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A time capsule on the Thames. Built for court insider William Murray in 1610 and perfected by the formidable Duchess of Lauderdale, Ham House keeps more 17th-century fabric, furniture and swagger in situ than almost any house in England. You move from power rooms (the Great Stair and Green Closet) to private rituals (closets, bathrooms and below-stairs) with hardly a century intruding. Outside, the Cherry Garden and riverside avenues read like a living plan from the Restoration era. Come for atmosphere and detail: veneers, silver, secretive stair turns—and a house that still feels like its owners just stepped out.
