RAMSBURY MANOR, WILTSHIRE 95 



simple in the extreme, but its excellent proportions give it 

 dignity and charm. 



It must surely have been the old house to which the epithet 

 " vile " was applied by the charming Dorothy Osborne in one of 

 her letters to her future husband, Sir William Temple. The 

 elder Sir Justinian, forty-two years old and a widower, was a 

 persistent but unwelcome suitor of Dorothy's, just about the 

 time when he altered his house. He was esteemed, according 

 to a biographer, one of the most accomplished persons of the 

 time, and, doubtless, it was in that capacity that he employed 

 the hardly less accomplished Webb. But Dorothy put a 

 different reading on his character, and considered him a self- 

 conceited, learned coxcomb. Her letter, wherein she speaks of 

 " a vile house he has in Northamptonshire," is assigned to 

 January 1653, so it is just possible that during the course of his 

 wooing she may have indicated her opinion of his home, and 

 thus have been an unintentional agent in its improvement. 



Ramsbury, in Wiltshire, is another house attributed to Webb, 1 

 but no date is given in connection with it. Its admirable propor- 

 tion and simplicity of detail ally it with other work of his 

 (Fig. 53). Like Thorpe Hall it is a simple oblong in ^plan, but 

 the front and side are broken by slight projections which give the 

 opportunity of breaking the roof with pediments as well as with 

 the customary dormers. The effect depends primarily upon the 

 spacing of the windows, the extent of roof in relation to the 

 walls, and the bold cornice at the eaves. The detail is refined, 

 and a welcome change from uniformity of treatment is afforded 

 by the introduction of twin doorways in the middle of the 

 shorter front. The ground floor is kept up above the ground, as 

 was customary with Webb, and the servants are placed in the 

 basement. The drawbacks of this disposition are less than 

 would appear from the front view, as the ground at the other 

 end is so much lower that the basement floor is on the same 

 level with it, and there is easy access from the kitchen depart- 

 ment to the outbuildings which are grouped some distance away 

 on the lower level. 



The detail inside is not of striking interest ; much of it looks 

 rather later than Webb's time, especially the ceiling (Fig. 54) ; 

 but the way in which the cupola, which is almost buried between 



1 Neal, in his " Seats," says it was designed by Webb ; and although he 

 quotes no authority he must have had some reason for the statement. 



