ISBN: 0300 10733 1
The first book in the projected three volume revision of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (1967). The beguiling architecture of the many towns, villages and resorts is explored in full, as are the charming villas and cottages ornés dotted around the spectacular coasts. But the Island also boasts architecture on the grandest scale: the powerful fortress of Carisbrooke Castle, with its evocative Saxon foundations; the rich and enigmatic Baroque mansion of Appuldurcombe; Osborne House, the domestic paradise of Victoria and Albert, with its formal gardens; and the extraordinary Quarr Abbey, a masterpiece of Expressionist brick by the French monk and architect Dom Paul Bellot. Other attractions include Roman villas, sturdy manor houses, powerful coastal defences built for Henry VIII (and reinforced under Queen Victoria), and the retreats of Tennyson and other Victorian notables, not to mention a well-established tradition of innovative modern design.
