Dress Like A Duchess

A new exhibition at Chatsworth celebrates the style and fashion of some of its most glamorous residents.

- Diana Woolf

The Duke of Devonshire recently described his family home, Chatsworth House, as “a real show-off house,” adding, “The first Duke wanted everyone to know how successful he was, how rich he was, how important he was.” Centuries later, Chatsworth still impresses through its sheer scale (175 rooms, 17 staircases and 1.3 acres of roof were totted up in 1986), and astonishing art and antiques collection.

Chatsworth was built by Sir William Cavendish in 1552, although little of this first Tudor house remains after the first Duke of Devonshire ordered an ambitious 17th-century remodelling project to create a Baroque palace worthy of his new ducal title.

Today, it is still the Cavendish family home and this year a new exhibition, House Style (25 March-22 October), goes in search of some the house’s most glamorous former residents. Taking fashion as its theme, the curators have turned the spotlight on famous Cavendish women such as Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, who inspired the film The Duchess starring Keira Knightley. On display will be Gainsborough’s portrait of the Duchess, who was described as a “phenomenon” by her contemporary, art historian and Whig politician Horace Walpole.