This is a study of how the coastline of Britain has changed & interacted with mankind over the centuries. Economic & social factors are explored as well as the problems of climate change & what may be in store for us in the future. This book examines the interaction between people & the coast of Engl&. It spans from 700, 000 years ago, & the earliest evidence of humans in this remote corner of north-west Europe, to the end of the 20th century. The coastline has witnessed interesting & significant events throughout history & looks set to do so in the future. Often it is the first place where changes can be seen, for example the effects of climate change. It is also where evidence for human adaptation to environmental changes can most readily be seen. The coast has, of course, also been a cultural contact zone for millennia in terms of trade, industry, immigration & conflict. We are certainly at a time of great environmental & economic transition, so it is apt to now take a long view & place current events in context. Some changes happening today may seem unprecedented but in fact are not, while others are entirely new. One thing we can be sure of is that the coast & sea will become increasingly important to us, both as an economic benefit & as a threat. ...

Ranging from Kentchurch Court, a former fortified medieval manor house that has been the seat of the Scudamore family for nearly 1, 000 years, to a delightful Strawberry Hill-style Gothic house in rural Cornwall & car-crazed Goodwood House, this beautifully illustrated book showcases ten outstanding British country houses, all still in the hands of the original families. James Peill recounts the ups & downs of such deep-rooted clans as the Cracrofts, landowners in Lincolnshire since the 12th century, whose late 18th-century Hackthorn Hall is a perfect example of the kind of house Jane Austen describes in her novels (indeed, she appears on their family tree), as well as the relatively newly arrived Biddulphs, who constructed Rodmarton, an Arts & Crafts masterpiece, in the first decades of the last century. James Fennell has once again provided superb photographs of a wealth of gardens, charming interiors, bygone sporting trophies, fine art collections & fanciful family memorabilia, making The English Country House a delicious treat for Anglophiles & lovers of old houses. ...

Ranging from Kentchurch Court, a former fortified medieval manor house that has been the seat of the Scudamore family for nearly 1, 000 years, to a delightful Strawberry Hill-style Gothic house in rural Cornwall to a ducal palace (Badminton) to car-crazed Goodwood House, this beautifully illustrated book showcases ten outstanding British country houses all still in the hands of descendents of the original owners. James Peill recounts the ups & downs of such deep-rooted clans as the Cracrofts, landowners in Lincolnshire since the twelfth century, whose late 18th-century Hackthorn Hall is a perfect example of the kind of house Jane Austen describes in her novels (indeed, she appears on their family tree), as well as the relatively newly arrived Biddulphs, who constructed Rodmarton, an Arts & Crafts masterpiece, in the first decades of the last century. James Fennell has once again provided superb photographs of a wealth of gardens, charming interiors, bygone sporting trophies, fine art collections & fanciful family memorabilia, making The English Country House a delicious treat for Anglophiles & lovers of old houses. ...

` This book will inspire & delight.. . the stories of these gardens so compellingly captured by George Plumptre make the reader stop & tarry awhile, marvelling at the energy, the vision & the passion of the people who created gardens such as Hidcote, Sissinghurst & Great Dixter.` (The English Garden) `A feast of horticulture & Englishness.` (House & Garden) ` Tells the tale of the English Country House Gardens over the past 500 years expertly & informatively.` (Countryside Magazine) ` Sure to become a classic.` (Garden Design Journal) Gardening Book of the Year 2014 (Daily Telegraph) Revised & updated edition. There is something special about the English country house garden: from its quiet verdant lawns to its high yew hedges, this is a style much-desired & copied around the world. The English country house is most often conceived as a private, intimate place, a getaway from working life. A pergola, a sundial, a croquet lawn, a herbaceous border of soft planting; here is a space to wander & relax, to share secrets, & above all to enjoy afternoon tea. But even the most peaceful of gardens also take passion & hard work to create. This new book takes a fresh look at the English country house garden, starting with the owners & the stories behind the making of the gardens. Glorious photographs capture the gardens at their finest moments through the seasons, & a sparkling & erudite text presents twenty-five gardens
- some gr&, some personal, some celebrated, some never-before-photographed
- to explore why this garden style has been so very enduring & influential. From the Victorian grandeur of Tyntesfield & Cragside, to the Arts & Crafts simplicity of Rodmarton Manor & Charleston; from Scampston, in the same family since the 17th century, to new gardens by Dan Pearson & Tom Stuart-Smith; & with favourites such as Hidcote & Great Dixter alongside new discoveries, this book will be a delicious treat for garden-lovers.

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There is something special about the English country house garden: from its quiet verdant lawns to its high yew hedges, this is a style much-desired & copied around the world. The English country house is most often conceived as a private, intimate place, a getaway from working life, & here you will see gardens with meandering walks amongst greenery & contemplative pools of water. A sundial, a pergola, a croquet lawn, a herbaceous border of soft planting; here is a space to share secrets, to wander & relax, & above all to enjoy English afternoon tea. But even the most peaceful of gardens also take passion & hard work to create. This new book takes a fresh look at the English country house garden, starting with the owners & the stories behind the making of the gardens. With spectacular photos by Marcus Harpur, the text presents thirty gardens
- some gr&, some personal, some celebrated, some never-before-photographed
- to explore why this garden style has been so very enduring & influential. From the Victorian grandeur of Tyntesfield & Cragside, to the Arts & Crafts simplicity of Rodmarton Manor & Charleston; from Scampston, in the same family since the 17th century, to new gardens by Dan Pearson, Tom Stuart-Smith & the Bannermans; & with favourites such as Hidcote & Great Dixter alongside new discoveries, this book will be a delicious treat for garden-lovers.

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Linda Rutenbergs images capture an astonishing world hidden from plain sight. By photographing public & botanical gardens at night, Rutenberg reveals a luminous landscape of plants, colours, shadows & light. Ten gardens throughout England are included, each with intimate portraits of their flowers & plants glowing in the blackness, revealing a secret nighttime world of subtle yet vibrant beauty, & illuminating the mystique of gardens. A perfect rose blooms at midnight. Leaves & flowers seem to glow in the darkness of the nocturnal world, & the peace of night affords these portraits an intimate quality. ” The English Garden at Night” will enchant art-lovers & garden-lovers alike. ...

This powerful, meticulously researched novel is a moving tale of one girl's struggle against a world in turmoil. In 1930s Berlin, choked by the tightening of Hitler's fist, the Klein family are gradually losing everything that is precious to them. Their fifteen-year-old daughter, Rosa, slips out of Germany on a Kindertransport train to begin a new life in Engl&. Charged with the task of securing a safe passage for her family, she vows that she will not rest until they are safe. But as war breaks out & she loses contact with her parents, Rosa finds herself wondering if there are some vows that can't be kept.. .A sweeping tale of love & loss, with the poignant story of the Kindertransport at its heart, this is an exceptional accomplishment from one of Britain's bravest & most vibrant young writers. ...

This powerful, meticulously researched novel is a moving tale of one girl`s struggle against a world in turmoil. In 1930s Berlin, choked by the tightening of Hitler`s fist, the Klein family are gradually losing everything that is precious to them. Their fifteen-year-old daughter, Rosa, slips out of Germany on a Kindertransport train to begin a new life in Engl&. Charged with the task of securing a safe passage for her family, she vows that she will not rest until they are safe. But as war breaks out & she loses contact with her parents, Rosa finds herself wondering if there are some vows that can`t be kept.. .A sweeping tale of love & loss, with the poignant story of the Kindertransport at its heart, this is an exceptional accomplishment from one of Britain`s bravest & most vibrant young writers. ...

The English Ghost is Peter Ackroyd’s study of spectres through time. Apparently the English see more ghosts than any other nation, with each region laying claim to its own particular spirits – from the Celtic ghosts of Cornwall to the dobies & boggarts of the north. Like all good ghost stories, the tales featured here are comical & scary, but all have something to say about the English psyche & its yearnings for justice, freedom & love. Some spirits speak, some are silent, & some waft with the fragrance of thyme whilst others smell of old leather. Ackroyd has compiled a treasury of English sightings packed with eerie detail, from medieval times to present day, ranging from the moaning child that terrified Wordsworth’s nephew in Cambridge to the headless bear of Kidderminster, via the violent cravat strangling daemon of Devon & right up to the modern-day hitchhikers on Blue Bell Hill. ...

Blue plaques, bearing names both familiar & intriguing, can be found all across the capital. From Virginia Woolf to Vincent Van Gough, Christopher Wren to Alan Turing, Mahatma Ghandi to Emmeline Pankhurst, the plaques celebrate an incredible array of London’s past residents. Whether they be musicians, scientists, sports stars, artists, actors, inventors or politicians, this compact English Heritage guide reveals, with wit & insight, the stories of London’s most extraordinary men & women & the homes in which they lived. ...