Famous Houses and Literary Shrines of London

Famous Houses and Literary Shrines of London

Nothing could well be deader or emptier than an unoccupied house of whose former inhabitants we have no knowledge; and it is impossible to take a real interest in a house now occupied by strangers, even though it was aforetime the residence of some famous man, unless we are acquainted with that mans personality, and know what he thought and did and said whilst he was living there. I have attempted to do little more than supply that information here as the complement of my brothers drawings, and to this end have been less concerned to give my own descriptions and opinions than to bring together opinions and descriptions that were written by such famous residents themselves or by guests and visitors who saw and knew them. As far as possible I have quoted from contemporary Diaries and Memoirs, especially from letters that were written in or to these houses, or from Journals that their tenants kept whilst they dwelt there, supplementing all this with a narrative of incidents and events that might help to recreate the life and recapture the atmosphere that belonged to such places in the days that have made them memorable. Whenever I have adventured into[Pg vi] any general biography, or expressed any personal opinion, it has been merely with the object of adding so much of history and character as would serve to fill in the outline of a mans portrait, give it a sufficient fulness and colour of life, and throw into clear relief the space of time that he passed in some particular house that can still be seen in a London street. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 44269
Author: Adcock, Arthur St. John
Release Date: Nov 24, 2013
Format: eBook
Language: English

Contributors

Illustrator: Adcock, Frederick