Although conservatories were once a sign of wealth and opulence, one can scarcely find a home without one these days, either in America or abroad. Once erected as separate greenhouses, more and more homes are now equipped with an attached glassed-in room. Depending on locality, this room may be referred to a a Florida room, an enclosed patio, a sun room or a conservatory. Regardless of nomenclature, it’s a green space where a family can combine the beauty of nature with the comfort of a living room.

Historically, conservatories developed along with refinements in the manufacture of glass. Although the Romans used mica for its translucence and insulating properties, their conservatories vanished along with their empire. Then, for a brief time in Britain, a ‘window tax’ prevented the use of glass by any but the wealthy and greenhouse-like rooms became a symbol of the upper classes who hosted gala fetes and dinner parties in their architecturally ornate conservatories.

Less elaborate conservatories have been part of home architecture since the 1800s, when far-ranging European explorers brought back exotic plants, citrus trees and rare spices from the Far East for the enjoyment of their noble patrons. In their early incarnations, they were simple greenhouses, used to grow and shelter non-indigenous plant species. Before long, however, wealthy families incorporated them into their homes, competing with each other in size and grandeur of the architecture and contents. Arguably the most opulent of these was the orangery at the Palace of Versailles, built by Louis XIV.

With the advent of new processes to manufacture cheap glass and improved devices to control indoor temperatures, conservatories became more common and available to the less affluent. Orangeries flourished on both sides of the Atlantic during the 1800s, and the conservatory reached new heights of beauty and popularity in 1851 with the advent of the Crystal Palace, a glass and cast-iron building erected in London to house the Great Exhibition.

As Darwin and others brought exotic species of plants and animals back to Europe, the Industrial Revolution was moving the population from rural areas to cities and suburbs, leaving people nostalgic for the green spaces of home. At the same time, the Industrial Revolution gave rise to a new middle class that began to shift from rural areas to cities, leading architects to design ever more massive public enclosures for tropical flora and fauna. One of the most famous of these was the Crystal Palace, a magnificent cast-iron and glass structure built to house the The Great Exhibition of 1851 in London.

Although the Great Depression and World War II put a temporary halt to the proliferation of conservatories, the fifties brought a revived interest in both outdoor and indoor gardening. The ready availability of insulated glass and thermostatic climate control allowed for easy, inexpensive installation of conservatories. Affordable modern design replaced ornate Victorian style and some form of conservatory is now part of even the most modest homes.

Once the exclusive purview of the wealthy, conservatories are now within reach for everyone who enjoy combining outdoor beauty with indoor comfort. Whether it’s called a sun-room, enclosed patio, Florida room or conservatory, it’s the place that welcomes every member of the family to the happiest room in the house.