Description
In c.1713, Sir Richard Child, heir to a mercantile fortune, commissioned Colen Campbell, to build Wanstead House, 'one of the noblest houses, not only in England, but in Europe'. Campbell's innovative classical facade was widely influential and sowed the seeds for English Palladianism. Its opulent interior by William Kent was equal to Kensington Palace and its extensive gardens were attributed to leading landscape designers George London and Humphry Repton.
Wanstead's glory days came to an end in 1822, when a major sale of its contents was arranged to pay off financial debts. Two years later the house was demolished, its building fabric dispersed far and wide. A large crater on an east London golf course is all that remains of this once 'princely mansion'.
Based on scholarly research, Wanstead House: East London's Lost Palace provides the first illustrated history of the lost Georgian estate, charting the meteoric rise and fall of the Child dynasty. By restoring Wanstead's reputation amongst the leading houses of the era, this book demonstrates that those lost in actuality, should by no means be lost to history.
About the Author
Hannah Armstrong completed her PhD at Birkbeck College, University of London, having previously studied at the University of Glasgow, where she graduated with a Masters with Distinction in Decorative Arts and Design History. In 2012, Hannah Armstrong was awarded the Anne Christopherson Fellowship at the British Museum's Prints and Drawings department. She lives in South West London.
Reviews
Book Information
ISBN 9781800856097
Author Hannah Armstrong
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Historic England
Publisher Liverpool University Press
Wanstead's glory days came to an end in 1822, when a major sale of its contents was arranged to pay off financial debts. Two years later the house was demolished, its building fabric dispersed far and wide. A large crater on an east London golf course is all that remains of this once 'princely mansion'.
Based on scholarly research, Wanstead House: East London's Lost Palace provides the first illustrated history of the lost Georgian estate, charting the meteoric rise and fall of the Child dynasty. By restoring Wanstead's reputation amongst the leading houses of the era, this book demonstrates that those lost in actuality, should by no means be lost to history.
About the Author
Hannah Armstrong completed her PhD at Birkbeck College, University of London, having previously studied at the University of Glasgow, where she graduated with a Masters with Distinction in Decorative Arts and Design History. In 2012, Hannah Armstrong was awarded the Anne Christopherson Fellowship at the British Museum's Prints and Drawings department. She lives in South West London.
Reviews
'Wanstead House is lost but not forgotten and has always been acknowledged as one of the most important examples of English domestic architecture of its time... Hannah Armstrong gathers all this information, adds her own research, and uses it to illuminate the history of the lost palace and its gardens in a single well-produced volume which will appeal to a wide audience.' Sally Jeffery, Garden History
Book Information
ISBN 9781800856097
Author Hannah Armstrong
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Historic England
Publisher Liverpool University Press
