May 2009 UK Garden Photos
Click 2-3 times to enlarge detail. Enjoy!!
Hampton Court, the favorite of Henry VIII 's 60 houses. He fitted it with the most modern advances. I loved the dozens of unique, amazing brick chimneys. He finished it in 1540.
(Right) Absolutely ancient Wisteria growing on the Tudor part of the palace. Look on the right side of the photo and you can just see the decorative black lattice design on the red brick. This painting of the brick was throughout Henry's house - it was so beautiful. I can imagine the effect this would have had on visitors in the 1500's. Hampton Court was known as one of the grandest Palaces of it's day - it is still impressive.
I toured the house and at one point, they had interpreters re-enact the wedding of Henry to his 6th wife, Katherine Parr. They also had a special exhibit which included all the original portraits of Henry and his women (wives and daughters). I learned a lot about Katherine Parr - she apparently raised his young children and was able to reconcile Henry to his oldest daughter Mary (by Catherine of Aragon, Henry's first wife, married 24 years, till he had his marriage annulled to marry Anne Boleyn), and Elizabeth, (Anne Boleyn's only surviving child). I find it a very profound experience to be in a room with so many 500 year old portraits of people who walked the same halls I was walking. I think about what it was like to paint the portrait. What it was like to sit for the portrait in a time when there was not electricity so it had to be done at only certain times of day when there was enough light. Where did these pictures hang? How did they manage to survive during the times when either their subject was beheaded, divorced, or kicked out of the succession. Did they have to be hidden? Who would do that? It makes me appreciate my ancestors and what their lives were like - and the fact that they survived long enough to reproduce and raise children who survived, etc. (This is where I get spiritual.)
This garden (right) was installed by William III and Mary II in 1689. They began massive renovations to turn Henry's old Tudor house into a Baroque palace and gardens. Very classic, but I love the Tudor house - they didn't finish the rehab so the house is half Tudor, half Baroque. The Wisteria all along the walls was at it's height. You can peek into this garden through "windows" cut in a hedge along a raised walk at the end of the garden. The building in the background is a small, but beautifully plastered building for meals, etc with stunning views of the Thames.
Another formal William III garden installation. I adore geometic gardens, especially w/pea gravel walks. (This is the year!!) I love how you can hear your steps - it just adds another level to the garden experience. Note that this one is sunken to make it easier to appreciate from the walk. I liked the whimsi of the heart shaped boxwoods that you can see on either side of the pond. This is another garden you can peek into though windows cut into shrubs.
This arbor walk was actually built in 1995 and dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II (current
Monarch). Not only was it amazing, but it said to me that Hampton Court is still a royal residence, still a garden to be tended to by the Crown. Again, note the pea gravel and imagine the crunching of your foot steps as you walk through this. Lovely shaded walk on a sunny day - creepy, gauntlet run for the kids on a dark, cloudy day. Really a cool experience.
(Right) I snapped this photo to show what it was like to look through one of the windows cut through the hedges to view various gardens. It really did have the desired effect. There were NO visitors to this garden who could walk by one of these windows without peeking in. You were always rewarded with a beautiful view. The other thing I was thinking about was how many different levels of walks and paths there were. I couldn't help but imagine what it took in the 16th and 17th century to achieve that. How many workers did it take to grade this garden - all for a Monarch's pleasure. What was that life like? I think about those workers.
I loved the decoration on these pots. Circa William and Mary.
Topiary anyone? The amazing thing here was the size, (you could walk underneath) and the scale of the planting, several football fields at least. Overall, Hampton Court was an excellent outing. The house and furnishings were fabulous, the history of the palace is really intriguing, ghost stories and all, and the gardens were classic baroque. A real treat for anyone interested in history or gardens.