Montacute House – a masterpiece of late Elizabethan architecture

Posted in Architecture, Historical articles on Friday, 27 April 2012

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This edited article about Montacute House originally appeared in Look and Learn issue number 695 published on 10 May 1975.

Montacute House, picture, image, illustration

The East facade of Montacute House

If you are spending a holiday in this area of Somerset, this splendid country mansion 5 miles from Yeovil, is well worth a visit. It has a magnificent frontage and is built of the local Ham Hill stone. It dates from about the year 1595, and is now the property of the National Trust.

It was erected for Sir Edward Phelips, a West Country lawyer, speaker of the House of Commons and Master of the Rolls during the reign of James I. It is obvious from even a cursory glance that no expense has been spared on the house and surroundings.

Outside the beautiful oriel windows, the open balustraded parapets which have statues of the Nine Worthies carved on them, are of unusual interest. The interior is fascinating because it retains much contemporary decoration. Heraldic glass, plaster work and panelling and a fine collection of tapestries, paintings and furniture are sights worth seeing.

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