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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Nostell Priory
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(10km/6m SE of Wakefield) House begun for Sir Rowland Winn in about 1736 and completed for his son, of the same name, in 1766–77. The father employed as his architect a precocious 19-year-old, James Paine (1717–89), who was responsible for the *Palladian design of the main block. The son, on inheriting in 1765, switched to the newly fashionable *neoclassicism of Robert *Adam, who completed most of the interior decoration and added the northeast wing with its pillared portico.
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The house's most interesting connection is with *Chippendale, for it contains an unparalleled collection of furniture provided by him together with much of the original documentation. Tradition in the Winn family adds, quite plausibly, that Chippendale began his career as an apprentice on the estate and that he made the exquisite furnished doll's house of about 1735 which is one of Nostell's treasures. The name derives from a 12C *Augustinian priory which stood nearby.
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