Lancaster House, Georgian mansion in Westminster, England
Lancaster House is a Georgian mansion in the City of Westminster district, built following neoclassical principles. Inside, several grand rooms follow one another, their walls decorated with stucco work and their floors laid with polished marble.
Benjamin Dean Wyatt designed the building in 1825 for the Duke of York, who died before completion. Later, the Duke of Sutherland acquired it, whose family lived there until the early 20th century before the Foreign Office took it over.
The building takes its name from the Duke of Lancaster and still displays 19th-century furniture throughout its rooms. The halls are regularly used for receptions where diplomats meet beneath gilded ceilings and heavy chandeliers.
The estate is within walking distance of St. James's Park and sits directly opposite Green Park, making a stroll before or after a visit easy. The entrance hall is reached via a wide outdoor staircase at the street front.
In the 1820s, the dining room was covered in gold leaf, and some visitors later remarked it surpassed even Buckingham Palace in splendor. This assessment remained a talking point in diplomatic circles for decades.
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