Chiswick House is a neo-Palladian villa in Burlington Lane, Chiswick, in the London Borough of Hounslow.
Classic Bridge in Chiswick House grounds, built in 1774, design attributed to James Wyatt.
History
The house belonged to Lord Burlington, whose taste and skill as an architect have been frequently recorded. The "architect earl" designed it with William Kent and built it in 1726-9. Kent also designed the gardens which according to the Chiswick House and Gardens Trust Web site[1] were the inspiration for the "English Landscape Movement".
Burlington's daughter Charlotte married William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, and the house and gardens passed to that family after her early death in the 1750s. The house was used occasionally by the Devonshires, who had many other residences, and they added two small wings to the villa to increase the amount of accommodation. Built in 1788 these were designed by James Wyatt in a sympathetic style, but inimical to the concept of the house as a compact perfectly formed villa, and were removed in 1952.
The 9th Duke of Devonshire sold Chiswick House to Middlesex County Council (with contributions from public subscription including King George V) in 1929[2]. The grounds are now in the care of the London Borough of Hounslow the House is in the care of English Heritage. The garden is open to the public without charge.
Hounslow and English Heritage formed the Chiswick House and Gardens Trust in 2005 to unify the running of the House and Grounds. The Trust will take over administration once the works are complete following an approx GBP 7.6M Heritage Lottery Fund Grant[3] complemented by approx GBP 4M from other sources, for restoration of the Grounds.
The House
The octagonal domed Palladian villa is inspired by the Villa Capra "La Rotonda" near Vicenza and at the same time a fine example of 18th-century architecture, with its colonnaded portico on the upper storey, the frescoed ceilings, the velvet rooms and the stone rooms. It differs from the Villa Capra in having three different designs to the facades (front, back, and two matching sides) rather than being symmetrical all the way round. There is also a superb collection of paintings and Palladian furnishings.
The villa was never intended for occupation, having no bedrooms or kitchen, instead being a place to display Burlington's collection. Other, not universally supported, interpretations[4] of the building's purpose have it as a Masonic Temple.
The Grounds
The grounds include numerous landscape features, the lawn at the rear of the house having been created by 1745 and planted with cypresses alternating with stone urns creating the view seen at the Chiswick House and Gardens Trust Web site[5], leading to the Patte d'oie (or goosefoot) an arrangement of three radiating paths.
A lake was created around 1727 by widening the Bollo Brook which is today carried on the bed of the lake in a pipe. The Classic Bridge was constructed in 1774 and its design is attributed to James Wyatt.
A gateway designed by Inigo Jones in 1621 at Beaufort House in Chelsea and was removed and rebuilt by Burlington at Chiswick House in 1738.
The grounds has two "wilderness" areas and numerous other features described at Chiswick House and Gardens Trust Web site[6].
The grounds of Moreton Hall, an adjoining property to the East were added in 1812, the Hall itself was demolished. The Italian Garden was laid out on the newly acquired grounds in that year to a design by Lewis Kennedy. The Conservatory adjoining the Italian Garden was completed in 1813, and at 96m was the longest at that time. A collection of Camellias is housed in the Conservatory some of which survive from 1828 to this day.
In 1966, The Beatles shot films for their two songs called "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" in the grounds - many of the shots being in the conservatory among the camellias.
The ashes of British actor, broadcaster and songwriter Michael Flanders are scattered in the grounds.
External links
References
- John Harris, The Palladian Revival: Lord Burlington, His Villa and Garden at Chiswick. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994
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