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Longleat, Somerset

Historical Description

Longleat, the seat of the Marquis of Bath, in Deverill Longbridge parish, Wiltshire, on an affluent of the river Frome, 2½ miles W of Warminster. It occupies the site of an Augustinian priory, a cell founded in the time of Edward L, and annexed to Hinton Abbey, in Somerset. It was built in 1567-79 by Sir John Thynne at a cost of £80,000. Improved by the third Lord Weymouth, created Marquis of Bath, it was afterwards remodelled in a tasteful manner by Jeffrey Wyatt. It is in a mixed Roman style, ornamented with pilasters, cornices, and circular niches containing busts, placed under the windows of the bays; presents an imposing appearance, with a great array of windows; contains a fine baronial hall, with a rich collection of portraits and other pictures; and stands in a beautiful park, 15 miles in circuit, altered and laid out by " Capability" Brown. Bishop Ken spent much time at Longleat, and died there.

Transcribed from The Comprehensive Gazetteer of England & Wales, 1894-5

Church Records

Ancestry.co.uk, in association with Somerset Archives & Local Studies, have images of the Parish Registers for Somerset online.

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