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THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE BLENHEIM PAL ACE
As we settle into a new year, our media horticulturalist, Camilla Bassett-Smith, visits one of our area’s leading estates, once home to one of our most celebrated leaders…
Blenheim Palace, in Oxfordshire, has survived the winter in style, with millions of twinkling light bulbs illuminating its glorious grounds. So now, with spring around the corner, it’s time for the site to be illuminated with fresh new shoots combined with all that is old and wonderful, from ancient tree trunks to sensational stone, not to mention one of the best views in England! This was a perfect home for the national treasure that was Sir Winston Churchill.
This is one of Capability Brown’s most celebrated works. The iconic bridge, which Brown inherited as part of his project, was designed in the Palladian style in 1708 and contained over 30 ground floor rooms. All of these were lost in the 1760s, when Brown flooded the area to create lakes on the estate, leaving just the top part of the bridge peeping out over the water. In the past few months, following an ongoing programme of restoration, the rooms have been rediscovered with the draining of the Queen Pool. Eighteenth century graffiti, old stairways and cooking ranges have all been uncovered as 250,000 cubic metres of silt is removed!
Brown very cleverly turned the over-domineering old bridge into one that merged beautifully into his newly dammed river and flooded valley. He disguised the boundaries of the new lake by creating a number of small peninsulas with trees which hid the edges of the water beyond, giving the impression of a larger, even more impressive lake. Graceful, with copious curves in the landscape, this really was Brown as his best. Water is in plentiful supply on the estate with the Grand Cascade offering a
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THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE CAMI L LA BAS S E T T - SMI TH
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