Based on the story of the real historical figure of notorious Elizabeth Murray, Countess Dysart and Duchess of Lauderdale, who lived at Ham House, a Jacobean mansion built on the River Thames at Petersham, throughout the reigns of Charles I, Cromwell's Protectorate, Charles II, James II, and William and Mary, and who was deeply embroiled in the politics of the Civil War.

Built in 1610 during the reign of James I and remodeled in 1637-39 by the future first Earl of Dysart, Ham House and its gardens have endured through centuries of English history while remaining representative of the styles and culture of the original inhabitants. It is one of the few places where Caroline décor--as developed by British architect Inigo Jones and familiar to Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck--can still be appreciated. To mark the 400th anniversary of one of the most famous houses in Europe, eighteen internationally recognized scholars join National Trust curators in documenting the history of Ham House and its collections. The new discoveries, reattributions, and revelations of the contributors are accompanied by specially commissioned photography of the house and its contents. An appendix includes complete transcriptions of house inventories for the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, published here for the first time. Published for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art and the National Trust

The National Trust cares for the finest collection of historic buildings, gardens, parks, landscape and coastline in the world. Its famous and well-respected series of guidebooks provides the essential companion to your visit and a lasting souvenir of the experience. And now you can buy the guide before your visit. Authoritative texts and superb illustrations illuminate the history of the place and tell the stories of the people who have lived and worked there. Every guidebook sold goes to help the work of the National Trust. If you want to learn more about the property, go to www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Sarah Merker brings you 50 scone recipes from the National Trust. History is best enjoyed with a scone, as everyone who’s visited a National Trust house knows. This book brings you the best of both. Scone obsessive Sarah Merker has gathered 50 – yes 50 – scone recipes from National Trust experts around the country. And she’s written a quirky guide to 50 National Trust places to delight and entertain you while you bake or eat those blissful treats. Eccentric owners, strange treasures, obscure facts – it's all here. Whip up a Triple Chocolate scone while you read about the mechanical elephants at Waddesdon Manor. Or savour an Apple & Cinnamon scone while you absorb the dramatic love life of Henry Cecil of Hanbury Hall. Marvel at a Ightham Mote's Grade 1 listed dog kennel while you savour a Cheese, Spring Onion and Bacon scone. 50 of the best scones in history. And 50 of the best places to read about. You’ll never need to leave the kitchen again.

Anna Jackson explores key styles from the time of Henry VIII to the death of Queen Victoria. Lucid explanatory text accompanies photographs showing enlarged details highlighting the salient features of each style.

Containing original essays; historical narratives, biographical memoirs, sketches of society, topographical descriptions, novels and tales, anecdotes, select extracts from new and expensive works, the spirit of the public journals, discoveries in the arts and sciences, useful domestic hints, etc. etc. etc.

This special edition revives an acclaimed work. Exquisite photographs showcase England’s finest buildings, guiding the reader through five centuries of English architecture and interior design. In this new, special edition of a cult classic work, photographer Derry Moore and interior designer David Mlinaric take readers on a panoramic tour inside some of Britain’s finest buildings, guiding them through five centuries of English interior design. Mlinaric’s informed text and Moore’s perceptive photographs present the best examples of both public and private buildings— from sixteenth-century Haddon Hall, Chastleton and Knole to seventeenth-century Hatfield and Wilton; Houghton Hall and Syon House from the eighteenth century; Apsley House, the Palace of Westminster and Waddesdon Manor from the nineteenth; and twentieth-century examples including Charleston and the Apollo Victoria Theatre. The work of British masters including Inigo Jones, William Kent and Robert Adam, as well as of influential twentieth-century tastemakers such as Nancy Lancaster, Pauline de Rothschild and David Hicks, is revealed in striking photographs and authoritative texts. Anglophiles, armchair tourists, and lovers of grand interiors will relish the photographs of these wonderful buildings, while discovering more about the designers and architects who built them, charting the evolution that has made British style so alluring, enduring, and widely imitated over the centuries.

The way a man thinks about his day-to-day living and the needs of his household reveals a great deal about his ambitions, his idea of himself, and his role in the community. And his house or castle offers many clues to his habits as well as those of the members of his household. This intriguing book explores the evolution of country house plans throughout Britain and Ireland, from medieval times to the eighteenth century. With photographs and detailed architectural plans of each house under discussion, the book presents a whole range of new insights into how these homes were designed and what their varied designs tell us about the lives of their residents. Starting with fortified medieval tower houses, the book traces patterns that developed and sometimes repeated in country house design over the centuries. It discusses who slept in the bedchambers, where food was prepared, how rooms were arranged for official and private activities, what towers signified, and more. Groundbreaking in its depth, the volume offers a rare tour of country houses for scholar and general reader alike.