Portrait of a Patron

Remembered by history as a man of extravagant bad taste, this book reassesses the reputation of James Brydges, first Duke of Chandos (1674-1744). Through a close examination of the documentary sources and contemporary accounts a picture is instead created of an influential figure at the centre of a web of patronage, a builder of a celebrated house and supporter of public architectural projects, who played a leading role in establishing a taste for Palladianism in England which was to define the Georgian period.