The beautiful estate in Wiltshire, England is the backdrop of our newest Victoria’s Secret Dream campaign. This 16th century castle is what our coquette mood boards are made of—read on to discover what makes this location so unique.
In 1949, Longleat House became one of the first privately owned stately homes to open to the public commercially; however, the history goes back much further. Built between 1567 and 1580, it has been lived in by sixteen generations of the Thynn family. Today it is the family home of the 8th Marquess and Marchioness of Bath (who is also the star of our Daring Fragrance campaign!).
We’ll start at the grand staircase which takes center stage for photo-takers (guests and tourists alike!). Each room in the house was inspired by Italian Venetian palaces (think gold ceilings and marble fireplaces everywhere).
There are seven libraries in the house, and they hold 44,000 books. With the beautiful, elaborate décor, these rooms don’t just allow for gorgeous reading nooks, but are also used for dinner parties, christenings, weddings, anniversaries, and more.
What would a lavish stately home be without picturesque dining rooms. The breakfast room specifically features yellow silk damask on the walls and portraits of former Marquess and Marchionesses of Longleat House—with a spotlight on Henry Bath who opened Longleat to the public, opened the first safari park in the world outside of Africa in 1966, and planted 10,000 trees.
Up next, the Great Saloon. This room is heavily inspired by one of the palaces in Venice with a beautiful, gilded ceiling. The tapestries are Flemish, and the fireplace was custom made for the space. The Italian inspiration comes from the fourth Marquess who was heavily influenced by his grand tour of Italy.
There’s more to explore when it comes to Longleat House. Be sure to catch glamorous glimpses in each shot from our new campaign.