158 
impression v its monotony soon wearisome. 
“The beginning of the eighteenth century saw a violent reaction 
against the formal « style. ‘This was largely due to the influence of Pope 
and Addison. Switzer was the first to introduce ‘rural gardening. 
The object was to connect the garden with e natural surroundings 
without the stiff and costly methods of Le € 
* Bridgeman at about the same tim eit even further. In the 
Royal Garden at Richmond den incor pofitad with Kew) he * da red to 
intr 'oduce cultivated fields, and even morsels of a forest appearance.’ 
properties or domains, both royal, but with entirely different histories. 
They corresponded T to the west and east halves of the present 
gardens. The western haif was known as Richmond Gardens a the 
Royal Garden at Richmond), The eastern half corresponds in great 
part to the grounds of Kew ee and to this 2 pone of Kew Gardens 
was originally confined. The two pr ies were separated by Love 
Lane, the ancient bridle-road between iiiad. p^ Brentford ferry. 
This was shut up and the two properties thrown together in 1802. 
* Frederick, Prince of Wales, the father of George ITI., obtained in 
1730 a long lease of Kew House. Sir William Chambers, who erected 
the Pagoda, the Orangery (now Masdam No. III.), and other buildings, 
many of w hieh have not survived, gives a description of the eastern 
half, of the gardens in the middle of ‘the last centur y. 
* The ew are not very large, nor is their pese by 
any means advantageous, as it is low and commands no prospects. 
Originally the ground was one continued dead flat, B soil was in 
ing ; but prin | r equally skilled iu 
cultivating the earth and in the polite arts, overcame all difficulties. 
o n. 
“The task could not have been easy. But R seems reason 
believe that in the main features which still sur t was the work s] 
Kent, who has been termed the ‘founder of "Mio cool of landscape 
gardening." By the introduetion*of the sunk fence or ha-ha (largely 
used at Kew) Meier td walls or fences," ' he brought external scenery 
into his Jandseape e 
* An even more suicbenked practitioner of the art, ‘ Capability Brown,’ 
was employed by the Dowager Princess of Wales to remodel the western 
half of the gardens. A ze clean sweep was made of the ‘ rural 
sarong of er D 
recti on Ee w palace, was never dircied out. But Kew probably 
is thie Dia Tallow Walk, now D. to um v 
throne it was determined to devote it to the purposes of a national 
potait ideni 
* Sir William Hooker was appointed the first director, and assumed 
office on the tet of April 1841. The part then opened to the public was 
U 93999, C g 
