Cottage orné (French for 'decorated cottage')[1] dates back to a movement of "rustic" stylised cottages of the late 18th and early 19th centuries during the Romantic movement,[2] when some sought to discover a more natural way of living as opposed to the formality of the preceding Baroque and Neoclassical architectural styles. English Heritage defines the term as "A rustic building of picturesque design."[3] Cottages ornés often feature well-shaped thatch roofs with ornate timberwork.
England
In England cottage orné were often built by the landed wealthy either as rustic retreats for themselves or as embellishments for their estates. They were not necessarily cottages in the usual sense of a small dwelling for the rural poor: examples range from the cluster of retirement cottages built by a Bristol banker for his retired staff at Blaise Hamlet to the expansive Royal Lodge, built by king George IV for his own use.
Houghton Lodge, Hampshire, is a fine example with beautiful gardens.
The cottage orné is the archetypal "chocolate box" cottage, but many chocolate box cottages are attractive cottages of conventional purpose, in no way associated with the Romantic era cottage orné.
In the United States the cottage orné was characterized by the use of rustic motifs with a picturesque use of lattice/trellis, fancy scrollsaw work, and lightweight porch supports.
^From the masculine French noun le cottage (Larousse French Dictionary) from the English word cottage, from the ancient French word cote, "a cabin". Used in modern French to denote une petite maison de campagne rustique et elegante.
