Great House

The Great Houses of Gallifrey were the sentient homes of the Time Lords. They were sometimes confused with Chapterhouses. (PROSE: Lungbarrow)

Appearance
Each house was sentient, and very much alive. They were grown from seeds and could become extremely massive. The interior of a House looked like a forest in which tree trunks grew so close together as to be solid walls. The heart of a House was the Loom, which birthed the Family. Houses were grown out of proportion to Time Lords, purposefully being much larger than Time Lords. This was done because Time Lords were Loomed fully-grown, if not fully mature. The over-sized furniture would make them feel small by comparison. (PROSE: Lungbarrow)

Personality
Houses were aware of all that occurred within them. Although they could only speak within the mind of the Housekeeper, a House was fully capable of interacting with anyone who inside it. The House could interact by opening and closing doors, shifting interior walls, and moving on its foundation. More personal interaction with the Family was achieved though the actions of the furniture and servants known as Drudges.

A House was capable of emotions and could become sickly, which is why the Housekeeper was so important. Each Family took care who was picked to fill this role, as the mood of a House could have a great effect on the Family. It was the Housekeeper's responsibility to keep the House happy and healthy. In extreme cases, a House could take over a Housekeeper and use her voice to speak to others. (PROSE: Lungbarrow)

Furniture
The furniture and Drudges were part of the House, though they seemed to have some awareness of their own. As an example, when the Doctor was in his own House of Lungbarrow, he hid from a Drudge by ducking into an alcove. A chair was already in the alcove. The Doctor warned it not to creak or make noise which would give away their hiding spot. All the furniture, in addition to being oversized, was also wooden and carved in animal motifs, which perhaps gave them more mobility. (PROSE: Lungbarrow)

Known Great Houses

 * House of Blyledge
 * House of Brightshore
 * House of Firebrand
 * House of Fordfarding
 * House of Goodlight
 * House of Jade Dreamers
 * House of Jurisprudence
 * House of Heartshaven
 * House of Lungbarrow
 * House of Oakdown
 * House of Redlooms (or House of Deeptree)
 * House of Warpsmith
 * House Paradox
 * Shadow House

Behind the scenes

 * To avoid using the term Time Lords for copyright reasons, Lawrence Miles used the term "Great Houses" as a stand-in for the Time Lords in the Faction Paradox series.