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A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives (through Old French) from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word "manse" originally defined a property large enough for the parish priest to maintain himself, but a mansion is no longer self-sustaining in this way (compare a Roman or medieval villa). 'Manor' comes from the same root—territorial holdings granted to a lord who would ''remain'' there—hence it is easy to see how the word 'Mansion' came to have its meaning. ==History== Within an ancient Roman city, patrician dwellings might be very extensive, and luxurious. Such mansions on one hill in Rome became so extensive that the term palatial was actually derived from the name Palatine hill and is the etymological origin of "palace". Following the fall of Rome the practice of building unfortified villas ceased. Today, the oldest inhabited mansions around the world usually began their existence as fortified castles in the middle ages. As social conditions slowly changed and stabilised fortifications were able to be reduced, and over the centuries gave way to comfort. It became fashionable and possible for homes to be beautiful rather than grim and forbidding allowing for the development of the modern mansion. In British English a mansion block refers to a block of flats or apartments designed for the appearance of grandeur. In many parts of Asia, including Hong Kong and Japan, the word mansion also refers to a block of apartments. In Europe, from the 15th century onwards, a combination of politics and advancements in modern weaponry negated the need for the aristocracy to live in fortified castles. As a result, many were transformed into mansions without defences or demolished and rebuilt in a more modern, undefended style. Due to intermarriage and primogeniture inheritance amongst the aristocracy, it became common for one noble to often own several country houses. These would be visited rotationally throughout the year as their owner pursued the social and sporting circuit from country home to country home. Many owners of a country house would also own a town mansion in their country's capital city. These town mansions were referred to as 'houses' in London, hotels in Paris and palaces in most European cities elsewhere. It might be noted that sometimes the house of a clergyman was called a "mansion house" (e.g.by the Revd James Blair, Commissary in Virginia for the Bishop of London, 1689-1745, a term related to the word "manse" commonly used in the Church of Scotland and in Non-Conformist churches. H.G.Herklots, The Church of England and the American Episcopal Church). As the 16th century progressed, and Renaissance styles of architecture slowly spread across Europe, the last vestiges of castle architecture and life changed; the central points of these great house, great halls, became redundant as owners wished to live separately from their servants, and no longer ate with them in a Great Hall. All evidence and odours of cooking and staff were banished from the principal parts of the house into distant wings, while the owners began to live in airy rooms, above the ground floor, with privacy from their servants, who were now confined, unless required, to their specifically delegated areas—often the ground and uppermost attic floors. This was a period of great social change, as the educated prided themselves on enlightenment. The uses of these edifices paralleled that of the Roman villas. It was vital for powerful people and families to keep in social contact with each other as they were the primary moulders of society. The rounds of visits and entertainments were an essential part of the societal process, as painted in the novels of Jane Austen. State business was often discussed and determined in informal settings. Times of revolution reversed this value. During July/August 1789 a significant number of French country mansions (chateaux) were destroyed by the rural population as part of the Great Fear - a symbolic rejection of the feudal rights and restraints in effect under the ''ancient régime''.〔Richard Cobb, pages=77-79 "The French Revolution - Voices from a Momentous Epoch", CN8039, Guild Publishing 1988〕 Until World War I it was not unusual for a moderately sized mansion in England such as Cliveden to have an indoor staff of 20 and an outside staff of the same size, and in ducal mansions such as Chatsworth House the numbers could be far higher. In the great houses of Italy, the number of retainers was often even greater than in England; whole families plus extended relations would often inhabit warrens of rooms in basements and attics. It is doubtful that a 19th-century Marchesa would even know the exact number of individuals who served her. Most European mansions were also the hub of vast estates. A true estate (the medieval villa, French ''ville'') always contains at least one complete village and its church. Large estates such as that of Woburn Abbey have several villages attached. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mansion」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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