Author Archives: The Garden History Blog

A family wedding took me to County Durham recently and on the way  we passed The Angel of the North. It is such an extraordinary addition to the landscape that on the way home we did a detour and went to see it close … Continue reading →

. Holdenby in Northamptonshire was one of the greatest houses and gardens of Elizabethan England, in fact of  the whole of 16thc Europe.  Although largely demolished within about 80 years a small  part of the mansion survives  as part of … Continue reading →

Let’s start today with a pub quiz question.  Who was Queen Adelaide? Did you even know Britain once had a Queen Adelaide?   Would it help if I told you that before her engagement to a royal duke she was … Continue reading →

This week’s post is going to continue the story of the gardens at Belvoir from the rebuilding of the castle in the early 19th century through to the current ambitious restoration project. Historic England’s  description of the site gives no … Continue reading →

Alan Titchmarsh calls  Belvoir “everyone’s idea of what a castle should be”.  However, while it might look like an impregnable fortress in fact it’s  a “fake” stronghold, built in the mediaeval style in the early 19thc. It is the fourth castle on … Continue reading →