The story of a house

Reading Inheritance: the Story of Knole and the Sackvilles is a fascinating way to review British history through generations of the Sackville family living at Knole. Robert Sackville-West, the author and current resident of the house now owned by the National Trust, researched his topic very carefully and provides the facts starting in 1604. The book moves quickly from the 1st through 6th Earl of Dorset to the 1st through 3rd Duke of Dorset to the Dowager Duchess and her Descendants "The very name of Sackville. . . near extinction" (1799-1888). Knole was taken over by the National Trust in 1946 with family living in apartments or separate wings. Many inhabitants suffered depression, sometimes the result of dealing with primogeniture. It was very difficult for the wives to give their lives to a house that would never be theirs. The author had to make the decision of whether to move from a cottage to the "big house" (and its lack of privacy with 80,000 visitors a year) when he took over. Since I have not visited Knole, I especially enjoyed the photos of furniture, paintings and even the marble tomb in the family chapel.