The House of Lyme is the largest house in Cheshire and remained in possession of the Legh family from 1388 to 1946, when it became the National Trust's Lyme Park. The exterior was used as Pemberley in the 1995 filming of Pride and Prejudice, and the site of the statue of Colin Firth aka Mr Darcy rising from the waters. Lady Newton wrote an extensive history. She was inspired to tackle this project when she found long-neglected bundles of letters, many of which were disintegrating as she opened them. She had to learn to read Elizabethan Court handwriting. Due to the family connection, she felt she was the only person who would be patient enough to do this job carefully. In the book she quotes often from these documents and letters. There are many illustrations, a fold-out family tree that helps keep the ready keep the characters sorted, and an index for searching. A fold-out map of the area around Lyme Park is included. Lady Evelyn Newton ends on a sad note due to the "present struggle" hoping for "a regenerated, a nobler, and a better world." This is the first US edition. Illustrations and pages clean. Very good condition.  G. P. Putnam's Sons. NY. 1917. USED. $60.00