The Power and the Glory: Life in the English Country House Before the Great War

by Adrian Tinniswood

A spirited history of the English country house in its golden age  For generations, the great palaces of Britain were home to living histories, noble families that had reigned for centuries. But by the end of the nineteenth century, members of elite society found themselves, for the first time, in the company of arrivistes. Their new neighbors—from chorus girls to millionaire greengrocers to guano impresarios—lacked lineage and were unencumbered by the weight of tradition.    In The Power and the Glory, historian Adrian Tinniswood reconstructs life in the country house during its golden age before the Great War, when Britain ruled over a quarter of the earth’s population and its stately homes were at their most opulent. But change was on the the landed classes were being forced to grapple not only with new neighbors, but also with new social norms and expectations.     An exuberant story, The Power and the Glory offers a delicious, captivating, and often scandalous history of the British country house. 

Genres: History, Nonfiction, British Literature, Audiobook

448 pages, Hardcover

Published November 12, 2024

About the author

Adrian John Tinniswood OBE FSA (born 11 October 1954) is an English writer and historian. He is currently Professor of English Social History at the University of Buckingham.

Tinniswood studied English and Philosophy at Southampton University and was awarded an MPhil at Leicester University.

Tinniswood has often acted as a consultant to the National Trust, and has lectured at several universities including the University of Oxford and the University of California, Berkeley.

He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).

Reviews

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following his entertaining books on life in the English country house between the wars (The Long Weekend) and their mixed fortunes in the years after the Second World War (Noble Ambitions), Adrian Tinniswood here takes the story back to the late Victorian and Edwardian period. These were indeed the years of the power and the glory of the great houses, which seemed to their owners to be the very embodiment of wealth, success and stability. Only the most far-sighted among them could sense the first gentle breezes that were to presage the winds of change that the twentieth century would bring. Tinniswood is particularly fascinating on the changing nature of the owners of big houses in this period; no longer were they solely the preserve of the landed aristocracy but were attracting a much more diverse range of owners and tenants, from self-made industrialists with fortunes made in everything from paint to armaments and guano to textiles to Jewish financiers, Indian maharajahs, Irish brewers, American millionaires and others.
Tinniswood is the master of the telling anecdote, and his narrative is enlivened throughout by the personal stories of a rich cast of characters, funny, shocking, tragic and extraordinary by turns. He’s also particularly fascinating on the practicalities of country house life: the experiences of the vast crew of servants and staff who kept the household and garden going, the technical innovations in power, sanitation and communications that some houses were quicker to adopt than others, the ever present risk of fire and burglary and the role the big house played in the local community.

[Daniel Myatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a very enjoyable read but less enthralling than the other two country house history I've read from this author.

I found it a little more filled with facts and figures rather than gossip and details (does that make sense) and I found the houses detailed are often the same ones in each chapter where as before these books have opened up whole new country house names to me chapter after chapter.

It is still a wonderfully detailed account of life above and below stairs in Victorian Britain.

[Mariama Thorlu-Bangura · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Power and Glory is described as being a book about life in the English country house prior to WWI. The old money families and the new upstarts coexisting together in what has traditionally been the domain of Britain's landed gentry/aristocracy. Sounds interesting, doesn't it? Unfortunately the interest lasts for only so long, before the book just seems like one extremely long gossip column. I got tired one third of the way through. I guess I finally have to accept this particular author just isn't my cup of tea.

Thanks to NetGalley and Basic Books for access to this arc, which I voluntarily read (or tried to). All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book from this author

[Michelle Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a North American who’s fairly obsessed with history, European history has held my attention in an incomparable way. The “English Country House” wasn’t something I grew up learning about, but has become a topic of much interest to me. Therefore, I was thankful to receive a copy of The Power and the Glory: Life in the English Country House Before the Great War and was very impressed by Mr Tinniswood’s writing talent and ability to make nonfiction read more like fiction, and engaging fiction at that.

I enjoyed my reading of this and learned a lot - it was my second time reading the author’s work and I will definitely be reading more.

Recommended to readers of English history, royal history, and/or classics from the time.



Thank you to Basic Books and NetGalley for the DRC

[Diana Cheal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some parts I loved and were so fascinating, other parts felt like they were filling space. The parts that were filling space felt less about the country house itself. Would have loved to have gone into more detail on certain houses.
It’s clearly researched and draws on a lot of information but I just didn’t love it.

[Mary Fagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Power and the Glory by Adrian Tinniswood offers a fascinating glimpse into English country homes and the lives of the wealthy within. Before the Great War, old money and nouveau riche meant country homes and high society. At first country homes were primarily owned by the British but 1900 brought changes such as for sale advertisements pointedly appealing to Americans. Jewish bankers and Indian rinces were also permitted into this exclusive realm. But that didn't mean foreigners were accepted as readily as their money.

Not only are specific homes described but also land laws, gardens, moats, ghosts, burglary, the invention of lawn mowers, the importance of keeping up appearances and leading by example (including Christian worship and philanthropy), and the benefits of being a servant in a country home.

Though classified as Art & Photography, there were no photographs in my digital copy. I have had the pleasure of visiting many such homes on my travels so could easily envision them when reading but still enjoy ogling photographs of atmospheric homes and gardens. The book is wonderfully written and clearly thoroughly researched and will appeal to those like myself besotted with this era. Country homes appeal to my passion for history and curiosity with snippets of unattainable mystery and intrigue. Great fun!

My sincere thank you to Basic Books and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this captivating book.

[Carlton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gossipy, anecdotal and readable. Tinniswood is very good at evoking the character of the time, for example when writing about supposed haunted houses, he writes:
Supernatural sightings tapped into a strain in the late Victorian psyche which reacted against the rationalism of the age, which, hearing the melancholy, long, withdrawing roar of the sea of faith, reached for any evidence that death was not the end.
I love the referencing of Matthew Arnold’s Dover Beach.

Unfortunately the book suffers from jumping around from chapter to chapter, providing interesting details about country houses and their owners, but in a seemingly haphazard fashion. The reader is treated to chapters on the nouveau riche, Americans, Jews (and “others” who are equated with Jews as they were foreigners), Country Life magazine, haunted (“headless history”) houses and on & on. Very engaging and informative, but leaving me with the impression that I was reading a series of interesting magazine articles, rather than a book.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars Good book to pick up and down. Basically just read a chapter at a time over a month or so. Liked the different subjects in each chapter, was astounded by how many houses burned down and the arrangements made (or not) for fighting the fires. And the chapter on the Shooting Parties made me kind of sick. I would like to know what happened to the thousands of birds shot each season, this was before refrigeration was common, were they all eaten? Also I would have enjoyed a more coffee table size book with more pictures. Spend a lot on time on my phone goggling images of the houses. Overall an interesting read.

[Justin Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure what the audience for this is meant to be, but it's perfectly enjoyable reading--not too demanding, also not condescending. You'll note that some people complain that there isn't enough gossip, while others complain that it's mostly gossip. I thought there was a nice amount of gossip, as well as of architectural history and criticism, social history, and enjoyable little essays on everything from the adoption of the automobile to the Prince's peccadilloes.

[Mrs. Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in my Edwardian era. This was fantastic and it got even better towards the end. It started out a bit dry. I needed a computer nearby so I could look up images of all the houses and people described. I would love more photos included in the book! But then it got into detail about the actual people-the servants, the squires, etc, and it was just fascinating and I want to read more!

[Emma Dargue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good introduction to how the country house set worked from regency times to just after the first World War. Interesting facts I had heard about some of the families and stories in this book but overall a very enjoyable and informative book.

[Susan Longo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great title -I think that this was very well researched with alot of material but not all was satisfying based on the way it was organized. I did learn alot about some Country Houses I had never heard of in the UK -

[Timc · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well researched. The book provided me with a much better understanding of the mindset of the English autocracy continuing to this day.... along with an improved disdain.

[Lexi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Biggus · Rating 2 out of 5]

It doesn't work as a 'book'. It is like a series of Reader's Digest features. Interesting enough in themselves, but as a book, it just doesn't work.

[Candy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting history lesson on the landed families coupled with "new money", this was a good book to read to expand previous knowledge on this topic as it delved into more nitty gritty details.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, quite detailed but well-organized. He tells lively stories about the houses and their inhabitants so that the book doesn’t get dull.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Sally Slade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating

[Ben Lucas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Camelot tis a silly place

[Jade M-G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not really much of a non-fiction reader, but The Power and the Glory grabbed my attention with its great cover and I’m so glad I gave it a try. Following the history of British country houses and estates, this book was a really good mix of factual and contextual stories, that as it went along felt much more anecdotal, which I really enjoyed. By the end I felt like I was learning some pretty juicy Victorian and Edwardian gossip which kept me interested to the end. The book jumps around a lot in terms of chronology, but instead focuses on providing context for each topic. Thoroughly enjoyable, I’ve already recommended to friends.

[Johannes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I've been choosing wrong books for a while but as per others comments I'm not the only thinking this book has ups and downs, and I had indeed struggled on the "downs" parts.

I do agree it should have ended perhaps two chapters sooner than it did, I would as far as to suggest some editing was desperately needed here, and for a book so focused on houses, the lack of pictures/photos, even in black and white felt missing when you are talking about architecture feats, both extant, and gone due to demolitions. All in all, it is a 2,5 more close to a 2/5 should you ask me.

[Gareth Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adrian Tinniswood seems to have covered all aspects of country houses in the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. It’s an interesting, well-structured book with plenty of colour.