Mistress of the House by Rosemary Baird
There is an insatiable interest in well-written books with a wealth of new source material and a vigorous standpoint on the place of women in history, in this case their roles as wives, chatelaines and keepers-up of fashion in decoration and entertainment in the great Power Houses of Britain. Large town houses and country estates were created in the large part to overawe and to reinforce social and political prestige; with that went the presentational requirements needed to impress: fashion in clothes, carriages and entertainment, and in terms of an appropriate backdrop, lavish interiors and exotoc gardens. Rosemary Baird has selected 10 women whose married state as consorts to powerful men required them to take on a wide variety of roles. This is a fascinating account of their lives, taken very often from diaries, letters and new research in family archives.
Due to the authors commitments we are setting a 24 July Press dateFeaturesby the author have already run in APOLLO (August Edition) and COUNTRY LIFE (3 pages) and we are chasing a feature in the NATIONAL TRUST magazine. THE SCOTSMAN carried a feature on 29 July. We are expecting widespread reviews and our first in the Sunday Times is no disappointment: "Baird has corrected a misunderstood aspect of Britain's social history, while telling some captivatingstories." MIRANDA SEYMOUR, SUNDAY TIMES "As a catalogue of powerful eccentrics this book makes entertaining reading, but it aims higher." INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY "Expertly researched, beautifully illustrated and deftly constructed. It is the work of a professional curator and art historian."SUNDAY TELEGRAPH "Her aim in this enjoyable book is to trace the contribution of women to the making of the country house, and she triumphantly succeeds in showing just how fundamental they were."DAILY TELEGRAPH "Baird has written a good, accessible history."THE GUARDIAN "Rosemary Baird has chosen a good subject and done itwell."COUNTRY LIFE "Rosemary Baird's fascinating book sets out to redress the balance."LIVING HISTORY "The chief pleasure of the book lies in the way Baird brings the personalities of the chatelaines to life.. In her subtle, understated way, Rosemary Baird deftly overturns conventional views about the slow, steady progress of freedom for women."THE SPECTATOR "In these stories we glean nuggets about the dynamics of the different marriages, about the feeling for family, about te quotidian lives inside the great houses."FINANCIAL TIMESThe author was also interviewed on WOMAN'S HOUR (BBC RADIO 4) on Friday 25 July and informally signed copies at HATCHARDS PICCADILLY and HARRODS. HOUSE AND GARDEN will feature this in their Christmas Books special, and other magazines, including ELLE are considering.
Rosemary Baird was educated at Cambridge, Oxford and Paris and was a research consultant at Sotheby's and an Assistant Keeper at the Ashmolean before being appointed Curator of the Goodwood Collection.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780297830788 |
| ISBN 10 | 0297830783 |
| Title | Mistress of the House |
| Author | Rosemary Baird |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Orion Publishing Co |
| Year published | 2003-07-10 |
| Number of pages | 336 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |