Cragside

When the Victorian architect Norman Shaw began building Cragside in Northumberland in 1863, it was intended to be a relatively modest country retreat for the great armaments manufacturer Lord Armstrong. But as Armstrong's business expanded, a mere lodge was not enough for him, and the house developed into something almost palatial - the Prince and Princess of Wales were among the first visitors after its completion. Its size, its grandeur and its references to the past gave Cragside, and its owner, an appearance of pedigree: the house is made to look as if it had grown over centuries as the ancestral home of a noble family. Examining the different architectural styles that Shaw employed, we can see how each one is related to the ways in which Armstrong, his guests and his servants used the house.

© 1998-2001 The Roland Collection & Pira Intl.