Architecture

Crosby Moran Hall, London: A collector’s palace

Crosby Moran Hall is an outstanding celebration of the Tudor and Stuart worlds that has passed another important milestone in its history. Clive Aslet reports.

The very 21st century creation 'a dream country house in the English spirit'

A landscape previously used for intensive farming has been turned into the setting of an idyllic new country house in a classical idiom. Jeremy Musson reports; photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

175 years of London Waterloo: 'The gateway to everything that’s wonderful'

As commuters dash to catch their train home from south London and lovers meet under its giant clock, Julie Harding explores Waterloo — Britain’s busiest railway station — on the eve of its 175th anniversary.

A third of a millennium since it opened, the Royal Hospital Chelsea's work is as vital as it ever was

Roger Bowdler looks at the evolution of the Royal Hospital Chelsea as a working institution to the present day and, in particular, at the contribution of Sir John Soane.

The Royal Hospital Chelsea: Inside Christopher Wren's masterpiece in SW3

This year is the 300th anniversary of the death of Sir Christopher Wren. In the first of two articles, Roger Bowdler revisits the Royal Hospital Chelsea, one of his most celebrated creations, and the SW3 landmark whose grounds host the annual Chelsea Flower Show.

Britain's Victorian seaside towns: A tale of sun, sand, affection, neglect, decay and regeneration

Country Life's cultural commentator Athena looks at the sad plight of Britain's seaside towns, but has hopes that things may be heading in the right direction.

Villa Ventorum: The Newt's recreation of a 2,000-year-old Roman house in the heart of Somerset

The reconstruction of Villa Ventorum — a Romano-British villa at The Newt, Somerset — has prompted a wonderful experiment in living archaeology. Bronwen Riley steps into the past. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

The medieval cloisters moved stone-by-stone to Manhattan, thanks to the infinitely deep pockets of the Rockefellers

The Cloisters in New York — a part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art — is one the most important museums of medieval art in the world — yet it could only have been created in 1930s America, as Jeremy Musson discovers.

Powered by the wind since 1887: The past, present and future of Britain's wind turbines

Wind turbines are becoming a familiar feature of the landscape. John Goodall looks at their operation, form and future through the example of Whitelee Windfarm in East Renfrewshire, the largest onshore wind farm in the UK.

Audley End: The 'great and splendid country house' that beguiled a king

Built to attract a visit by James I, Audley End in Essex is a hugely ambitious house that has been massively reduced, and yet remains both outstanding and magnificent. John Goodall reports; photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

Broadwoodside: A farm steading in the heart of a magical Scottish landscape

Broadwoodside
 — the home of Robert and Anna Dalrymple — is a modest farm steading in East Lothian that has been stylishly transformed into the heart of a magical landscape and garden. John Goodall admires the sympathy and humour of the project. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

Castle Drogo: The extraordinary challenge of building a castle in the 20th century — and saving it from ruin in the 21st

In the second of two articles on Castle Drogo in Devon — a property of the National Trust — Clive Aslet looks at the challenges of building a 20th-century castle and the recent work of the National Trust to restore it.

Castle Drogo: How Sir Edwin Lutyens created a place of exceptional refinement and beauty

Castle Drogo sits atop its perch in Dartmoor, Devon, one of the National Trust's most striking articles. In the first of two articles on Castle Drogo's history, Clive Aslet reveals how a fascination with ancestry encouraged a wealthy Edwardian businessman to enlist the help of Sir Edwin Lutyens to build a new castle. Main image by Robert Harding; other photographs by Dylan Thomas for Country Life.

The Great House in Dedham: 'How wonderful it would be. The world could be beautiful again'

The architect Raymond Erith's first major work of his career subtly transformed The Great House in Dedham, Essex, to create a design poised between past and present, as Alan Powers explains.

Inside Rory Young's remarkable home, the 'nursery of inventions' in the Cotswolds

Number 7 Park Street, in the Gloucestershire town of Cirencester, is a Cotswold townhouse which echoes the remarkable career of its restorer and creator, Rory Young. Alan Powers reflects on his influence and enthusiasms as embodied here; with photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

Westminster Abbey: 1,000 years of coronations, from King Harold and William the Conqueror to Elizabeth II and Charles III

The setting of Charles III’s crowning in Westminster Abbey in London lends grandeur and history to this great ceremony. John Goodall considers the evolution of this remarkable building and its role in celebrating the authority and antiquity of the monarchy.

West Horsley Place, Surrey: The real-life country house where the BBC's Ghosts is filmed

West Horsley Place is one of the most important historic houses in Surrey — and it’s enjoying a new lease of life as a centre for the Arts, not least thanks to its starring role in Ghosts, one of the most popular BBC comedies in years. John Goodall looks at the history of this remarkable building. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.

Westminster Abbey: How the nation's coronation church has touched our lives for 1,000 years

In anticipation of The Queen’s Jubilee Year, Country Life had the opportunity to photograph the majestic interiors of Westminster Abbey, our coronation church, amid the quiet of lockdown. In the first of two articles, John Goodall explains how, in this building, events from the deep past continue to touch our lives today. Photographs by Will Pryce for the Country Life Picture Library.

'One of the wonders of Oxford': A look at the extraordinary Campion Hall

In the second of two articles, Clive Aslet looks at the furnishing of Campion Hall, particularly the treatment of the chapel, one of the city’s outstanding interiors. Photographs by Will Pryce.

Campion Hall, Oxford: How Sir Edwin Lutyens cut his fees to secure the job — and ended up creating 'his best building'

The task of creating a Jesuit hall in Oxford in the 1930s was eagerly assumed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. In the first of two articles on Campion Hall, Oxford, Clive Aslet reveals the story of this remarkable building.