Managing for Posterity

Securing the status and long-term survival of the family has always been the principal concern of the English aristocracy and gentry, and central to that ambition, at least until the late 19th century, was the successful management of their landed estates. By the late 16th century, price inflation had reduced the value of the rents collected by estates, and new demands were placed on the landed gentry¿s management skills. Failure to perform this task could spell ruination for the family. This study investigates how the Le Stranges managed this feat of revival despite setbacks, and how they further ensured this prototype knowledge economy was successfully handed down to future generations.