury House estate, designed in 1907 by her hero Venetia Smith. But as Emma dives deeper into the gardens’ past, she begins to uncover secrets that have long lain hidden. 1907: A talented artist with a growing reputation for her work, Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer to industrialists, solicitors, and bankers looking to show off their wealth with sumptuous country houses. When she is hired to design the gardens of Highbury House, she is determined to make them a triumph, but the gardens—and the people she meets—promise to change her life forever. 1944: When land girl Beth Pedley arrives at a farm on the outskirts of the village of Highbury, all she wants is to find a place she can call home. Cook Stella Adderton, on the other hand, is desperate to leave Highbury House to pursue her own dreams. And widow Diana Symonds, the mistress of the grand house, is anxiously trying to cling to her pre-war life now that her home has been requisitioned and transformed into a convalescent hospital for wounded soldiers. But when war threatens Highbury House’s treasured gardens, these three very different women are drawn together by a secret that will last for decades. “Gorgeously written and rooted in meticulous period detail, this novel is vibrant as it is stirring. Fans of historical fiction will fall in love with The Last Garden in England” (Roxanne Veletzos, author of The Girl They Left Behind).

English Country Houses

English Country Houses
Author: Vita Sackville-West
Publisher: Unicorn
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2014
Genre: Architecture, Domestic
ISBN: 9781910065112

"There is nothing quite like the English country house anywhere else in the world." So pronounces Vita Sackville-West in the beautiful essay that opens English Country Houses, a brief history of the English country house from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. People may know of Sackville West's novels, or her passion for gardening, or her relationship with Virginia Woolf, but few know of her efforts to boost the morale of her beloved England during World War II. Sackville-West spent her childhood years at Knole House, a stately country home that deeply influenced her life and work. In entertaining and accessible prose she brings a deep affection to the task of boosting the morale of a country beset by war. This volume in the Britain in Pictures series is a love letter to the elegant homes of the English countryside and served as a balm to a besieged country. Writing at the height of the Blitz, as cities lay in smoldering ruins after relentless bombing, Sackville-West demonstrates a yearning for the safety provided by these exceptional buildings. We discover the architecture of the stately houses, with details conveyed in such entertaining and vivid prose that the buildings and surrounding areas come to life. The story is not just about the buildings, however, but also about the people who built and lived in them, from the most common of squires to the highest-born kings and queens. Equal parts architectural history and cultural history, this insider's view is quintessentially British. Its elegant package, with a ribbon for bookmarking, makes it the perfect gift for any Anglophile.

The Country House Library

The Country House Library
Author: Mark Purcell
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 352
Release: 2019-09-03
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 0300248687

Beginning with new evidence that cites the presence of books in Roman villas and concluding with present day vicissitudes of collecting, this generously illustrated book presents a complete survey of British and Irish country house libraries. Replete with engaging anecdotes about owners and librarians, the book features fascinating information on acquisition bordering on obsession, the process of designing library architecture, and the care (and neglect) of collections. The author also disputes the notion that these libraries were merely for show, arguing that many of them were profoundly scholarly, assembled with meticulous care, and frequently used for intellectual pursuits. For those who love books and the libraries in which they are collected and stored, The Country House Library is an essential volume to own.

The Story of the Country House

The Story of the Country House
Author: Clive Aslet
Publisher: Yale University Press
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2021-09-14
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 0300263139

The fascinating story of the evolution of the country house in Britain, from its Roman precursors to the present The Story of the Country House is an authoritative and vivid account of the British country house, exploring how they have evolved with the changing political and economic landscape. Clive Aslet reveals the captivating stories behind individual houses, their architects, and occupants, and paints a vivid picture of the wider context in which the country house in Britain flourished and subsequently fell into decline before enjoying a renaissance in the twenty-first century. The genesis, style, and purpose of architectural masterpieces such as Hardwick Hall, Hatfield House, and Chatsworth are explored, alongside the numerous country houses lost to war and economic decline. We also meet a cavalcade of characters, owners with all their dynastic obsessions and diverse sources of wealth, and architects such as Inigo Jones, Sir John Vanbrugh, Robert Adam, Sir John Soane and A.W.N. Pugin, who dazzled or in some cases outraged their contemporaries. The Story of the Country House takes a fresh look at this enduringly popular building type, exploring why it continues to hold such fascination for us today.

Lost England

Lost England
Author: Philip H. Davies
Publisher: Atlantic Publishing, Croxley Green
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2016
Genre: Buildings
ISBN: 9781909242791

Around 1500 photographs reveal what it was like to live in Victorian and Edwardian England. The long awaited sequel to Lost London