John Vanbrugh was born in 1664 and, after studying
architecture, joined the
army. While in
France, Vanbrugh was arrrested as a
spy and imprisoned in the infamous
Bastille. After his release, he returned to
Britain to take up the safer occupation of architect.
Vanbrugh specialised in the
Baroque style then fashionable, and designed on a grand scale. His two most famous buildings are the magnificent Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard.
Blenheim Palace was the gift of the nation to the
Duke of
Marlborough. The scale of the work was enormous and Vanbrugh decorated the house and its outbuildings with
Doric and
Corinthian columns. Vanbrugh included columns in his designs for Castle Howard in
Yorkshire, where he also constructed follies in the grounds. Both buildings remain tributes to Vanbrugh's skill.