Castle Howard

Castle Howard is defined by a massive central dome that rises above the North Yorkshire landscape. Despite its name, this is not a medieval fortification but an English Baroque palace, commissioned in sixteen ninety-nine by the third Earl of Carlisle. The Earl broke from convention by hiring a dramatist named Sir John Vanbrugh, who had never designed a building before, to create a residence that would serve as a private monument to his family. Vanbrugh collaborated with the architect Nicholas Hawksmoor to produce a design that unfolded over more than a century of construction.