A detailed historical and architectural account of a great English country house and the family that inhabited it, tracing changes to the building, garden, furnishings, and collections across successive generations. Organized largely by chronological periods, it combines architectural description, landscape and interior detail, genealogical and biographical notes, and episodes of inheritance, patronage, and political connection. Illustrated plates and a table of descent accompany chapters that show how shifting taste, domestic needs, and family fortunes reshaped the estate over centuries.