In the United Kingdom, Ireland and in some other countries, a townhouse was a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city. Most such figures owned one or more country houses in which they lived for much of the year. However during the Social Season (when major balls and drawing rooms took place), and when parliament was in session, peers and the servants moved to live in their townhouse in the capital.

In North America, the term "townhouse" is used to refer to terrace housing

See also: duplex, semi-detached, terrace, list of house types

Famous Townhouses

Among the most famous townhouses are:

• 10 Downing Street - the residence of the First Lord of the Treasury (Prime Minister of the United Kingdom)

• 11 Downing Street - the residence of the Second Lord of the Treasury (Chancellor of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom)

• Spencer House - formerly the London residence of the Earls Spencer

• Marlborough House - the residence of the Prince of Wales and later Queen Mary the Queen Mother (1936-1953) (now the Commonwealth Secretariat)

• Clarence House - the residence of the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and now the residence of Charles, Prince of Wales

• Leinster House - residence of the Duke of Leinster (Ireland's premier duke) and now the seat of Oireachtas Éireann, the Irish parliament.

• Powerscourt House - Dublin residence of Viscount Powersourt, a prominent Irish peer. It was sensitively converted into an award-winning shopping centre in the 1980s. (See an image of one of its decorated ceilings here.)

Georgian Dublin consisted of five georgian squares, which contained the townhouses of prominent peers. The squares were Merrion Square, St. Stephen's Green, Fitzwilliam Square, Ruthland Square (now called Parnell Square) and Mountjoy Square. Many of the townhouses in these squares are now offices while some have been demolished.

Most townhouses in the United Kingdom and Ireland ceased to be used for residential purposes following the First World War.

Additional Reading

• Daisy, Countess of Fingall, Seventy Years Young (The acclaimed autobiography of an Irish peer's wife, covering the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Though currently out of print the book is periodically reprinted.)