The staircase to the bedroom floor has a balustrade in a complex design of circles in wrought iron characteristic of Lutyens' style; it forms a double spiral within a two-storey cube. The treads of the stairs are alternately convex and concave.

At the foot of the staircase is a wooden sculpture by Nigel Hall, called Intention Extension, 1995. Its position was chosen to reflect on the circular patterns made by the staircase and the limestone floor. On the wall is the banner of William IV (1830-1837), which he had when he was Duke of Clarence and became a Knight of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath.

Near the top of the stairs is a coronation portrait of the 18-year-old Queen Victoria painted in 1837 by Sir George Hayter (the Queen’s favourite artist when she was young). This portrait looked down on guests as they entered the great tiled vestibule in the old Legation house on Connecticut Avenue. There is also an oil landscape The Hay Cart by Francis Wheatley.

The View of the Thames from the Adelphi looking toward the York Water Tower is an important work of 1789 by the British artist William Marlow (1740-1813). The portrait of Mrs Arabella Hunt is by Sir Godfrey Kneller, who inscribed the reverse of the painting with the words, Mrs Arrabella Hunt/Godfrey Kneller in memoriam faciebat/1692. Mrs Hunt, a celebrated singer, a favourite of Queen Mary, died young in 1705 and Kneller may have written the words after her death to mark the moment the painting was made, or to commemorate a meeting or concert in 1692.

In the bedroom corridor is the John Prescott Knight portrait of Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill, a general during the Napoleonic Wars who fought under Wellington’s command in the Peninsular Wars and at Waterloo.

Two further portraits are by Robert Edge Pine, who worked between 1730 and 1788, show Mr and Mrs Samuel Vaughan. Vaughan was a London West Indian trader who married Sarah Hallowell of Boston. In 1783, the family moved to Philadelphia for seven years. While in America Vaughan revitalised the American Philosophical Society, becoming its president for a two-year term.

The Bedrooms
There are seven bedrooms, all named after former Ambassadors. Most of these rooms have oil paintings, watercolours, drawings or prints which have been given or lent to the Residence, principally by the families of Lord Bryce and Viscount Halifax who were both Ambassadors to the United States.

Dean and Inverchapel:
This suite consisting of a bedroom and sitting room is the principal guest bedroom. Lord Inverchapel, formerly Sir Archibald Clark Kerr, was Ambassador from 1946-1948. Sir Patrick Dean was Ambassador from 1965-1969. The bedroom contains the painting Eldon Place by Roger de Gray.

Howard and Halifax:
This suite consists of the Ambassador’s bedroom, bathrooms and dressing room. Sir Esme Howard (later Baron Howard) was Ambassador from 1924-1930 and was the first Ambassador to live in the house. The Viscount Halifax was Ambassador from 1941-1946.

Harlech:
Sir David Ormsby Gore (later Lord Harlech), was Ambassador from 1961-1965. He and his wife were close friends of President and Mrs Kennedy. Both he and his wife were killed in separate car accidents in Britain.

Lothian:
The Marquess of Lothian was Ambassador from 1939 - 1941. It is thanks to his generosity that the present Embassy garden extends from below the rose garden to border Massachusetts Avenue. In 1939 this area was still used as a public park. It came up for sale and would almost certainly have been used for development, had not Lord Lothian purchased it and given it to the Embassy to be incorporated into the garden.

Lindsay:
Sir Ronald Lindsay was Ambassador from 1930-1939. He and Lady Lindsay entertained King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, (the late Queen Mother) for their State Visit in 1939. Above the desk is a painting of a partners’ desk and between the beds is A View of Venice by the Bloomsbury Group painter, Duncan Grant. The painting is one of a number of works which were presented by The Hon. Mrs Wood, in memory of her uncle-in-law, James Bryce, who was ambassador in Washington from 1907 to 1913.

On the small landing outside these two bedrooms is the painting The Red Skirt by Ethel Walker, who painted several works of a young woman posed in front of the same fireplace and mirror.

Caccia:
Sir Harold Caccia (later Lord Caccia) was Ambassador from 1956-1961. He was later Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office and then Provost of Eton and died in 1991.

Franks:
Sir Oliver Franks (later Lord Franks) was Ambassador from 1948-1952. Sir Oliver had a great personal friendship and working relationship with Secretary of State Dean Acheson.

Move on to the Garden