‘Decline and Fall? The break-up of the great estates and their impact on the landscape’
Dr Ben Cowell
History of Gardens and Landscape Seminar
Spring Term 2019 – Money! Money! Money!
Thursday 31st January 6:00pm
Wolfson Room, Basement, IHR, North Block, Senate House
In this talk Ben Cowell will look at the issue of ‘lost’ country houses in the landscape. Houses and gardens have always come and gone, but the agricultural depression that started in the 1870s put particularly heavy pressures on many estates. This, and other factors such as war and taxation, led to the break-up of some estates, and the consequence loss of country houses and designed landscapes. This talk will attempt to assess the scale of these losses, and the impact they have left on the landscape today.
Currently Director General of Historic Houses, Ben Cowell has held a range of high-ranking positions relating to the nation’s cultural heritage. These have included Director National Trust, East of England, a senior role at the Department for Culture Media and Sport and the Head of Social and Economic Research at English Heritage. His interest in the rise of heritage consciousness was explored in his book ‘The Heritage Obsession: The Battle for England’s Past’ (Tempus, 2008). ‘Landscapes of the National Trust’ was published in 2015.
Convenors: Michael Ann Mullen, Christine Lalumia, Stephen Smith, Dr Pippa Potts, Dr Vicky Pickering & Dr David Marsh
For further information http://www.history.ac.uk/events/seminars/121 or email gardenhistory@sas.ac.uk
