Description: Chatsworth House is the ancestral home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. The house was built on land purchased by Sir William Cavendish in 1549 for £600. Sir William started construction of the house in 1552, but he did not live to see its completion, as he died in 1557. His widow, Bess of Hardwick completed the building work, and bequeathed the house to her son, Henry Cavendish. Henry sold the house to his younger brother William, who became the 1st Earl of Devonshire in 1618. The house was added to over the years by successive Dukes of Devonshire. In 1686 the 4th Earl, later 1st Duke of Devonshire, began to demolish parts of the house to make way for the Baroque palace designed by Thomas Archer. He also rebuilt the west front and lived just long enough to see his house completed. Only the state dining room and sculpture gallery remain from the original building. The 6th Duke added a new wing 130 years later. During the 1760 the park and gardens were landscaped by 'Capability' Brown. Sir Joseph Paxton was employed by the 6th Duke to design a series of greenhouses, build rockeries and plant rare trees and shrubs. He was also responsible for the Emperor fountain which is the tallest gravity fed fountain in the World. In the nineteenth century, a close partnership developed between the Sixth Duke of Devonshire and his gardener, Sir Joseph Paxton. They created a classic Mixed Style garden adjoining the house. The New parterre gardens, seen here, were made next to the house at this time. In recent years the Rose, Kitchen and Cottage gardens have been added together with the Serpentine Hedge and The Maze.