Fulham Palace
Encyclopedia
Fulham
Fulham is an area of southwest London in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, SW6 located south west of Charing Cross. It lies on the left bank of the Thames, between Putney and Chelsea. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
, London (formerly in Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
), England, at one time the main residence of the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
, is of medieval origin. It was the country home of the Bishops of London from at least 11th century until 1975, when it was vacated. It is still owned by the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, although managed by the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham is a London borough in West London, and forms part of Inner London. Traversed by the east-west main roads of the A4 Great West Road and the A40 Westway, many international corporations have offices in the borough....
and the Fulham Palace Trust. It is adjacent to Bishop's Park
Bishop's Park (Fulham)
Bishops Park is a park in Fulham, south-west London. The park was opened by the London County Council in 1893, on land given by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners...
, houses a museum of the palace's history, and has an extensive botanical garden
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
.
History
During the extensive restorations from 2001–06, excavations on the grounds of Fulham Palace have revealed the remains of several former large scale buildings and even evidence of Neolithic and Roman settlements.The second phase of works will be subject to the success of a future bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
.
Habitation on the land on which the Palace stands can be traced back to as early as 700 AD, when ownership passed to Waldhere, Bishop of London
Waldherus
Waldhere was an early medieval Bishop of London, England.Waldhere was consecrated in 693. He died between 705 and 716...
. The estate was owned by the Bishops of London for over 1300 years and the Palace was their country home from at least the 11th century, and their main residence from the 18th century until 1975.
The Palace is now managed jointly by the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and the Fulham Palace Trust, though it is still owned by the Church of England.
Part of the Palace grounds was converted into allotment
Allotment (gardening)
An allotment garden, often called simply an allotment, is a plot of land made available for individual, non-professional gardening. Such plots are formed by subdividing a piece of land into a few or up to several hundreds of land parcels that are assigned to individuals or families...
s during World War II. They have remained in use since then allowing local people to grow their own vegetables, fruit and flowers.
Although the Palace has its own chapel, the gardens adjoin the churchyard of the neighbouring parish church, All Saints Church, Fulham
All Saints Church, Fulham
All Saints Church, Fulham is an Anglican Church in Fulham, London sited close to the river Thames, beside the northern approach to Putney Bridge.-History:...
, where several former bishops are buried.
Gardens
In the earlier 17th century, the gardens at Fulham Palace suffered from some unsympathetic attentions. The antiquary John AubreyJohn Aubrey
John Aubrey FRS, was an English antiquary, natural philosopher and writer. He is perhaps best known as the author of the collection of short biographical pieces usually referred to as Brief Lives...
records among his memoranda, "the Bishop of London did cutte-down a noble Clowd of trees at Fulham", occasioning the sharp remark from Sir Francis Bacon, a dedicated gardener, "that he was a good Expounder of dark places."
Henry Compton was ordained Bishop of London in 1675; he imported several new plant species to the gardens at Fulham Palace and first cultivated some flora found in Britain today, including the American magnolia, M. virginiana, Liriodendron
Liriodendron
Liriodendron is a genus of two species of characteristically large deciduous trees in the magnolia family .These trees are widely known by the common name tulip tree or tuliptree for their large flowers superficially resembling tulips, but are closely related to magnolias rather than lilies, the...
, Liquidambar and the first American azalea
Azalea
Azaleas are flowering shrubs comprising two of the eight subgenera of the genus Rhododendron, Pentanthera and Tsutsuji . Azaleas bloom in spring, their flowers often lasting several weeks...
grown in England, Rhododendron viscosum. and in his heated "stoves" he grew the first coffee tree in England. The red horse chestnut, a hybrid of Aesculus hippocastanum and the American Aesculus pavia, was still noted in Fulham Palace gardens as late as 1751. In spite of the depredations of Henry Compton's successor, some of the trees in and around Fulham Palace remain from this time, and visitors can still see the knot garden and wisteria
Wisteria
Wisteria is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, that includes ten species of woody climbing vines native to the eastern United States and to China, Korea, and Japan. Aquarists refer to the species Hygrophila difformis, in the family Acanthaceae, as Water Wisteria...
which survive in the Palace's walled gardens. A large holm oak (quercus ilex)is believed to be 500 years old and has been designated a Great Tree of London.
By 1681 the gardens at Fulham Palace were already remarkable, as John Evelyn
John Evelyn
John Evelyn was an English writer, gardener and diarist.Evelyn's diaries or Memoirs are largely contemporaneous with those of the other noted diarist of the time, Samuel Pepys, and cast considerable light on the art, culture and politics of the time John Evelyn (31 October 1620 – 27 February...
noted when he visited them. Bishop Compton's gardener in the early years was George London
George London (landscape architect)
George London was an English nurseryman and garden designer. He aspired to the baroque style and worked on the gardens at Hampton Court, Melbourne Hall and Wimpole Hall....
, who started his famous nursery at Brompton the year of Evelyn's visit. By 1686 William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
's gardener was hoping to exchange the exotic flora of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
for seedlings and slips of trees and shrubs and seeds from Fulham Palace gardens. His staunch defense of his former pupils the Princesses Mary and Anne, led to his appointment as Deputy Superintendent of the Royal Gardens to William and Mary
William and Mary
The phrase William and Mary usually refers to the coregency over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland, of King William III & II and Queen Mary II...
, and a Commissioner for Trade and Plantations. In the colonies, he had a botanical correspondent in John Bannister, who was sent first to the West Indies and then to Virginia, and who, before his untimely death, sent Bishop Compton drawings, seeds, and herbarium specimens
Herbarium
In botany, a herbarium – sometimes known by the Anglicized term herbar – is a collection of preserved plant specimens. These specimens may be whole plants or plant parts: these will usually be in a dried form, mounted on a sheet, but depending upon the material may also be kept in...
from which the Bishop's close friend John Ray
John Ray
John Ray was an English naturalist, sometimes referred to as the father of English natural history. Until 1670, he wrote his name as John Wray. From then on, he used 'Ray', after "having ascertained that such had been the practice of his family before him".He published important works on botany,...
compiled the first published account of North American flora, in his Historia Plantarum (1688).
The grounds originally covered more than 30 acres (121,405.8 m²), though only 12 acres (48,562.3 m²) remain the property of the Palace. The Palace also boasts the longest moat in England
Fulham Palace and grounds have been run by the Fulham Palace Trust (Reg. Charity No. 1140088) since 1 April 2011. Phase Two of the Fulham Palace Restoration Project began in 2010 and is due for completion in October 2011. It has been made possible by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. It includes both the restoration of the Palace grounds and the nearby Bishops Park. The Park was formerly part of the Palace estate and opened to the public in 1893. The walled garden at Fulham Palace will be brought back into use as a working kitchen garden and the vineries originally built by Weeks of Chelsea will be rebuilt.
Museum
The Museum of Fulham Palace partially occupies Bishop Howley'sWilliam Howley
William Howley was a clergyman in the Church of England. He served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1828 to 1848.-Early Life, education, and interests:...
Dining Room and the Porteus Library (named after Bishop Beilby Porteus, 1731–1809), in the early 19th century part of the Palace. It contains some of the paintings that once hung in the building, stained glass, carved fragments of masonry and the bishop's cope, as well as displays describing the Palace's history.
The lost manuscript of William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation
Of Plymouth Plantation
Written over a period of years by the leader of the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts, William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantation is the single most complete authority for the story of the Pilgrims and the early years of the Colony they founded...
(1620–47), an important founding document of the United States, was discovered in the library in 1855 and first published the next year. No one knows how it made its way there from America, but in 1897, through the efforts of U.S. Senator George Frisbie Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar was a prominent United States politician and United States Senator from Massachusetts. Hoar was born in Concord, Massachusetts...
, it was repatriated to New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
.
Contemporary art gallery
There is also an art gallery, Fulham Palace Gallery, displaying work related to its grounds and history.Visitor access
Admission to the Palace and its grounds is free of charge. The grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk.A cafe has been opened in Bishop Howley's Drawing Rooms.
The Palace is accessed from Fulham Palace Road close to the northern end of Putney Bridge
Putney Bridge
Putney Bridge is a bridge crossing of the River Thames in west London, linking Putney on the south side with Fulham to the north. Putney Bridge tube station is located near the north side of the bridge.-History:...
.