A Georgian vision
Country Life UK|June 05, 2024
Gatewick, Steyning, West Sussex The former home of Charles, James and Primrose Yorke A combination of discerning architectural improvement and collecting in the 1950s created a modern country house in the 18th-century spirit.
John Martin Robinson
A Georgian vision

GATEWICK was the Sussex home of the Yorke family for two generations. It was bought in 1953 by David Yorke after his marriage to Anne Mackail, daughter of the writer Denis Mackail and great-granddaughter of Sir Edward Burne-Jones, the celebrated Pre-Raphaelite. Yorke, who had read for the Bar at the Middle Temple, although he mostly practised law only as a JP, was an enthusiastic amateur architect and connoisseur, very much what the 18th century, his spiritual home, would have called a virtuoso. He acted as principal architectural adviser to the National Trust, when such a necessary role existed, and transformed and improved Gatewick-in the Picturesque sense-to his own designs. In the process, he created the most perfect small Georgian country house out of a modest property.

Gatewick is a southern equivalent of Rupert Alec-Smith's Old Rectory at Winestead in the East Riding of Yorkshire, which John Cornforth admired (COUNTRY LIFE, January 14, 1965). Both houses reflect a common aim; to bring together architectural fittings, fine collections of furniture, objets d'art and paintings with new architectural work, all melded into beautiful and convenient modern houses in a Georgian spirit that were compact enough to run, heat and manage in post-war conditions. Whereas Alec-Smith worked with a professional architect, Francis Johnson, Yorke was entirely his own designer. He was a friend of Clifford Musgrave, the ground-breaking post-war director and restorer of Brighton Pavilion in East Sussex, and Musgrave wrote an article—as part of a series on new country houses—on Gatewick in 1965 for The Connoisseur.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة June 05, 2024 من Country Life UK.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة June 05, 2024 من Country Life UK.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من COUNTRY LIFE UK مشاهدة الكل
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
Country Life UK

Kitchen garden cook - Apples

'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'

time-read
2 mins  |
October 23, 2024
The original Mr Rochester
Country Life UK

The original Mr Rochester

Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre

time-read
5 mins  |
October 23, 2024
Get it write
Country Life UK

Get it write

Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution

time-read
6 mins  |
October 23, 2024
'Sloes hath ben my food'
Country Life UK

'Sloes hath ben my food'

A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright

time-read
3 mins  |
October 23, 2024
Souvenirs of greatness
Country Life UK

Souvenirs of greatness

FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.

time-read
3 mins  |
October 23, 2024
Plants for plants' sake
Country Life UK

Plants for plants' sake

The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson

time-read
7 mins  |
October 23, 2024
Capturing the castle
Country Life UK

Capturing the castle

Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker

time-read
6 mins  |
October 23, 2024
Nature's own cathedral
Country Life UK

Nature's own cathedral

Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods

time-read
5 mins  |
October 23, 2024
All that money could buy
Country Life UK

All that money could buy

A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages

time-read
8 mins  |
October 23, 2024
In with the old
Country Life UK

In with the old

Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery

time-read
5 mins  |
October 23, 2024