Buckingham Palace Gardens
Encyclopedia
The garden at Buckingham Palace is situated at the rear (west) of Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...

. It covers much of the area of the former Goring Great Garden, named after Lord Goring, occupant of one of the earliest grand houses on the site. It was laid out by Henry Wise and subsequently redesigned by William Townsend Aiton
William Townsend Aiton
William Townsend Aiton was a Scottish botanist.He brought out a second and enlarged edition of the Hortus Kewensis in 1810–1813, a catalogue of the plants at Kew Gardens, the first edition of which was written by his father William Aiton...

 for George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...

.

The garden occupies a 42 acres (17 ha) site in the City of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...

, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 and has two-and-a-half miles of gravel paths. Its area is bounded by Constitution Hill
Constitution Hill, London
Constitution Hill is a road in the City of Westminster in London. It connects the western end of The Mall with Hyde Park Corner, and is bordered by Buckingham Palace Gardens and Green Park. The term "Hill" is something of a misnomer; there is barely detectable slope but most observers would...

 to the north, Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner is a place in London, at the south-east corner of Hyde Park. It is a major intersection where Park Lane, Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Place and Constitution Hill converge...

 to the west, Grosvenor Place to the south-west and the Royal Mews
Royal Mews
A Royal Mews is a mews of the British Royal Family. In London the Royal Mews has occupied two main sites, formerly at Charing Cross, and since the 1820s at Buckingham Palace....

, Queen's Gallery
Queen's Gallery
The Queen's Gallery is a public art gallery located at Buckingham Palace, home of the British monarch, in London. It exhibits works of art from the Royal Collection The Queen's Gallery is a public art gallery located at Buckingham Palace, home of the British monarch, in London. It exhibits works of...

, and Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...

 to the south and east. The planting is varied and exotic, with a mulberry tree dating back to the time of James I of England
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

.

Notable features include a large 19th-century lake which is graced by a flock of flamingo
Flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are gregarious wading birds in the genus Phoenicopterus , the only genus in the family Phoenicopteridae...

es, and the Waterloo Vase
Waterloo Vase
The Waterloo Vase is a great urn, 15ft high and weighing 20 tons, fashioned from a single piece of Carrara marble. Since 1906, it has been used as a garden ornament in the garden of Buckingham Palace, London....

. In the garden there is a summerhouse, a helicopter pad, and a tennis court.

Unlike the nearby Royal Parks of London
Royal Parks of London
The Royal Parks of London are lands originally owned by the monarchy of the United Kingdom for the recreation of the royal family...

, Buckingham Palace Garden is not usually open to the public. However when Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...

 is open during August and September, visitors have access to part of the garden, which forms the exit from the palace at the end of the tour. (A large gift shop in a marquee is erected along the path at that time.) Visitors also have the opportunity to purchase specially made ice cream from the Buckingham Palace ice cream tent which is situated on the route out of the garden.

The garden is where the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

's garden parties
Garden party
A garden party is a social gathering with food provided, in the open in a park or a garden. An event described as a garden party is usually more formal than other similar gatherings, which may be called just parties, picnics, barbecues, etc,...

 are held. In June 2002 she invited the public into the garden for entertainment for the first time during her reign. As part of her Golden Jubilee Weekend thousands of Britons were invited to apply for tickets to Party at the Palace
Party at the Palace
The Party at the Palace was a pop concert held in London in 2002. The event was in commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II held over the Golden Jubilee Weekend 1 -4 June 2002. The concert itself was held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 3 June 2002...

 where the guitarist Brian May
Brian May
Brian Harold May, CBE is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the guitarist and a songwriter of the rock band Queen...

 of the band Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

 performed his God Save the Queen
God Save the Queen
"God Save the Queen" is an anthem used in a number of Commonwealth realms and British Crown Dependencies. The words of the song, like its title, are adapted to the gender of the current monarch, with "King" replacing "Queen", "he" replacing "she", and so forth, when a king reigns...

guitar solo on top of Buckingham Palace. This concert was preceded the previous evening by a Prom at the Palace
Prom at the Palace
The Prom at the Palace was a classical music concert held in London in 2002. The event was in commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. It was held at Buckingham Palace on 1 June 2002 forming part of the Golden Jubilee Weekend. It was the classical equivalent of the Party at the Palace,...

. During the Queen's 80th birthday celebrations in 2006 the garden was the scene of Children's Party at the Palace
Children's Party at the Palace
The Children's Party at the Palace was an event organized by Peter Orton of Hit Entertainment and David Johnstone of DJI consult, held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 25 June 2006 in honour of the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The event, which had the theme British children's literature, was...

 for an audience of 2,000 children.

Landscaping, lake and artworks

The landscape design was by Capability Brown
Capability Brown
Lancelot Brown , more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English landscape architect. He is remembered as "the last of the great English eighteenth-century artists to be accorded his due", and "England's greatest gardener". He designed over 170 parks, many of which still endure...

 but the garden was redesigned at the time of the palace rebuilding by William Townsend Aiton
William Townsend Aiton
William Townsend Aiton was a Scottish botanist.He brought out a second and enlarged edition of the Hortus Kewensis in 1810–1813, a catalogue of the plants at Kew Gardens, the first edition of which was written by his father William Aiton...

 of Kew Gardens and John Nash. The great manmade lake was completed in 1828 and is supplied with water by the Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park
Hyde Park, London
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...

.

According to Palace tourist guides, the garden is maintained by approximately eight fulltime gardeners, with two or three part-timers. The trees include plane
London Plane
Platanus × acerifolia, the London plane, London planetree, or hybrid plane, is a tree in the genus Platanus. It is usually thought to be a hybrid of Platanus orientalis and the Platanus occidentalis . Some authorities think that it may be a cultivar of P...

, Indian chestnut, silver maple
Silver Maple
The silver maple —also called creek maple, river maple, silverleaf maple, soft maple, water maple, or white maple—is a species of maple native to eastern North America in the eastern United States and Canada...

, and a swamp cypress
Swamp cypress
Swamp cypress is a common name for more than one species of plants in the family Cupressaceae :* Species of the genus Taxodium* Glyptostrobus pensilis* Actinostrobus pyramidalis...

. In the south-west corner, there is a single surviving mulberry tree from the plantation installed by King James I of England
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

 when he unsuccessfully attempted to breed silkworms in the Mulberry Garden on the Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...

 site. (This was not the site of today's garden; it was located closer to Green Park
Green Park
-External links:*...

.)

Like the palace, the garden is rich in works of art. One of the most notable is the Waterloo Vase
Waterloo Vase
The Waterloo Vase is a great urn, 15ft high and weighing 20 tons, fashioned from a single piece of Carrara marble. Since 1906, it has been used as a garden ornament in the garden of Buckingham Palace, London....

, the great urn commissioned by Napoleon to commemorate his expected victories, which in 1815 was presented unfinished to the Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...

. After the King had had the base completed by sculptor Richard Westmacott
Richard Westmacott
Sir Richard Westmacott, Jr., RA was a British sculptor.-Life and career:He studied under his father, Richard Westmacott the Elder, before going to Rome in 1793 to study under Antonio Canova...

, intending it to be the focal point of the new Waterloo chamber at Windsor Castle, it was adjudged to be too heavy for any floor (at 15 ft (4.6 m) high and weighing 15 tons). The National Gallery
National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is an art museum on Trafalgar Square, London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The gallery is an exempt charity, and a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media...

, to whom it was presented, finally returned it in 1906 to the sovereign, Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...

. King Edward then solved the problem by placing the vase outside in the garden where it now remains.

Also in the garden is a small summerhouse attributed to William Kent
William Kent
William Kent , born in Bridlington, Yorkshire, was an eminent English architect, landscape architect and furniture designer of the early 18th century.He was baptised as William Cant.-Education:...

 (circa 1740), a helicopter launching pad, and a tennis court where Björn Borg
Björn Borg
Björn Rune Borg is a former world no. 1 tennis player from Sweden. Between 1974 and 1981 he won 11 Grand Slam singles titles. He won five consecutive Wimbledon singles titles and six French Open singles titles...

, John McEnroe
John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...

 and Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf
Steffi Graf is a former World No. 1 German tennis player.In total, Graf won 22 Grand Slam singles titles, second among male and female players only to Margaret Court's 24...

 have played.

The garden is regularly surveyed for its moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...

s by staff from the Natural History Museum
Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is one of three large museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London, England . Its main frontage is on Cromwell Road...

, and occasionally visited by the Queen's Swans
Swan Upping
Swan Upping is an annual ceremonial and practical activity in Britain in which mute swans on the River Thames are rounded up, caught, marked, and then released....

.

Garden parties

The garden is the setting for the many Royal garden parties held by the Queen each summer. However, guests, while numerous and from all stations in life, are usually those who hold a public position, or are in some way of national interest. In 2008, three parties were for nominated members of the public; and four parties for the Centenary of the Royal Charter to British Red Cross
British Red Cross
The British Red Cross Society is the United Kingdom branch of the worldwide impartial humanitarian organisation the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The society was formed in 1870, and is a registered charity with over 31,000 volunteers and 2,600 staff. At the heart of their work...

, the Territorial Army, the 'Not Forgotten' Association and for those attending the Lambeth Conference.

The guests take tea and sandwiches in marquees erected in the garden. As a military band plays the National Anthem
God Save the Queen
"God Save the Queen" is an anthem used in a number of Commonwealth realms and British Crown Dependencies. The words of the song, like its title, are adapted to the gender of the current monarch, with "King" replacing "Queen", "he" replacing "she", and so forth, when a king reigns...

, the Queen emerges from the Bow Room and slowly processes through the ranks of assembled guests towards her own private tea tent, greeting those previously selected for the honour.

Big Royal Dig

Buckingham Palace Garden was one of three royal sites excavated over 25–28 August 2006 by the Time Team
Time Team
Time Team is a British television series which has been aired on Channel 4 since 1994. Created by television producer Tim Taylor and presented by actor Tony Robinson, each episode features a team of specialists carrying out an archaeological dig over a period of three days, with Robinson explaining...

 of archaeologists led by Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson is an English actor, comedian, author, broadcaster and political campaigner. He is best known for playing Baldrick in the BBC television series Blackadder, and for hosting Channel 4 programmes such as Time Team and The Worst Jobs in History. Robinson is a member of the Labour Party...

. The results were televised, with some live streaming.

Timed to help celebrate the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

, this marked Time Team's 150th dig. For the first time, the Queen gave permission for trenches to be dug in the grounds of Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...

, Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...

, and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh. The Big Royal Dig is an example of the Queen opening up her homes for greater access to the public, as she did during her Golden Jubilee Weekend in 2002 and throughout 2006 for her 80thbirthday.

The archaeologists had an unprecedented opportunity to probe the geophysics and history of three royal residences over a four-day period, with teams working concurrently in the three locations.

Henry Wise's ornamental canal for Buckingham House

Buckingham House, a precursor of the palace, was built in 1703 by the Duke of Buckingham. This graphic reconstruction shows Buckingham House from the garden side towards the West Front, i.e. looking at the rear of today's palace.

The archaeologists managed to uncover the original ornamental canal constructed by Henry Wise which ran westwards from the West Front of Buckingham House. (A surviving contemporary letter from the Duke of Buckingham to the Duke of Shrewsbury was instrumental in determining the canal's dimensions and thus the site for excavation.) The ornamental canal was the highlight of the garden, running straight down it, bordered by rows of trees. The parterre
Parterre
A parterre is a formal garden construction on a level surface consisting of planting beds, edged in stone or tightly clipped hedging, and gravel paths arranged to form a pleasing, usually symmetrical pattern. Parterres need not have any flowers at all...

 close to the house was flanked by formal gardens which continued as a row of trees bordering the canal. People sitting in the grandest rooms in the middle of the house would have enjoyed a most pleasing view.

The garden during the English Civil War

During the Civil War (1642-1651)
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...

 London was Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....

's Parliamentarian
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...

 military centre, Royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...

 support for Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

 being based in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

. Goring Great Garden, as the garden was then, was the scene of defensive Parliamentarian earthworks – a situation whose irony Tony Robinson savoured, given the current Royal ownership. Anticipating some richly embarrassing finds, the television coverage featured a reenactment of a Roundhead
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...

 (i.e., Republican) march on the great lawn.

Other finds

Robinson hoped to unearth evidence of Parliamentarian fortifications and a redoubt
Redoubt
A redoubt is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, though others are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldiers outside the main defensive line and can be a permanent structure or a...

 from the Civil War in the garden, but in the event, no trace of Civil War Parliamentarian defenses was found. However, there were a number of 17th-century finds, including a possible button from Civil War uniform, a clay pipe, and a 17th-century trade token possibly from the pub The Swan on the Strand
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...

.

Additionally, evidence of the River Tyburn
Tyburn (stream)
The Tyburn is a stream in London, which runs underground from South Hampstead through St. James's Park to meet the River Thames at Pimlico near Vauxhall Bridge. It is not to be confused with the Tyburn Brook which is a tributary of the River Westbourne....

, which still runs below the Palace, was discovered. Other objects found included a diamond earring, dating to the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

, and a 6,000-year-old Mesolithic flint blade.

See also

  • Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II
    Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II
    The Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II was the international celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the accession of Elizabeth II to the thrones of seven countries, upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, and was intended by the Queen to be both a commemoration of her 50...

  • Party at the Palace
    Party at the Palace
    The Party at the Palace was a pop concert held in London in 2002. The event was in commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II held over the Golden Jubilee Weekend 1 -4 June 2002. The concert itself was held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 3 June 2002...

  • Prom at the Palace
    Prom at the Palace
    The Prom at the Palace was a classical music concert held in London in 2002. The event was in commemoration of the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. It was held at Buckingham Palace on 1 June 2002 forming part of the Golden Jubilee Weekend. It was the classical equivalent of the Party at the Palace,...

  • Children's Party at the Palace
    Children's Party at the Palace
    The Children's Party at the Palace was an event organized by Peter Orton of Hit Entertainment and David Johnstone of DJI consult, held at Buckingham Palace Garden on 25 June 2006 in honour of the 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The event, which had the theme British children's literature, was...


External links

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