INTRODUCTION

by
The Hon. Henry Lytton Cobbold

elcome to our much loved family home, Knebworth House, in Hertfordshire, England. The Lyttons, my grandmother's family, have lived here for 500 years. Sir Robert Lytton fought with Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, after which he served the new King Henry VII in London and bought Knebworth in 1490.

nebworth is now known the world over for our huge open-air rock concerts - but not everyone is aware of its history and romance. Knebworth House is unique - originally a red-brick Tudor manor house, it was transformed in 1843 into the gothic fantasy we see today, with turrets, griffins and gargoyles. I certainly have never seen another house like it. Come inside and you will find it retains the warmth and atmosphere of its mediaeval origin.

nebworth owes its character to Edward Bulwer-Lytton, my great-great-great-grandfather, who was author, poet, dramatist and statesman. His books (like "The Last Days of Pompeii") were best sellers in their day. He was one of the first to recognise the genius of Charles Dickens and helped him on his way. Dickens was a frequent visitor and acted in Private Theatricals at Knebworth in 1850.

dward Bulwer-Lytton's son, Robert, a diplomat, was Viceroy of India at the height of the British Raj. He proclaimed Queen Victoria Empress of India at the great Delhi Durbar of 1877. He died as British Ambassador to France and was given the unprecedented honour of a public funeral in Paris.

inston Churchill was another regular visitor and his painting of the Banqueting Hall hangs in the room where he painted it.

e have a strong family tradition of battling for women's rights. Three generations of the family played a part in this historic struggle, the best known of which is my great-great- aunt, Lady Constance Lytton, the suffragette.

ir Edwin Lutyens, the architect and builder of New Delhi, married into the family and, with my great-grandmother, redesigned much of the interior of the house and laid out the present gardens. Gertrude Jekyll designed the herb garden. We have worked hard restoring the gardens in recent years and now I am really proud of them.

f you bring the children to the playground or come to one of our many events, I hope you will also have time to visit the gardens and the house. There is something for all ages - the maze in the garden, the children's room in the house.

e look forward to seeing you. If you are coming to a function, conference, wedding or other event in the House or in the Barns or the grounds, I hope you will have an enjoyable visit and take away many happy memories of Knebworth.

nce again, welcome to Knebworth. Thank you for sharing our home - its past, its present and its future.

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