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Mar Vista: 'A million miles away from the dreaded ranges of identikit suburban housing'In Los Angeles, 52 homes by the renowned architect Gregory Ain show how thoughtful design and landscaping can be inspired by subtle ideas about how to constitute a community that go far beyond politics.
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Built for a pretender to the Scottish throne, consumed by a coalfield: The doom of Hamilton PalaceAt its zenith, Hamilton Palace rivalled Buckingham Palace in size — but when it was photographed for Country Life, its days were already numbered, says Melanie Bryan.
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Calico House: A modern home in an ancient house, lovingly restored and full of historyEnlarged by a prosperous yeoman farmer in the 17th century, the remarkable Calico House, in Newnham, Kent, has a complex history stretching back to the Middle Ages. John Goodall reports on a place that is now the home of Graham Lloyd-Brunt and Ewan Brown. Photography by Will Pryce for Country Life.
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The ancient manor house brought back from ruin by people of the village where it's stood for seven centuriesThe restoration of a Transylvanian manor house, using only local craftspeople and traditional methods, has stood the test of time. Apafi Manor, in Mălâncrav, Romania, is a model of its kind, finds Jeremy Musson. Photographs by Paul Highnam.
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The 17th century Devon home that inspired a smoking ban and lives on only inside the Country Life ArchiveOnce upon a time, no one batted an eyelid at smoking in public places — including inside listed buildings. Melanie Bryan investigates why that began to change in the 1960s.
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'It was his manifesto': London’s strangest house blends art, modernity and science, and it's just thrown open its doors to visitorsThe Cosmic House is a paean to American architect Charles Jencks’s belief that the universe can be made cosy.
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Ampleforth Abbey: How an iconic architect somehow blended Gothic Revival, Arts-and-Crafts and Modernism with clarity, simplicity and spatial coherenceOn the centenary of Ampleforth Abbey's first consecration, John Goodall looks at the evolution of this North Yorkshire church by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, which illustrates the architect’s journey from antiquarianism to abstraction. Photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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Theft, damage, violence and crumbling fabric: The plight of Britain's churches is only getting worsePlaces of worship across the country are facing challenges on all fronts. Is the help that's on its way going to make any difference?
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Victoria and Albert at Burghley House: The royal visit that set the mould, and helped stave off revolutionIn November 1844, Queen Victoria visited Burghley House in Lincolnshire as part of a programme of travel aimed to introduce her subjects to Prince Albert. John Martin Robinson describes the event.
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Le Logis and Floréal: The houses were intended to be ‘humble and enriched by vegetation’. They are just thatThe UK's rich 'Garden City' tradition, born off the back of Arts-and-Crafts, found plenty of fans in Belgium.
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The owners of this Palladian masterpiece amassed an enviable collection of exotic plants before it all burned to the groundMelanie Bryan digs into the Country Life Archive to find out how it all went so wrong at Carclew, in Cornwall.
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Inside the glorious studio-houses of 19th century LondonTalgarth Road's terrace of purpose-built studio houses has artists at work within it once again. Jeremy Musson explores the history of these buildings and a modern connection with Florence.
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Country-house treasures: Crafting a claim at Great Chalfield ManorCountry houses up and down the land are renowned for their great treasures. Here we take a look at some less-well known items in their collection that hold a deeper meaning to their owners.
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The risk of taxing our built heritage out of existence is all too realIs a fragile inheritance in trouble?
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How did a staircase from this Reformation-era country house end up on the other side of the world?Melanie Bryan takes a look at the intriguing history and sad ending of Beaudesert Hall.
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Breamore House: The Tudor masterpiece with a past tainted by tragedyThe grand Elizabethan building that is Breamore House in Hampshire became, in the 18th century, the seat of a family that made its fortune in medicine. Steven Brindle looks at the fascinating history of the building and its rich collections. Photography by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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Where was Guy Ritchie's Young Sherlock series filmed? In a historic Welsh home that first appeared in Country Life a century agoLlanvihangel Court has a Spanish Armada-era avenue of trees and may have been visited by Charles I. To celebrate its star turn in Guy Ritchie's new Amazon Prime television series, 'Young Sherlock', we're revisiting our feature and photographs on the house that first appeared in the magazine in 1916.
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Sir John Vanbrugh, Castle Howard and great houses on fire, with Dr John GoodallThe Architectural Editor joins the Country Life Podcast to discuss the legacy of Sir John Vanbrugh and the glorious restoration of Castle Howard
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Why does the discovery of ‘Port Talbot’s Pompeii’ matter?The discovery of a Roman villa at Margam, outside Port Talbot in Wales, generated huge amounts of publicity, but the press failed to get to the heart of why it matters.
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Castle Howard was devastated by fire. Against all the odds, its decades-long restoration has made it even greater today than it once wasAn award-winning restoration at Castle Howard in North Yorkshire has transformed the interior of this fire-damaged great house. What's more, the work has been finished in time for the celebrations surrounding the tercentenary of the death of its designer, Sir John Vanbrugh. John Goodall reports; photographs by Paul Highnam for Country Life.
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The 'Welsh Pompeii' is is a staggering reminder of how ancient history still shapes the modern landscapeCountry Life's cultural columnist Athena takes a look at the Roman villa discovery in South Wales which plugs a centuries-wide gap in the chronology of the area.
