Proceedings of the National Trust PhD Students’ Conference 2025
Name
Proceedings_of_NT_PhD_Conference_June_25.pdf
Description
visibility:open
Size
18.43 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (CRC64NVME)
Oko3lRvszpU=
Resource type
Conference paper (unpublished)
Creator (person)
Gibbs, Daisy
Date published
February 2026
Abstract
This edited collection brings together research from National Trust–supported PhD students, showcasing innovative scholarship that deepens understanding of historic places, collections and their contemporary relevance. Spanning seventeenth‑century global connections to twenty‑first‑century questions of access and inclusion, the papers collectively reveal how National Trust properties are shaped by complex international, social and cultural histories. Research on Ham House and Saltram uncovers the early presence and influence of Asian objects, challenging assumptions about when and how global material culture entered British country houses. Studies of women’s agency at Tatton Park and Ickworth reposition Elizabeth Egerton and Molly Lepell as influential figures whose reading, collecting and social networks profoundly shaped their households and intellectual worlds. Work on Ormesby Hall explores the interwar pageant plays of Ruth Pennyman, examining how performance, photography and community participation reframed the role of the country house in modern Britain. Contemporary curatorial practice is interrogated through a longitudinal study of National Trust interpretation, revealing cyclical shifts, democratic impulses, and evolving expectations of the “public country house.” Finally, research at Snowshill Manor highlights how historic environments can unintentionally foster inclusive, sensory-rich experiences for neurodiverse visitors. Together, these papers demonstrate the vital role of research in reinterpreting heritage for diverse audiences today.
Contributor (person)
Magee, Jasmine
Weatherby, Anita
Orna-Ornstein, John
Apps, Kerry
Martin, Paula
Daley, Rachel
Deal, Emily
Anderson, Ben
Budleigh, Isabel
Crouch, Fiona
Project(s)
Cosmopolitan Collection and Regional Resource: The Social Life of Tatton Park Library
Ormesby Hall and Modern British Theatre
Global connections and local contexts: the material culture of Saltram, c.1725-1840
The material biography of Molly Lepell (1700-1768): The intellectual world of an early modern woman through her words and possessions
The value of enchantment: exploring the themes of identity and connection at Snowshill Manor and Garden through the sensoriality of neurodiversity
Imagining Asia at Ham House: Asian (and imitation) Material Culture at Ham House, c. 1637-1698
The Interpretation of the British Country House for the Visiting Public from the Mid-20th Century to the Present Day
Event title
PhD Students’ Conference 2025
Place of publication
UK
Rights statement
In Copyright
Keywords