CREATING PARADISE: THE BUILDING OF THE ENGLISH COUNTRY HOUSE, 1660-1880.By Richard Wilson There have been many people named Richard Wilson, including:
He umpired one Test match between Australia and England at Adelaide on 25 January to 30 January 1963, a match drawn with England . London: Hambledon and London. 2001. [pound]25 Though the title and dustjacket make this resemble another piece of 'Heritage' bookmaking bookmaking Gambling practice of determining odds and receiving and paying off bets on the outcome of sporting events and other competitions. Horse racing is perhaps most closely associated with bookmaking, but boxing, baseball, football, basketball, and other sports have , it contains the fullest attempt so far to explain the financing of country-house building of all sizes. Dealing not with the architects and architecture of country houses but with the economic and social context of builders and building, it enlarges on topics such as the key function of the clerk of the works, work forces, and the procurement The fancy word for "purchasing." The procurement department within an organization manages all the major purchases. and transport of materials. Packed with information in charts, figures and tables, it is not an easy read. Densely written so that all the chapters seem to be on the same subject, it moves confusingly from one century, county, and class to another on the same page. We struggle for air through paragraphs like that running from pp282-284, which is 52 lines long. The effort is worth making, for the book answers the important question, how far did these houses ever rely on their own land for an income? We learn that they were seldom built from landed rents alone, but depended on the fruits of political office, speculation in government stock, marriage settlements, city finance and banking, the law, and colonial plantations PLANTATIONS. Colonies, (q.v.) dependencies. (q.v.) 1 Bl. Com. 107. In England, this word, as it is used in St. 12, II. c. 18, is never applied to, any of the British dominions in Europe, but only to the colonies in the West Indies and America. 1 Marsh. Ins, B. 1, c. 3, Sec. 2, page 64. . At the same time, builders seem to have loosely linked building expenditure to the rentals of their landed estates. In financial terms building a country house was a poor investment, indeed existing houses might add so little to the value of estates that they were often let or demolished de·mol·ish tr.v. de·mol·ished, de·mol·ish·ing, de·mol·ish·es 1. To tear down completely; raze. 2. To do away with completely; put an end to. 3. . So much for Girouard's 'power houses'! |
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