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Longleat began life as the site of an Augustinian Priory and was purchased by the Duke of Somerset John Thynne in 1541. It has undergone many changes since then and has also served as a relief hospital during the First World War and during the Second was also the site of an American Hospital and an RAF depot. It was opened to the public in 1949. Its name derives from the long “lete” – man-made ditch to channel water – which used to supply the original priory.
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