Topham Society The Provost on ‘Strawberry Hill – Horace Walpole’s Gothic Castle’
The Provost is a man of many interests and on the 25th November he very generously provided the Topham Society with a fascinating meeting on the subject of ‘Strawberry Hill – Horace Walpole’s Gothic Castle’. Using his own impressive collection of Walpolian memorabilia, the Provost showed us a man desperate to be remembered and a man who refused to follow fashions. Instead, Walpole moved out of the shadow of his father and pursued that which interested him, whatever it may have proved to be. The result was a building of small-scale magnificence inspired by the buildings of England’s past to house a collection that would play a significant part in the developing Gothic style. In conclusion, it could be said that this was a man before his time, and a man who was not afraid to choose his own wallpaper.
Tom Selwyn-Sharpe (PMG)
