2 INTRODUCTION. 



garden as being surrounded with hedges of Box, and that this 

 Villa was admired for its extensive prospects. 



From the establishment of the ecclesiastical government of the 

 Popes in the eighth, to the end of the twelfth century, the Monks 

 were nearly the only class of persons in Europe who attended to 

 arts and sciences generally, and to decorative gardening in particular. 

 After which period, the style of gardening practised in Italy and 

 other civilised parts of Europe, consisted principally in tall clipped 

 hedges, square parterres fantastically planted, straight walks, and 

 trees uniformly lopped. 



There can be but little doubt, that the Romans first introduced 

 gardening into this country ; yet it was little attended to till near 

 the latter end of the sixteenth century. We are informed that 

 Hampton Court was laid out and planted by Cardinal Wolsey, and 

 that King Charles the Second employed Le Notre to plant the Parks 

 of Greenwich and St. James's. Charles also planted the semicircle 

 in Hampton Court. Cashiobury, an ancient seat of the Earls of 

 Essex, was admired, in 1680, for being adorned with walks, ponds, 

 and other such elegancies. In 1683 the grounds of Wanstead House, 

 Essex, Sir Josiah Child's, weje considered worthy of notice. In the 

 reign of George the Second, Queen Caroline enlarged and planted 

 Kensington Gardens, and formed what is still called the Serpentine 

 River by uniting a number of defached ponds. Lord Bathurst was 



