Textual Networks and the Country House: The 3rd Earl of Carlisle at Castle Howard

The following thesis is centred on Charles Howard, 3rd Earl of Carlisle (1669-1738) and the life that he lived at Castle Howard in North Yorkshire, the country house which he built at the turn of the eighteenth century. The thesis argues that Carlisle was not isolated from social and cultural spheres whilst living in Yorkshire, a view that has been put forward by the existing historiography. Via the arrival of books, letters, and news to Castle Howard, the Earl remained connected to social and political events as well as cultural movements despite being geographically remote from London and other urban centres. In many instances, his family, close friends, and agents acted as intermediaries, sourcing, recommending, and sending north all types of textual material. The Earl’s participation in epistolary, news, and book exchange networks – at regional and national levels – meant Castle Howard was an active site of textual exchange and engagement in the first four decades of the eighteenth century. Such a reading challenges, more generally, the traditional interpretation that country house residents were disconnected from the nation’s Capital as well as the local communities that they neighboured.