Architecture

Cliffe Castle, West Yorkshire: A French-inspired vision of comfort and glamour

A Yorkshire mill-owner and merchant created a flamboyant and cosmopolitan home, as Jeremy Musson explains.

Ockwells Manor, Berkshire: An insight into the splendours of grand living in 15th-century England

A delightful timber-frame house offers insights into the realities of luxurious 15th-century living and the brutal complexities of Lancastrian politics, as John Goodall explains.

The traditional Brick-Maker who supplies Hampton Court: 'It’s like kneading dough'

There is only one company left in Britain still producing hand-made bricks – and their customers include the likes of Hampton Court. Tessa Waugh spoke to the gentlemen of H. G. Matthews.

Capheaton Hall, Northumberland: The revival of a country house that narrowly avoided demolition

A house that narrowly avoided demolition after the Second World War has been gradually revived by the family that has occupied it for the past seven centuries, as John Goodall explains.

The best country house architects in Britain

Country Life has once again delved into its little black book and fully updated its list of the finest architects in Britain – an indispensable guide if you're considering serious work on your home.

Jason Goodwin: ‘Memories fade. Gavin was right: buildings outlive us all and they’re each memorials. They should not be allowed to disappear’

Our columnist remembers Gavin Stamp, the architectural critic, historian and campaigner.

Broomhall, Fife: A stupendous country house restored by the Earl of Elgin after 40 years of thought

The Earl of Elgin, celebrated for securing the sculpture from the Parthenon, spent 40 years toying with the reconstruction of his house, which has recently been restored for the 21st century, as John Goodall explains.

Woodhall Park, Hertfordshire: An exemplary example of restoration that highlights the importance of colour in Georgian interiors

The recent restoration of Woodhall Park underlines the striking importance of colour in our understanding of Georgian interiors, as John Martin Robinson explains.

Marble Hill, Richmond-upon-Thames: Restored to good nature

A restoration project that aims to revive the landscape garden setting of an outstanding 18th-century villa throws new light on the gardening interests of Alexander Pope and the attractive personality of its patroness, as Tim Richardson discovers.

Quinta da Regaleira, Portugal: The mysterious garden designed by a world-famous set designer and architect

Between 1898 and 1912, one of the world’s most mysterious gardens was created by the opera and theatre designer Luigi Manini. Tim Richardson introduces us to its splendours and its probable symbolism.

The demolition of Halnaby Hall is a warning from history, but destruction needn't always be a disaster

Stockton House, Wiltshire: An Elizabethan house packed with 21st century surprises

This fine house of about 1600 has been carefully renovated to provide modern services in a historic context. Clive Aslet reports on the challenges of this undertaking.

Longthorpe Tower's 700-year-old insight into the medieval mind

This surviving cycle of 14th-century paintings still has the power to intrigue, amuse and inform. It also offers a remarkable insight into the medieval world view, as Edward Impey expains.

Ince Castle, Cornwall: A country house risen from the flames

A serious fire can be the end of a country house, but, on occasion, it can also offer the opportunity for a sensitive and thoughtful reworking of a building, as Roger White discovers.

Marston House, Somerset: A magnificent example of Victorian enrichment of a great Georgian country house

One of the most important Georgian houses of south-western England has been rescued from the brink of demolition. John Robinson reports on the remarkable history of this building and its return to private occupation.

Haunted houses, a Gunpowder Plot and the castle of Bluebeard’s widow: Country Life’s top architecture stories of 2017

Between Christmas and New Year, we're taking a look back at some of our most popular stories of the year – today, we look at the country houses that have really blown our minds.

In the cathedral’s shadow: The Cathedral Close, Wells

The splendours of Wells Cathedral can easily distract from the astonishing architecture that surrounds it. In the second of two articles, John Goodall describes the remarkable history of the precinct.

Wells Cathedral, Somerset: A symphony of architecture

In the first of two articles, John Goodall describes the architectural development of Wells and the struggle of its late-medieval clergy to win the church its now-familiar status as a cathedral.

Christmas at Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, France

A forest of star-spangled Christmas trees lines the carriageway to the swagged and beribboned entrance of 17th-century Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte which hosts an annual festive extravaganza, finds Jacky Hobbs.

‘It’s all about wonder and to look, to be able to ponder’ – the story behind spectacular nativity scenes

Each December, a newborn baby takes centre stage in Nativity scenes throughout the land. Julie Harding meets those responsible for bringing the Christmas story to life.