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Georgian Country Houses

Georgian County Houses developed in the relatively peaceful and prosperous Georgian era. The English aristocracy would use their homes to display their wealth. Often the country house would be a means to showcase the family art collection.

Country houses tended to occupy large plots of land or be located within country estates. This meant that there was plenty of open space to build extensive landscaped gardens and parkland. The style of landscape gardening meant the many houses had gardens that came right up to the confines of the house. Blenheim Place, Stowe and Stourhead are classical examples of Country Houses with landscaped gardens.

The predominant architectural style of the early eighteenth century was Palladian, based on the classical designs of Italian designer Andrea Palladio. They tended to be built as follows:

Gardens stretched from the back of the house down to parkland
Classically designed with central porticos
Strong vertical lines on the exterior
Extravagantly furnished
Ornate decoration
Large entry hall way with “show” rooms leading off
Bedrooms and dressing rooms upstairs
Kitchen and servants quarters in the basement
Located on gently rising ground

As the century progressed, fashions and tastes changed:-

Chinese influence came and went
Roman and Greek were still the main influences.
The level of craftsmanship and detail was elegant and sophisticated
Windows were large and symmetrical, letting in plenty of light
Mirrors were used to further reflect the light around the room

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