ENTRY ON THE "PARKS & GARDENS" WEBSITE:
Cirencester, England,
Gloucestershire, Cotswold
Brief Description
This is an early-18th-century landscape park over 1000 hectares in
extent. It extends westwards for 8 kilometres from an 18th-century mansion.
There is also an 18th-century forecourt with yew hedges, and an adjacent
garden.
History
Cirencester Park was built 1714-18 for the first Earl Bathurst on the
site of the 16th-century Oakley House/Grove/Lodge of the Danvers family, parts
of which may have been incorporated into the new house. Cirencester Park
developed from around 1714 with the help of Alexander Pope and much influenced
by Bathurst's association with Stephen Switzer.
Detailed
Description
Extensive wooded park, divided by avenues, planted by Allen, first Earl
Bathurst, from 1714 to 1775, with the help of Alexander Pope and much
influenced by Bathurst's association with Stephen Switzer.
SUMMARY DESCRIPTION
Cirencester Park stands at the north-west edge of the town of
Cirencester, c 20km south of Cheltenham. The park, over 1000ha in area, extends
westwards from the House for 8km. It lies on gently undulating land, bounded to
the south by the A419, to the west by a minor road from the A419 to Winstone,
and on the other sides by agricultural land. Overley and Hailey Woods lie to
the north and south-west of the park respectively. A 1.5-2m high drystone wall
extends around most of the park, apart from a short hedged section north of the
eastern part of Broad Ride.
The two main approaches to Cirencester Park are from the east end. East
of the house, a circular courtyard (C18) is enclosed by a curved wall
(early-mid C18, listed grade II*) to the east around a vast, three-quarters
circle yew hedge. A gateway from Park Lane passes through the centre of the
wall and hedge. The main entrance from the town to the park is from Cecily
Hill, 250m north-west of the house. A road from the town leads west to
wrought-iron gates and railings (brought from Carshalton and erected in 1886,
listed grade II) between two large stone lodges (early C19, listed grade II).
From the gates, one of the principal rides, Broad Ride, extends west for 8km,
in a straight line between St John the Baptist's church in Cirencester, and the
village of Sapperton. Other, minor, entrances at the south side of the park are
marked, from east to west, by Windsor Lodge (south of the lake), Beechcopse/Two
Mile Lodge (south-east of Oakley Wood), Four Mile Lodge (south-west of Ten
Rides), and Sapperton Lodge (west of Ten Rides).
The site consists of extensive woodland, with park and pleasure grounds.
The latter, located west and south of the mansion, comprise the Italian Garden
and Temple Garden, each with early C18 buildings. South-west of the pleasure
grounds, within the Home Park, is a tree-lined lake (c 5ha). Dug by Lord Bathurst
by 1736, it was one of the earliest irregular pieces of water in the history of
English gardening (Batey and Lambert 1990).
The park was developed from c 1714 by the first Earl Bathurst, in
collaboration with Alexander Pope. It is an early and fine example of the
'rural and extensive gardening' advocated by Stephen Switzer (Batey and Lambert
1990). The park is mainly wooded (with many mature beech as well as other
deciduous and coniferous species) to the north and west (Oakley Wood) and is
more open to the south-west. Lengthy avenues or rides divide the park,
extending in straight lines between principal viewpoints. The Broad Ride forms
the central axis of the park. The main intersections along it are the Hexagon
(c 700m north-west of the mansion, facing Windsor Walk, which runs southwards,
with a ha-ha to its west, to bound the Home Park); Seven Rides (by Pope's Seat,
near the Polo Ground, c 2km west of the mansion); and Ten Rides (deep in the
west part of Oakley Wood, c 5.5km west of the mansion). Several rides extend
beyond the park, across the surrounding countryside. These include two rides
extending south from Oakley Wood into Hailey Wood; Broad Ride, which extends
for c 1.5km beyond the west end of the park; Bishop's Walk, from the north-west
edge of the park; and Overley Ride, from the northern edge.
Lord Bathurst was responsible for many of the garden buildings along the
Broad Ride. These include, from east to west: the Hexagon (a covered seat, c
1736, listed grade II*); two pairs of stone piers (late C18/early C19 and
early/mid C18, listed grade II); Pope's Seat (a small stone pavilion, early
C18, listed grade II*); and the Horse Guards (a pair of pavilions, late
C18/early C19, listed grade II). To the north of Broad Ride, between Seven
Rides and Ten Rides, are the Round Tower (early/mid C18, with early C19
additions, listed grade II); the Square Tower (early/mid C18 with C20
alterations, listed grade II); and Ivy Lodge (early/mid C18 house, offices, and
barn with an attached granary and cartshed embellished as a Gothick-style
landscape feature, listed grade II*). Some 500m north-east of Ten Rides is
Alfred's Hall (designed by Alexander Pope and Lord Bathurst 1721, enlarged
1732, listed grade II*), probably the earliest gothick sham ruin in England (Fleming
and Gore 1979).
Elm Avenue runs south-west for 1.5km from the mansion to Queen Anne's
Monument (a commemorative column, built 1741, listed grade II*), with clumps of
trees on either side. None of the original elms remain today (2000) but a
section of the Avenue has been recently replanted with elms and the bases of
two Second World War army hospitals lying across the Avenue are in the process
of being removed.
REFERENCES
Note: There is a wealth of published material about this site. The key
references are cited below.
Country Life, 24 (8 August 1908), pp 192-9; 107 (16 June 1950), pp
1796-1801; (23 June 1950), pp 1880-4
D Verey, The Buildings of England: Gloucestershire The
Cotswolds (1970), pp 184-7
L Fleming and A Gore, The English Garden (1979),
p 110
J Sales, West Country Gardens (1981),
pp 49-51
N Kingsley, The Country Houses of
Gloucestershire, Volume One, 1500-1660 (1989), pp 76-7
C Thacker, England's Historic Gardens (1989),
pp 35, 46-7
M Batey and D Lambert, The English Garden Tour (1990),
pp 152-6
N Kingsley, The Country Houses of
Gloucestershire, Volume Two, 1660-1830 (1992), pp 101-3
Maps
OS 6" to 1 mile: 1st edition surveyed 1882, published 1882; 1st
edition surveyed 1875, published 1885; 1st edition surveyed 1874-82, published
1888
Archival items
Oblique aerial photographs, 1999 (NMR, Swindon)
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ziIlDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA194&lpg=PA194&dq=samuel+rudder+cirencester+alfred%27s+hall&source=bl&ots=CKLyg89eGy&sig=ACfU3U3v1HbIT2EvD5MGWbpJ5H1uPHhIQg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiD6q7CqMPqAhVko3EKHQdMBTkQ6AEwAXoECAsQAQ#v=onepage&q=samuel%20rudder%20cirencester%20alfred's%20hall&f=false
