PART II.-CHAPTER IV. 



OF GARDENS : LAVINGTON GARDEN, CHELSEY GARDEN. 



[ THE stately gardens of the seventeenth century were less remarkable for the cultivation of useful 

 or ornamental plants than for the formal arrangement of their walks, arbours, parterres, and hedges. 

 Amongst the various decorations introduced were jets d'cau, or fountains, artificial cascades, columns, 

 statues, grottoes, rock-work, mazes or labyrinths, terraces communicating with each other by flights 

 of steps, and similar puerilities. This style of gardening was introduced from France ; where the 

 celebrated Lc Notre had displayed his skill in laying out the gardens of the palace of Versailles ; the 

 most important specimens of their class. The same person was afterwards employed by several of 

 the English nobility. 



The gardens at Wilton, described in the last chapter, were completely in the style referred to. 

 Solomon de Caus, to whom they are attributed by Aubrey, is supposed by Mr. Loudon, in his 

 valuable Encyclopedia of Gardening, to have been the inventor of greenhouses. The last mentioned 

 work contains the best account yet published of the gardens of the olden time. Britton's History 

 of Cassiobury (folio, 1837), p. 17, also contains some curious particulars of the original plan- 

 tations and pleasure grounds of that interesting mansion. 



The gardens at Lavington, which are described in the present chapter, were evidently of the same 

 character with those of Wilton. Chelsey-garden is very minutely described by Aubrey, but our 

 limits forbid its insertion, especially as it is irrelevant to a History of Wiltshire. J. B.] 



O janitores, villiciqj felices: 

 Domini* parantur isti, serviunt vobis. 



MARTIAL, Epigramm. 29, lib. x. 



To write in the praise of gardens is besides my designe. The pleasure and use of them were 

 unknown to our great-grandfathers. They were contented with pot-herbs, and did mind chiefly 

 their stables. The chronicle tells us, that in the reign of King Henry the 8 th pear-mains were so 

 great a rarity that a baskett full of them was a present to the great Cardinall Wolsey. 



Henry Lyte, of Lyte's Cary, in Somerset, Esq. translated Dodoens' Herball into English, which he 

 dedicated to Q. Elizabeth, about the beginning of her reigne [1578]. He had a pretty good collection 

 of plants for that age ; some few whereof are yet alive, 1660: and no question but D r . Gilbert, &c. 

 did furnish their gardens as well as they could so long ago, which could be but meanly. But the 

 first peer that stored his garden with exotick plants was William Eark of Salisbury, [1612 1668] 

 at his garden at [Hatfield? J. B.] a catalogue whereof, fairly writt in a skin of vellum, consisting 

 of 830 plants, is in the hands of Elias Ashmole, Esq. at South Lambeth. 



