Story Search Results

Meet the Neighbours - Trentham Gardens #83

...ille, 2nd Duke of Sutherland decided to redesign the hall and gardens but this time the Italian Renaissance was all the rage so Brown’s sweeping lawns were transformed back into formal terraced garden rooms.  Fountains, balustrading, clipped topiary and sculptures were the new look now – all this change must have kept the gardeners busy!  The lakes were given an ‘Italian Lakes’ makeover with four islands being added along with balustrading and boat tunnels.  Some of the trees still standing are hundreds of years old and are certainly a ‘must-see’ if you ever manage to visit. During the early part of the 20th century the Duke of Sutherland offered...

The Origins of the Stately Home #39

...dy, Earl, Duke or Baron. Often they were Members of Parliament and Justices of the Peace due to their high education and would act as the local 'law' in their community. Buckingham Palace has 775 rooms   Most of these houses were built in the 17th and 18th century as manor houses in the heart of an agricultural estate, so effectively they were like farms with a farmhouse albeit a bit grander! The Lords that owned the manor houses would then provide employment for large numbers of indoor and outdoor staff in the rural community. It also provided the owner with income from rents and produce. When the Industrial Revolution came along it meant more houses we...

The origins of the stately home #43

...dy, Earl, Duke or Baron. Often they were Members of Parliament and Justices of the Peace due to their high education and would act as the local 'law' in their community. Most of these houses were built in the 17th and 18th century as manor houses in the heart of an agricultural estate, so effectively they were like farms with a farmhouse albeit a bit grander! The Lords that owned the manor houses would then provide employment for large numbers of indoor and outdoor staff in the rural community. It also provided the owner with income from rents and produce. When the Industrial Revolution came along it meant more houses were being built for the newly rich industr...

The Halifax Estates - Garrowby #46

...h and the Duke of Edinburgh stayed with Lord Halifax at Garrowby when Royal Ascot was moved to York. Lord James Irwin is also the godson of Camilla, the Queen Consort so there are many royal connections between these two families right up to the present day. Hickleton Hall on the Halifax Estates   Garrowby is the largest of the Halifax Estates and extends to over 13,000 acres. The estate is located 13 miles east of York on the Vale of York in the west to the edge of the Yorkshire Wolds to the east. Garrowby Hall, which lies in the centre of the estate in a parkland setting, is now occupied by Lord Halifax's son, Lord Irwin as a private home. It was built...

The country house in society #48

...e for the Duke of St. Albans.  It is asymmetric with all the Victorian love of ornament and exaggeration.  It was occupied by the army during the Second World War and is now a hotel.   It should be noted that the aristocracy or nobility were those from which the governing elite was drawn, or those who by birth or wealth occupied a privileged position compared with the rest of the community; the gentry comprised the class below the nobility and above the common people. Many of the 'nouveaux riche' preferred to remain leading citizens in their own home towns, rather than mix with the county society. However, if they did want to 'move up' an estate would be b...

Royal visitors at Hoar Cross Hall #10

...l and the Duke and Duchess of York (later to become King George VI and the Queen Mother). They may have visited during one of their tours of the Midlands and it may have only been for afternoon tea, but we do know that the Meynell family provided hospitality for Mary, the Princess Royal, probably in the 1920s and for whom a special bathroom containing a marble-enclosed bath was installed on the first floor of the house. So maybe the family came for tea whilst dropping off Princess Mary for her visit – at least the servants didn't have to go into a cleaning frenzy for them! However, having one royal stay for a few days still disrupted things quite a bit it seem...