Chatsworth House

Chatsworth House
The River Derwent, Bridge and House at Chatsworth
Location within Derbyshire
General information
Architectural style	English Baroque, Italianate
Location	near Bakewell, Derbyshire
Country	England
Coordinates	53°13′40″N 1°36′36″W / 53.22778°N 1.61000°W / 53.22778; -1.61000
Elevation	125 m (410 ft)
Construction started	1553
Completed	1560s
Owner	Trustees of the Chatsworth Settlement, who lease the house to the Chatsworth House Trust.
Design and construction
Architect	William Talman Thomas Archer Jeffry Wyattville Joseph Paxton James Paine
Website
www.chatsworth.org

Chatsworth House (/ˈtʃætswɜːrθ/) is a stately home in Derbyshire, England. It is in the Derbyshire Dales, about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north-east of Bakewell and 9 miles (14 km) west of Chesterfield (SK260700). It is the seat of the Duke of Devonshire and has been home to the Cavendish family since 1549.

Standing on the east bank of the River Derwent, Chatsworth looks across to the low hills that divide the Derwent and Wye valleys. The house, set in expansive parkland and backed by wooded, rocky hills rising to heather moorland, contains an important collection of paintings, furniture, Old Master drawings, neoclassical sculptures, books and other artefacts. Chatsworth has been selected as the United Kingdom's favourite country house several times.

The name 'Chatsworth' is a corruption of Chetel's-worth, meaning "the Court of Chetel". In the reign of Edward the Confessor a man of Norse origin named Chetel held lands jointly with a Saxon named Leotnoth in three townships: Ednesoure to the west of the Derwent, and Langoleie and Chetesuorde to the east. Chetel was deposed after the Norman Conquest and in the Domesday Book the Manor of Chetesuorde is listed as the property of the Crown in the custody of William de Peverel. Chatsworth ceased to be a large estate, until the 15th century when it was acquired by the Leche family who owned property nearby. They enclosed the first park at Chatsworth and built a house on the high ground in what is now the south-eastern part of the garden. In 1549 they sold all their property in the area to Sir William Cavendish, Treasurer of the King's Chamber and the husband of Bess of Hardwick, who had persuaded him to sell his property in Suffolk and settle in her native county.