MansionFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaFor other uses, seeMansion (disambiguation).This articleneeds additional citations forverification.Please helpimprove this articlebyadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(January 2010)

Gelbensande Manor, an 1885Grnderzeitstyle mansion built for hunting, nearRostock, Germany.Amansionis a large dwellinghouse.The word itself derives (throughOld French) from theLatinwordmansio"dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verbmanere"to dwell". TheEnglishword "manse" originally defined a property large enough for the parish priest to maintain himself, but a mansion is no longer self-sustaining in this way (compare a Roman or medievalvilla). 'Manor' comes from the same rootterritorial holdings granted to a lord who wouldremaintherehence it is easy to see how the word 'Mansion' came to have its meaning.Contents[hide] 1History 219th century development 3Latin America 4The "modern" mansion 5See also 6References 7External linksHistory[edit]Within anancient Romancity, patriciandwellingsmight be very extensive, and luxurious. Such mansions on one hill inRomebecame so extensive that the termpalatialwas actually derived from the namePalatine hilland is the etymological origin of "palace".[1]

Renaissancevillassuch asVilla RotondanearVicenzawere an inspiration for many later mansions, especially during theindustrialisation.Following the fall of Rome the practice of building unfortified villas ceased. Today, the oldest inhabited mansions around the world usually began their existence as fortifiedcastlesin themiddle ages. As social conditions slowly changed and stabilisedfortificationswere able to be reduced, and over the centuries gave way to comfort. It became fashionable and possible for homes to be beautiful rather than grim and forbidding allowing for the development of the modern mansion.In British English amansion blockrefers to a block of flats orapartmentsdesigned for the appearance of grandeur. In many parts of Asia, including Hong Kong and Japan, the wordmansionalso refers to a block of apartments.In Europe, from the 15th century onwards, a combination of politics and advancements in modern weaponry negated the need for the aristocracy to live in fortified castles. As a result many were transformed into mansions without defences or demolished and rebuilt in a more modern, undefended style. Due to intermarriage and primogeniture inheritance amongst the aristocracy, it became common for one noble to often own several country houses. These would be visited rotationally throughout the year as their owner pursued the social and sporting circuit from country home to country home.[2]Many owners of a country house would also own a town mansion in their country's capital city. These town mansions were referred to as 'houses' in London, hotels in Paris and palaces in most European cities elsewhere. It might be noted that sometimes the house of a clergyman was called a "mansion house" (e.g.by the Revd James Blair, Commissary in Virginia for the Bishop of London, 1689-1745, a term related to the word "manse" commonly used in the Church of Scotland and in Non-Conformist churches. H.G.Herklots, The Church of England and the American Episcopal Church).

Harlaxton Manor, England, a 19th-century meeting of Renaissance, Tudor and Gothic architecture producedJacobethan- a popular form ofhistoricistmansion architecture.As the 16th century progressed, and Renaissance styles of architecture slowly spread across Europe, the last vestiges of castle architecture and life changed; the central points of these great house, great halls, became redundant as owners wished to live separately from their servants, and no longer ate with them in a Great Hall. All evidence and odours of cooking and staff were banished from the principal parts of the house into distant wings, while the owners began to live in airy rooms, above the ground floor, with privacy from their servants, who were now confined, unless required, to their specifically delegated areasoften the ground and uppermost attic floors. This was a period of great social change, as the educated prided themselves on enlightenment.[3]The uses of these edifices paralleled that of the Roman villas. It was vital for powerful people and families to keep in social contact with each other as they were the primary moulders of society. The rounds of visits and entertainments were an essential part of the societal process, as painted in the novels ofJane Austen. State business was often discussed and determined in informal settings. Times of revolution reversed this value. During July/August 1789 a significant number of French country mansions (chateaux) were destroyed by the rural population as part of theGreat Fear- a symbolic rejection of the feudal rights and restraints in effect under theancient rgime.[4]UntilWorld War Iit was not unusual for a moderately sized mansion inEnglandsuch asClivedento have an indoor staff of 20 and an outside staff of the same size[citation needed], and inducalmansions such asChatsworth Housethe numbers could be far higher. In the great houses of Italy, the number of retainers was often even greater than in England; whole families plus extended relations would often inhabit warrens of rooms in basements and attics. It is doubtful that a 19th-centuryMarchesawould even know the exact number of individuals who served her. MostEuropeanmansions were also the hub of vastestates. A true estate (the medieval villa, Frenchville) always contains at least one completevillageand itschurch. Large estates such as that ofWoburn Abbeyhave several villages attached.