On our last trip to Northumberland we had a day out at Cragside which is described as the world's first smart home. It was built by William Armstrong who was an engineer who built a fortune around all sorts of projects including bridges, bug guns and warships.
The house is part of a vast estate spread over some hills and valleys, much of which is forest. It is now owned by the National Trust and as members we got in for free. Armstrong's family struggled to keep up with the costs after his death, but they still own nearby Bamburgh Castle that we have previously visited.
When we arrived we were told that we could explore the six mile carriage drive that loops around the estate. It passes through a courtyard in the house as there is a cliff on one side and a valley on the other. The house is only about 150 years old, but uses older styles.
The old stable block now houses a cafe.
Next to the stables is one of several artificial lakes that feed the hydroelectric generators that powered the house. This was the first home to do that. There are also water-powered pumps to get water up to the house.
A river runs down the valley where you have a great view of the house. That splendid bridge leads to the formal garden. Apparently the house was used in one of the Jurassic World movies.
This is a nice example of a grand English garden with neat flower beds. The greenhouses contain large fruit trees in pots that can be turned so all the fruit gets the sun. You do need to be fairly fit to get around the place as there are lots of stone steps.
The kitchen had some gadgets like water-power spits to turn the meat by the fire and an early dishwasher. When it was built even electric lights were a novelty. Below the kitchen was a room where you could see the mechanism for the elevator, also powered by water.
The house has its own spa with hot and cold rooms plus plunge pools.
A lot of the rooms are not as grand as you will see in some stately homes. It was a family home, but a big one. The bedrooms are nice, but not like those we have seen in some palaces. They would have had a lot of staff to run the place.
At the top of the house is the entertaining space. The gallery has lots of art and a huge collection of seashells.
After the gallery you enter the hall where royalty were entertained. The fireplace is ten tons of Italian marble. Beyond that is a cosy billiard room with heated seats where the gentlemen would go for a drink. I think I read that William was not keen on smoking, so they may not have had cigars.
We have been to plenty of big houses, but this was something special. It shows what you can do with vast wealth.
When we were leaving there were some emergency vehicles near the exit. From what we could see a vehicle could have gone through a fence and down the ravine, but we could not stop to see more and I have not found any news articles about it. I hope whoever it was is okay.
Now that's an interesting place. It does look much older than 150 years but the age of it fits in totally with what was going on with steam and water power in general at that time. I wonder why they designed it to look older though? You'd have thought given all the new innovations they would have made it look modern.
If you look at Victorian buildings they can be similar to this with the Arts and Crafts movement being a big influence. People still build 'mock Tudor' homes.
It was well worth a visit. There are walks around the grounds that we did not have time for.
!LUV
Must have been an amazing home to live in at the time 🏠🏰
Parts of it did feel like a more regular home, but then you would see something grand. You'd have to be rich to keep it all running.
I have seen this house on a number of BBC shows from Countryfile to Antiques Roadshow. Want to go there!
It's a good one. It's a nice mix with the house, gardens and the engineering.
Adding it to my list of further away places to go and explore. Bamburgh Castle is another place I’m itching to visit.
So many places.
Nice to know that a smart house doesn't need to be modernism. Victorian or Edwardian work just as fine
Electric lights, a dishwasher and an elevator would have seemed modern to their guests. I wonder how much the early light bulbs cost.
Yes, the age of scientific wonder. Sometimes I envy them all the hope that technology would give them back then.
@steevc, I paid out 2.601 HIVE and 0.000 HBD to reward 12 comments in this discussion thread.
Such a beautiful place! I especially love the photo from the valley with the river view and the woods. I’ve always liked old wooden and stone houses. lots of details in the house, truly work of a great engineer.
Wow, that is really impressive! I love the old styles even though it is a bit newer and all of the "tech" that made it kind of self sustaining is awesome.
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There are so many places people should visit but unfortunately, never do. Sometimes it is sitting in front of TV, sometimes no money for traveling but mostly it is laziness to move out from the comfort zone...
Great post, btw... :)
Cheers. We have friends up that way so are gradually exploring the area. There's so much we haven't seen in the UK. I don't mind traveling, but I can be happy at home too. I need my music stuff.
A pretty historic architecture! William Armstrong was such a visionary man who was ahead of his peers and built the first smart home!! Pretty awesome! Sorry to hear that his family could not keep the smart home under their possession due to high maintenance costs!
Thanks for giving us the photographic tour of the house!
!BBH
Such elegance—in ancient times, they had very talented interior designers.
Not so ancient really.