Earl of Ailesbury never returned to Houghton and in 1738 sold the house to John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford, whose principal seat was Woburn Abbey, about seven miles from Houghton. His son and heir apparent, Francis Russell, Marquess of Tavistock (d.1767), lived at Houghton from 1764 until he died in a hunting accident in 1767. Thus the 4th Duke's estates, including Houghton, and titles passed to his grandson, Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford (d.1802), who having let the deerpark to a neighbour found he was unable to let the house without its grounds. Considering the house as a liability, in 1794 he ordered Houghton to be dismantled, and accordingly the furnishings were stripped out and the roof removed to be sold as building materials. The staircase survives in The Swan Hotel in Bedford, roughly north of Houghton House. The 5th Duke never married and thus did not produce a legitimate male heir. He died in 1802 by which time the house, by then long open to the elements, was already in decay. 21st century The ruins were acquired by English Heritage, and is open to free public access during daylight hours. Conservation work was undertaken in 2006 to help maintain safety and improve the understanding of the site and new visitor information boards were installed. By 2007 several of these had been vandalised leaving empty boards behind. Gallery References Further reading Collett-White, J, Inventories of Bedfordshire Country Houses 1714–1830, Historical Record Society, 74, 1995, pp. 103–22 Curtis, E, Life in the "Palace Beautiful": Houghton House, near Ampthill, Elstow Moot Hall Leaflet, No 5, 1958 Foster, AJ, Bunyan's Country: Studies in the Topography of Pilgrim's Progress, London, 1891 George, M.S.F., The Mansion of the Fair – the Story of Houghton House 1, Bedfordshire Magazine, 1:5 (1948), pp. 169–74 Hannay, M.P., Philip's Phoenix: Mary Sidney, Countess of Pembroke, Oxford, 1990 Smith, E., Houghton House, Bedfordshire, Designed by Inigo Jones, The Builder, 19, 1846 External links Houghton House at britainexpress.com Houghton House at Bedfordshire Archives and Records Service. Includes an illustration of what the West and North side of the house would have looked like. Mary Sidney Herbert, the Countess of Pembroke The Bruce Family The Russell Family English Heritage page Country houses in Bedfordshire Tourist attractions in Bedfordshire Ruins in Bedfordshire Grade I listed houses Grade I listed buildings in Bedfordshire English Heritage sites in Bedfordshire Ampthill Ruined houses Grade