C.M. Villiers-Stuart was an English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 author and water-colour painter. She married Patrick Villiers-Stuart in 1908 and moved to India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, allowing her to collect material for her pioneering book, Gardens of the Great Mughals which launched the historical study of Mughal Gardens

Mughal Gardens

Mughal gardens are a group of gardens built by the Mughals in the Islamic style of architecture. This style was heavily influenced by the Persian gardens particularly the Charbagh structure. Significant use of rectilinear layouts are made within the walled enclosures...

. Chapter XII, on 'Some garden contrasts and a dream' urges respect for Indian design traditions. The 'dream' in the chapter title concerns the design of New Delhi

New Delhi

New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...

. Her pleas for an Indian town plan had little effect but she had a conversation with Edwin Lutyens

Edwin Lutyens

Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, OM, KCIE, PRA, FRIBA was a British architect who is known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era...

 and he read her book. Working with Gertrude Jekyll

Gertrude Jekyll

Gertrude Jekyll was an influential British garden designer, writer, and artist. She created over 400 gardens in the UK, Europe and the USA and contributed over 1,000 articles to Country Life, The Garden and other magazines.-Early life:...

 had given him a sympathy for garden design and the result was the famous Mughal Garden of what is now Rashtrapati Bhavan

Rashtrapati Bhavan

The Rashtrapati Bhavan or The Official Residence of the Head of the State is the official residence of the President of India, located at Raisina hill in New Delhi, India. Until 1950 it was known as "Viceroy's House" and served as the residence of the Viceroy and Governor-General of India...

.

External links

• Gardens of the Great Mughals by C.M. Villiers Stuart Online text.
• Rashtrapati Bhavan Official government website.