No Need for a Cushion - Ducal Seats in England Quiz

Alnwick Castle was originally built in the 11th century by Ivo de Vesci, a Norman baron, who was given the land around the site by King William II, along with a barony. The castle passed through de Vesci's family until 1253, when the lands and titles were inherited by John de Vesci. As he was underage, his lands, including Alnwick, were put under the care of Antony Bek, who sold them to Henry de Percy, Baron Percy. It was the Percy family that began to expand Alnwick Castle; Henry de Percy began the work to turn the castle into a major fortress, which was continued by his son, also called Henry. Several existing features of the castle date from the period of the second Henry's time, which balanced the needs of defence and residence.

Henry Percy, the 4th Baron, was made Earl of Northumberland in 1377, while Hugh Percy was created Duke of Northumberland in 1766. The castle has remained in the hands of the Percy family ever since. Alnwick remains one of the Duke's residences, although the family occupy only part of it, with the rest open to the public during the year. Alnwick is the second largest occupied castle in England after Windsor, and is one of the most visited stately homes in the country. It has also been used extensively as a filming location, with several major motion pictures, most notably two of the "Harry Potter" films, having been shot there. In the castle's gardens there is also a "poison garden", installed in 2005, which contains various poisonous and intoxicating plants.

Arundel Castle in Sussex was originally built by Roger de Montgomery, a Norman baron who was granted both the land by King William I following the Norman Conquest. Following his death, Arundel passed to Adeliza of Louvain, the widow of Henry I, and her second husband William d'Aubigny, who was created Earl of Arundel by King Stephen, who , remaining in the d'Aubigny family until 1243 and the death of the 5th Earl. At that point, Arundel Castle passed into the possession of John FitzAlan, a grandson of the 3rd Earl through his mother. The castle remained in the FitzAlan family until 1580 when, upon the death of Henry FitzAlan, the 12th Earl, the male line became extinct. Both the title Earl of Arundel and the castle then passed, via Henry FitzAlan's daughter Mary, who married Thomas Howard, the 4th Duke of Norfolk, to her son, Philip.

Although Thomas Howard forfeited the Dukedom of Norfolk following his execution under Elizabeth I, his great-great grandson, also Thomas, had it restored following the restoration in 1660. Since then, Arundel has remained as the major and most famous residence of the Duke of Norfolk. Major remodelling was carried out on two separate occasions, first by the 11th Duke starting in 1787, and then in 1846 by the 13th Duke for a visit by Queen Victoria. More work was undertaken by the 15th Duke up to 1905, while the 17th Duke created a charitable trust to manage the castle, its restoration and maintenance. In addition to being a major tourist attraction, Arundel has also been used extensively as a filming location, often doubling for Windsor Castle, while it also has a 6,000 capacity cricket ground on its land which is regularly used as a home venue by Sussex County Cricket Club.

The manors of Great Badminton and Little Badminton were originally owned by the Boteler family when, in 1612, they were purchased by Edward Somerset, the 4th Earl of Worcester. This included a manor house that was modernised by the earl's third son, Sir Thomas Somerset, in the 1620s. The house became the family's principal seat when they were forced to move from Raglan Castle, which had been ruined during the Civil War, by which point the family had received the title Duke of Beaufort. The 3rd Duke began major reconstruction work on the house after his accession to the title, which saw his commission an extension of Sir Thomas Somerset's original building to create new domestic apartments, the erection of a new frontispiece on the north façade, and the reduction of the flanks of the house from five to three stories. The 4th Duke also undertook work to extend the house following his accession, which led to the house as it stands today.

Badminton House is perhaps most famous for its connection to the sport to which it gave its name, although whether the game was actually invented at the house, or if it was an existing game that was popularised at the house is unclear. Badminton has a second sporting connection in its hosting of the Badminton Horse Trials, an annual eventing competition that forms part of the so-called "Grand Slam of Eventing". While Badminton House remains the home of the Duke of Beaufort, both the house, as well as the park and gardens surrounding it, which totals around 52,000 acres, are open to the public, and have also been used as a regular filming location.

Belvoir (pronounced 'bee-ver') Castle in Leicestershire is in fact the third building on the site. The castle was originally built on land owned by Robert de Todeni, a Norman nobleman. The castle passed by inheritance into the d'Aubigny family, eventually coming into the possession of Isabel d'Aubigny and her husband, Robert de Ros, in the 13th century. De Ros gained control over Belvoir, which had previously been a royal manor, in 1257, and was allowed to begin fortifying the property a decade later. However, the old Norman castle was recorded as being in ruins by 1464 and, by 1528, it had passed out of the now extinct male de Ros line to be inherited by Thomas Manners, who was created Earl of Rutland, and who began building a new house on the site in the Tudor style, with stone taken from the former Croxton and Belvoir Abbeys.

The Tudor house was destroyed during the English Civil War as a result of the family's support for King Charles I, but in 1654 construction of a new house was begun by the 8th Earl that was completed in 1668. His son, the 9th Earl, was created Duke of Rutland in 1703, leading to Belvoir becoming a ducal residence. In 1799, Elizabeth Howard, the new wife of the 5th Duke, began the reconstruction of Belvoir in the Gothic Revival style, a massive project that, when it was almost completed in 1816, was ravaged by fire. As a result, the project was restarted and completed in 1832 creating the current faux castle. Today, both the castle and surrounding gardens form a major tourist attraction in the area, with the gardens also being the work of Elizabeth Howard. Belvoir is also a major filming location that has been used in many films and television shows.

Following his success during the War of Spanish Succession, John Churchill, having already been elevated as Earl of Marlborough, was made Duke of Marlborough in 1702, and was rewarded with the grant of the Manor of Woodstock in Oxfordshire, upon which a new country house would be built by the nation for him. The site was originally a hunting lodge that went by the name of the Palace of Woodstock. The remains of this building were demolished and removed to make way for the new building and its extensive gardens. Construction began in 1705, with both Marlborough and Queen Anne contributing to the cost. However, the cost of the project grew, and became a source of controversy, leading to the Queen ending her financial support in 1712. The Duke and his wife were exiled to Europe for three years at the same time, with work on the building resuming at the Duke's own expense upon their return.

Following the death of Marlborough in 1722, completion of Blenheim Palace became the main focus and ambition of his widow, to serve as a memorial to her husband. Although there is no official completion date, it is generally accepted to have been finished by the mid 1730s. Designed by Sir John Vanbrugh, Blenheim is in part family home, as it is still the home of the Duke of Marlborough; mausoleum, as John Churchill and his wife, plus several of their descendants, are buried in the vault beneath the palace's chapel; and national monument to Marlborough's victories, which include the Battle of Blenheim, which gave its name to the building. Blenheim today is one of the most popular attractions in the UK, with the park and extensive gardens alongside the house, while it has been used as a filming location in more films and television shows than any other English country house. It is also the only non-royal and non-episcopal residence in the UK to be named "palace".

Chatsworth House in Derbyshire sits on the east bank of the River Derwent, near the town of Bakewell. The land upon which the house is built was originally held by a man named Chetel, until it was listed in the Domesday Book as belonging to the King. From then until the 15th century it did not exist as a large estate, when it was bought by the Leche family. They enclosed the land and built a house on high ground, although the property was sold in 1549 to Sir William Cavendish, who at the time was the Treasurer of the King's Chamber. His wife, Bess of Hardwick, set about building a new house on the property, beginning in 1553; although her husband died in 1557, she remained to complete the work by the 1560s with her next husband. Upon her death in 1608, it passed to her son, Henry, who then sold the estate to his brother, William Cavendish, the Earl of Devonshire.

The Elizabethan house remained until the end of the 17th century, when work to rebuild it was begun by the 4th Earl, who had also been made the 1st Duke of Devonshire. Although only intending to rebuild one side of the house, he ended up building major new parts on all four sides, completing the work just before he died in 1707. The 4th Duke also made some major changes, altering the route of approach to the house. However, the next major reconstruction came with the 6th Duke on the 19th century, building a new north wing that included space for his art collection and extensive library of books, as well as facilities for entertaining. Today, Chatsworth, although remaining as the home of the Duke of Devonshire, is actually owned by a dedicated trust on behalf of the family, with the house and gardens open to the public. In addition, Chatsworth remains at the heart of a 35,000 acre agricultural estate, while it has also been used extensively as a filming location.

The area upon which Eaton Hall in Cheshire stands has been owned by the Grosvenor family since the 15th century, with evidence of a moated house on the site. The first substantial house built for Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet, who succeeded his father in 1665. The work started in 1675, with an engraving from the 1680s showing that it was a three storey square structure, with a portico and nine bays on the front. This engraving also shows the older 15th century moated house. The building was in need of significant renovation by the start of the 19th century, which led to Robert Grosvenor, the 1st Marquess of Westminster, planning a significant rebuild that began in 1803, which saw the original house encompassed in a new Gothic exterior, with new wings added and major improvements to the interiors. The 3rd Marquess, who succeeded in 1869 and was subsequently made the 1st Duke of Westminster, then planned another major rebuild, beginning in 1870, that saw again parts of the previous house retained and others replaced, with the major part being a new private wing for the Duke's family.

By 1960, the building was in need of major repair, and so the 5th Duke had the main part of the house demolished and a new one erected, construction of which began in 1971 and lasted until 1974. However, this new building was not felt to be sympathetic to its surroundings, and led to it being recased to make it look more like a French chateau, beginning in 1989 and lasting two years. Eaton Hall sits in an estate of more than 10,000 acres, with 50 acres of formal gardens and another 1,200 of parkland. The house is one of the few major country seats that is not open to the public, and remains as a family residence, although the gardens are open to the public on some days during the year.

Euston Hall is located in the village of Euston in Suffolk. The village itself appears in the Domesday Book as belonging to Bury St Edmonds Abbey, although by the 16th century it had passed into the hands of the Rookwood family following the dissolution of the monasteries. The estate was in ruin by the mid 1660s when it was purchased by Henry Bennett, the Earl of Arlington, who was Secretary of State to King Charles II. He proceeded to build a new house on the site in the French style, which was visited by the King in 1671. The following year, the King arranged the marriage of Henry FitzRoy, one of his illegitimate sons, to the Earl's daughter Isabella. The King created his son Duke of Grafton in 1675, and arranged a second wedding ceremony for 1679, by which time Isabella had reached the age of twelve. The Duke and Duchess of Grafton inherited Euston Hall in 1685.

In 1750, the 2nd Duke, having inherited the house, elected to undertake remodelling - domes were replaced with pyramid roofs, with part of the facade refaced. The house remained like this until 1902, when a major fire destroyed the south and west wings of the building. Although it was rebuilt on the same plan, these parts of the house were eventually demolished by the 10th Duke in 1952. Euston Hall has a significant area of parkland surrounding it, initially designed by John Evelyn. The current park is the work of William Kent from 1738, while Capability Brown also undertook work intermittently on the area until his death in 1783. Unlike other country houses, Euston Hall's parkland is relatively modest, encompassing 110 acres, with another 65 acres of pleasure grounds.

Goodwood House in Sussex has a relatively recent history compared to other country houses, dating from around 1600. The house was purchased by Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond, in 1697, following which two new wings, to the north and south, were added. The construction of the two wings leads to speculation that a plan existed to expand the house into what would have been a unique octagonal layout. The 3rd Duke subsequently added a stable block for horses in 1757, and a set of kennels for the hounds that were used for hunting, in 1787. He also designed a racecourse for the estate that was established in 1802.

Today, while Goodwood House remains as the seat of the Duke of Richmond, the estate is a major centre for various sports; not only is Goodwood Racecourse one of the country's major tracks, and hosts the annual meeting generally referred to as "Glorious Goodwood" in July and August each year, which is one of the highlights of the flat racing calendar. Chichester Airport, which is located on the estate, is the location of Goodwood Circuit, a motor racing venue, which hosts the annual Goodwood Revival motor racing meeting, with the Goodwood Festival of Speed also hosted on the estate. In addition, the headquarters of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is located on the estate. Goodwood also plays host to a pair of golf courses and a cricket club, while the estate also supports a 1600 acre organic farm.

Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire was originally founded as a Cistercian Abbey in 1145, and remained so until the reign of Henry VIII and the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Following the abolition of the religious community, the site was turned over to John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford, in 1547, who proceeded to demolish the religious buildings and erect a new house on the site. This house was retained until 1744, when the 4th Duke of Bedford (the title Duke of Bedford had been awarded to the 5th Earl in 1694) commissioned architects Henry Holland and Henry Flitcroft to demolish the old house and build a new one. As a keen cricketer and patron of the game, the 4th Duke also had a cricket ground built on the grounds of Woburn, at which he established his own cricket club.

Following the Second World War, Woburn Abbey was in poor condition, while the 13th Duke needed to pay several million pounds in death duties. As a result, he elected to open Woburn Abbey to the public. Woburn quickly became a popular attraction, which led to the Duke installing other attractions on the estate, which included a safari park in 1970. He also planned to partner with the owners of Madame Tussauds and create a theme park on the estate - these negotiations fell through and led to the Tussauds Group buying Alton Towers instead. Woburn Abbey remains a major tourist attraction, and has also been used as a filming location in many films and TV shows.