Longleat House

Longleat House

Country house begun in 1568 with facades completed in 1572 by Sir John Thynne, working with Robert Smythson and Alan Maynard. The north wing and internal alterations date from 1801–11 by Jeffry Wyatville for the 2nd Marquess of Bath. The interior was redecorated in the 1870s by J.D. Crace for the 4th Marquess of Bath.

The building is constructed in Bath stone with a Welsh slate hipped roof and lead flats. It features ashlar Tuscan column stacks and comprises a large rectangular block with two courtyards; the east courtyard was created by Wyatville through an amalgamation of two smaller courtyards.

The main front is three storeys with a basement, arranged in a 2:1:2:5:2:1:2 bay rhythm. Each of the four projecting bays has two windows. A central 18th-century Doric portico with a broken pediment displaying the Thynne arms stands above ten stone steps with a curved balustrade. The basement contains three-light and four-light recessed chamfered mullioned casements. The three storeys are articulated by Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders flanking the projecting bays and linked by continuous entablatures. The projecting bays themselves contain three-light mullioned and transomed casements with circular niches in the sill zones, while windows between the bays are four-light with shaped aprons. A balustraded parapet decorated with scroll and strapwork ornaments caps the facade, with 17th- and 18th-century statues placed throughout.

The east front has three projecting bays with three four-light mullioned and transomed casements between them, set above a raised terrace with balustraded parapet and central steps spanning seven bays. The west front follows a similar rhythm of bays. The rear north side, including its central bay, was completed by Wyatville; only the two flanking bays date to the 16th century. The roof retains gables of the original 1568 build, and four square banqueting houses surround the west courtyard, each featuring two-light mullioned shuttered windows, domed fishscale stone roofs with classical cupolas. Three octagonal stair turrets around the east courtyard display similar detailing, probably designed by Smythson. Chimney stacks throughout display unusual decorated friezes and domed cappings, either single or grouped.

The interior contains a four-bay two-storey hall with a screen's passage in its original position to the right of the entrance, retaining original 16th-century fittings and decoration. The hall features a hammer-beam roof and a screen's passage with Ionic order and strapwork designed by Andrew Gaunt around 1578. A carved fireplace from the 1560s with Ionic columns and an overmantel featuring terms to the entablature, by Alan Maynard, remains in its original position—the only surviving example. Other fireplaces by Maynard have been relocated to the west range and servants' hall. The hall also contains niches with shell hoods flanking bay windows and a carved balcony at the east end dating from around 1682.

Wyatville inserted an imperial staircase featuring carved turned balusters decorated with a Soane-style vault and a glazed octagonal dome. The original stairs had been positioned at the dais end of the hall. Wyatville also improved internal arrangements by creating corridors around the courtyards; the external walls of the courts retain cross windows from the original 1568 build. All state rooms were refitted and decorated in the late 19th century in Italian style, featuring fine gilded plaster ceilings, white marble fireplaces—some dating from the early 19th century—and imported wall coverings such as Spanish leather in the state dining room. Bedrooms contain earlier 18th- or 19th-century fittings, including Regency fireplaces and Chinese painted wallpaper. Bishop Ken's Library, positioned above the hall, has pilastered walls and segmental arches, made around 1585.

Attached to the rear by ashlar walls is a former larder, now functioning as a shop, designed by Wyatville in the same style and retaining original fittings.

The house sits within very fine parkland landscaped by Capability Brown from 1757–60 and again from 1800–10 by Humphry Repton, whose Red Book for Longleat is held at the house.