Cragside, Northumberland
"Cragside is the country home of William George Armstrong, a 19th Century engineer who is responsible for a number of inventions and amassed great wealth as a builder of weapons and ships. Cragside was the first private home in the world to have electric lighting supplied by an hydraulic turbine generator and the system was designed by Armstrong.
Armstrong also purchased Bamburgh castle late in his life and spent 1 million GBP in turning it into a convalescent home for "the right sort of people". And during the American Civil War, he sold arms to both sides.
Since Lord Armstrong had no children, he left his empire to his nephew who proceeded to lose it all and go into debt in only 10 years! The up side is that he had no money to make any alterations to Cragside, so the house and contents are much as they were when Lord Armstrong and his wife lived there."
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