Althorp

Daventry

Althorp is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in Daventry District, Northamptonshire, England of about 13,000 acres . By road it is about 6 miles northwest of the county town of Northampton and about 75 miles northwest of central London, situated between the villages of Great Brington and Harlestone. It has been held by the prominent aristocratic Spencer family for more than 500 years, and has been owned by Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer since 1992. It was also the home of Lady Diana Spencer from her parents' divorce until her marriage to Charles, Prince of Wales. Althorp is mentioned as a small hamlet in the Domesday Book as "Olletorp", and by 1377 it had become a village with a population of more than fifty people. By 1505 there were no longer any tenants living there, and in 1508, John Spencer purchased Althorp estate with the funds generated from his family's sheep-rearing business. Althorp became one of the prominent stately homes in England. The castle dates to 1688, replacing an earlier house that was once visited by Charles I. The Spencer family amassed an extensive art collection and other valuable household items. During the 18th century, the house became a major cultural hub in England, and parties were regularly held, attracting many prominent members of Great Britain's ruling class. George John, 2nd Earl Spencer, who owned Althorp between 1783 and his death in 1834, developed one of the largest private libraries in Europe at the castle, which grew to over 100,000 books by the 1830s. After falling on hard times, John Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer, known as the Red Earl, in 1892 sold much of the collection to Enriqueta Rylands, who was building the University of Manchester Library. Many of Althorp's furnishings were sold off during the twentieth century, and between 1975 and 1992 alone approximately 20% of the contents were auctioned. The house at Althorp was a "classically beautiful" red brick Tudor building, but its appearance was radically altered, starting in 1788, when the architect Henry Holland was commissioned to make extensive changes. Mathematical tiles were added to the exterior, encasing the brick, and four Corinthian pilasters were added to the front. The grand hall entrance to the house, Wootton Hall, was cited by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as "the noblest Georgian room in the county". The Great Dining Room in the east wing extension of the house was added in 1877 to designs by John Macvicar Anderson, its walls hung with faded, red damask silk. Despite its name, it is actually used as a ballroom. Numerous fireplaces and furnishings were brought to Althorp from Spencer House in London during the Blitz for safekeeping and still remain. The Picture Gallery stretches for 115 feet on the first floor of the west wing, and is one of the best remaining examples of the original Tudor oak woodwork and ambiance in the mansion. It has an extensive collection of portraits, including Anthony van Dyck's War and Peace, a John de Critz portrait of James I, a Mary Beale portrait of Charles II, and many others. Some £2 million was spent on redecorating the castle in the 1980s, during which time most of the religious paintings of Althorp were sold off. In total, the grounds of Althorp estate contain 28 listed buildings and structures, including nine planting stones. The former falconry, now a Grade I listed building, was built in 1613. Gardener's House is listed as a Grade II* listed building in its own right, as are the Grade II listed West and East Lodges. The mustard-yellow Grade II listed Stable Block, designed by architect Roger Morris with a Palladian influence, was ordered by Charles, Fifth Earl of Sutherland in the early 1730s. The French landscape architect André Le Nôtre was commissioned to lay out the park and grounds in the 1660s, and further alterations were made during the late 18th century under Henry Holland. Following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997, she was interred on a small island in the middle of the ornamental Round Oval lake. A Doric-style temple with Diana's name inscribed on top, situated across from the lake, is a tourist attraction during July and August when the house and estate are open to the public, although the exhibition centre, situated in the old stable block, closed permanently in 2013.

Northern Lighthouse Board

Edimburgo

The Northern Lighthouse Board is the general lighthouse authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man. It is a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas.

Assembly House

Norwich

The House of Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Barbados. It has 30 Members of Parliament , who are directly elected in single member constituencies using the simple-majority system for a term of five years. The House of Assembly sits roughly 40–45 days a year. The Barbadian House of Assembly chamber is located in the east-wing of The Public Buildings on Broad Street, in Bridgetown, Barbados. The Speaker of the House becomes the thirty-first member when there is a tie vote.

Norwich Guildhall

Norwich

Norwich Guildhall is a municipal building on Gaol Hill in the city of Norwich, United Kingdom. It is a Grade I listed building.

Nottinghamshire Archives

Nottingham

The Nottinghamshire Archives holds the archives for the county of Nottinghamshire. The archives are held at Castle Meadow Road, Nottingham, and run by Nottinghamshire County Council.

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club

Nottingham

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Nottinghamshire. The club's limited overs team is called the Notts Outlaws. The county club was founded in 1841, although teams had played first-class cricket under the Nottinghamshire name since 1835. The county club has always held first-class status. Nottinghamshire have competed in the County Championship since the official start of the competition in 1890 and have played in every top-level domestic cricket competition in England. The club plays most of its home games at the Trent Bridge cricket ground in West Bridgford, Nottingham, which is also a venue for Test matches. The club has played matches at numerous other venues in the county.

County Hall, Nottinghamshire

West Bridgford

Nottinghamshire County Hall is a large municipal building located on the south bank of the River Trent at West Bridgford in Rushcliffe, Nottinghamshire, England. It is the headquarters of Nottinghamshire County Council which is the upper tier local authority and has jurisdiction across the whole of Nottinghamshire except the City of Nottingham which is administered independently by the unitary authority of Nottingham City Council.

Nuneaton Museum & Art Gallery

Nuneaton y Bedworth

Nuneaton Museum & Art Gallery is set in the grounds of Riversley Park, Nuneaton, England, and has three galleries which house regularly changing temporary and touring exhibitions. There is a gallery dedicated to the writer George Eliot, together with two others focusing on local history and fine art. There is a small display of objects which belonged to the comedian Larry Grayson.The museum was paid for as a gift to Nuneaton from Edward Ferdinand Melly. The son of Charles Pierre Melly, Edward Melly was born on 7 July 1857, at Riversley, the family's house in Mossley Hill, Liverpool. He moved to Nuneaton to work as Manager of the Griff Colliery Company. In 1913 he offered to provide the money to build a museum and gallery in Riversley Park which he had already gifted to the town and had plans drawn up. The Museum & Art Gallery opened on Sunday, 1 April 1917. In 1941 a bombing raid resulted in Melly's death and significant damage to the building. Since many records were lost, knowledge of the origins of the museum's collection is now sometimes lacking. The gallery was not fully reopened until 1960.Nuneaton Museum and Art Gallery is open Tuesdays to Saturdays 10.30am to 4.30pm and Sundays 2pm to 4.30pm. The museum is closed Mondays but open on Bank Holiday Mondays 10.30am to 4.30pm.

Nunnington Hall

Ryedale

Nunnington Hall is a country house situated in the English county of North Yorkshire. The river Rye, which gives its name to the local area, Ryedale, runs past the house, flowing away from the village of Nunnington. A stone bridge over the river separates the grounds of the house from the village. Above, a ridge known as Caulkley's Bank lies between Nunnington and the Vale of York to the south. The Vale of Pickering and the North York Moors lie to the north and east. Nunnington Hall is owned, conserved and managed as a visitor attraction by the National Trust. The first Nunnington Hall was mentioned in the thirteenth century and the site has had many different owners. They include William Parr, Dr Robert Huicke, Richard Graham, 1st Viscount Preston, the Rutson family and the Fife family. The present building is a combination of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century work. Most of the building seen today was created during the 1680s, when Richard Graham, 1st Viscount Preston, was its owner.