Return to Rousham

Dawn 

 just look at all the jewels mother nature has draped around our garden

Sunrise 

and it looks as if today will be perfect to walk William Kent's C18th landscape at Rousham

We fell in love with Rousham on our last visit, but now we love it even more, it's a gem

Palladian stable-block designed by William Kent

We had Rousham almost to ourselves,

but someone else was present having a photo shoot - that's Monty Don in the middle! 

I always imagined he was tall

BBC Gardeners' World 

This is Monty's "Twitter" comment for the 20th October

"Spent the day at Rousham. England's greatest garden under a blue sky and warm sun, lit by brilliant autumnal colour..Sublime"

So, it appears Monty agrees with us!

We enjoyed our picnic sitting in one of William Kent's pavilion seats whilst watching Monty pose in front of the Scheemaker statue, and then they left,

but the family dog chose to come with us. 

After paying the entrance fee, described here, you collect a leaflet which shows a reproduction of the original walking circuit drawn in 1738  

The grounds are beautifully tended by half a dozen gardeners who lovingly maintain it  

Dying Gladiator

Rousham represents the first phase of English landscape design, i.e before Capability Brown or Humphry Repton. It remains almost as William Kent left it, one of the few gardens of this date to have escaped alteration. Happily the features that delighted C18th visitors are mostly still in situ. 

Octagonal pool with the figure of Pan lurking in the shadows

The upper cascade where Venus presides over the glade

Lower cascade with Venus in the distance 

The Watery Walk takes you on a gentle stroll through the woods accompanied by the most magnificent serpentine rill

It gently twists and turns as it chuckles merrily on its journey

running in and out of a feature called the Cold Bath before eventually reaching its source on the brow of the hill

 near to the Temple of Echo

The hill drops down to the River Cherwell which flows beneath Heyford Bridge built nearly 800 years ago

Watched over by Apollo

Apollo seen from Venus' Glade

Following the course of the river we catch our first glimpse of Kent's Praeneste Terrace

The terrace is modelled on the Temple of Fortune at Praeneste, Italy; a famous Roman ruin, much studied by Renaissance architects Ligorio and Palladio, and generally visited as a prime site on Grand Tours

A lovely place to sit, to contemplate, to dream, and while away some time 

whilst the Cherwell meanders on through the meadows to Oxford and then the Thames

Arcading, soft colours, elegant seating - I feel as if I've been transported to Italy 'perfezione' but no! I pinch myself, I'm still here, sitting in the Cotswolds!

We couldn't resist a final peep into the walled garden

now filled with autumn flowers and colours

Rousham's historic C17th dovecote 

A  bag full of 'help yourself apples' came home with us - there will be plenty of apple pies and crumble to enjoy during the winter months, but we shall definitely return to Rousham again, and again, and again♡

Rousham House Park & Garden

via

William Kent, the eminent English architect, landscape and furniture designer introduced the Palladian style of architecture into England when he designed the villa 'Chiswick House'. It was Kent who was also responsible, before Capability Brown, of originating the "natural" style of gardening known as the English landscape garden which he did at Chiswick House, Stowe House, and here at Rousham House, Oxfordshire, in the northern Cotswolds

Rousham House was built in 1635 by Sir Robert Dormer and is still in the ownership of the same family. 

About 200 years later Kent added wings to the north and south side of the existing house and also a fine Palladian stable block seen here on the left

Kent's south and north wings have windows showing distinctive lozenge or octagonal glazing bars complimented by niches containing figures from classical antiquity

Discobolos - the discus player

Dionysus

A rare breed of 'Longhorn' cattle graze just beyond the Ha Ha within a landscape designed by Kent

It is almost 300 years since William Kent designed the landscape at Rousham House, and I like to think that if he could have joined us for a stroll he would have been delighted to discover that, although matured, it's integrity remains unchanged. 

The blowsy flower borders nestling within the walled gardens are done in a typically English Tudor style with lots of traditional herbaceous plants restrained at the edges by box hedging. This area of the garden is in delightful contrast to Kent's 'Augustan' landscape

Dahlia - santa claus

Rousham's historic dovecote dates back to 1685 and  still serves as home to a host of doves and pigeons.

We were in the middle of a journey home and did not have either the time or the energy to do justice to Kent's landscape. We intend a return visit during the autumn when we shall walk Kent's landscape to see the ponds, cascades in Venus's Vale, the Cold Bath, the Rill, and the seven arched Praeneste, and on the skyline, a sham ruin known as the 'Eye-catcher'. By then the majestic trees within Rousham Park should be wearing their autumn gowns.

The gardens are open every day and cost £5 each - their leaflet states 'Rousham is uncommerical and unspoilt - bring a picnic, wear comfortable shoes and it is yours for the day to enjoy'. We had the gardens completely to ourselves apart from 3 gardeners. There is a very large antiquated machine, resembling a 60s jukebox, that takes your garden entrance money situated within Kent's fine Palladian stable block. We had insufficient coins and had to resort to putting a £20 note in the machine, wondering if it would be gobbled up and lost forever, but no, out came an entrance ticket along with a very large pile of £1 coins. They cascaded out of the machine with a heavy clatter, but added up to the correct change.