IN THE ELIZABETHAN AGE. 13 



whole scenery around — leaving the pleasure-grounds and garden 

 adjoining the house to be laid out on the sound principles of 

 landscape gardening — principles, be it observed, whicli are 

 equally sound in respect to every mansion in every style ? Now 

 the connexion of style I have shown not to exist ; and I should 

 be not only enlightened but amazed if any ingenious person 

 could prove that the ground-plan of an Elizabethan garden, such 

 as in its main features I believe myself to have correctly de- 

 scribed it, is in any harmony whatever with the style of the 

 Elizabethan mansion. I do not wish it proved to have been 

 peculiarly so ; I ask it to be proved in any respect and at all. 

 The plain incontestable fact is, that such a garden in such a style 

 is more in harmony with a plain square brick-built house of no 

 style whatever — the angles in the garden, however, giving a relief 

 to the square solidity of the house ; and it is equally plain that 

 as taste was at an equally low ebb in all classes who were able 

 to indulge it, the same bad taste prevailed everywhere alike. 



Of the other principle — That the style of the architecture 

 should be adapted to tlie general character of the whole natural 

 scenery, I think that no man can doubt the correctness. Of the 

 magnitude of the building — that is, the having a proper regard 

 to the proportion of the space, and the grandeur, or calm beauty 

 of the scenery in which it is to stand — there can be as little he- 

 sitation. Repton's observations on these matters appear exceed- 

 ingly judicious ; and if the principle in question be correct, the 

 laying out of the ground between the mansion and the external 

 scenery, on the universal principles of landscape-gardening, with 

 only subordinate regard to the style of the mansion, is clear as 

 the sun at noon-day. Repton is writing on the inappro- 

 priateness of the Grecian style of architecture to large mansions in 

 the country : and he thus goes on : — " Plaving expressed these ob- 

 jections against the application of Grecian architecture, before I 

 describe any other style of house, I shall introduce some remarks 

 on a subject which lias much engaged my attention, viz. — the 

 adaptation of buildings not only to the situation, character, and 

 circumstances of the scenery, but also to the purposes for which 

 they are intended ; and this I shall call characteristic archi- 

 tecture." 



It is needless for me to introduce here his arguments on this 

 adaptation of the style of the building to the scenery amidst 

 which it is erected. The case stood thus : — The Elizabethan 

 style had fallen into desuetude in his time, and therefore is not 

 alluded to, beyond his referring in another place to the palaces 

 of that age, without regard, however, to the surrounding scenery. 

 He had to determine between the Grecian and the Gothic styles 

 as to which was on the whole best adapted to the rural scenery 



