Burghley's state rooms are breathtaking, having been transformed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by two great collecting Earls. During the late 17th century John, 5th Earl of Exeter (1648-1700), and his Countess, Anne Cavendish, transformed Burghley from the Tudor mansion built by William Cecil to the spectacular treasure house it is today.

From the 1750's, Brownlow, the 9th Earl (1725-1793) continued the transformation of the house, completing much of the interior which had lain forlorn since the death of the 5th Earl. Under the guidance of his architect and landscape designer Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, the 9th Earl employed the leading craftsmen of the day including Mayhew & Ince and Fell & Newton.