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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Somerset House
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(London WC2) On the site of a palace built in 1547–50 for the 1st duke of Somerset there now stands one of the most imposing 18C buildings in London, occupying a long stretch of river front and reaching back to the Strand. It was designed as government offices, by William *Chambers, and work started in 1776. The building is mostly associated in living memory with family records, for the General Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages had its offices here from 1836 to 1973. The fine rooms in the Strand block, originally occupied by the *Royal Academy and other learned societies, have recently been returned to art as the new home of the *Courtauld Institute. In 2000 the riverside block was also opened to the public as the home of the Gilbert Collection of silver, gold, portrait miniatures and mosaics.
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