2 FORMAL GARDENS IN 
Alexander Necham, Abbot of Cirencester and the foster-brother of Richard Cceur de Lion, was the earliest 
Englishman to write on gardens. 1 He was born at St. Albans in 11 57 > an ^ died near Worcester in 1217. 
His account of the herbs, fruit and flowers to be found in a garden of his day is interesting, and gives a good 
idea of what was considered necessary for the support of a monastic establishment of the time. Another 
interesting description of a monastic garden is that of the Abbey of Clairvaux, written by a contemporary of 
St. Bernard (1091-1153), who says : “ If thou desire to know the situation of Clairvaux, let those writings be to 
thee as a mirror. . . . Then the back part of the abbey terminates in a broad plain, no small portion of which a 
wall occupies, which surrounds the abbey with its extended circuit. Within the enclosure of this wall many 
and various trees prolific in various fruits constitute an orchard resembling a wood, which, being near the cell 
of the sick, lightens the infirmities of the brethren with no moderate solace, while it affords a spacious walking 
place to those who walk and a sweet place for reclining to those who are overheated. . . : Where the orchard 
terminates, the garden begins, distributed into separate plots, or rather, divided by intersecting rivulets; for 
though the water appears stagnant, it flows nevertheless with a slow gliding. ... I his water serves the double 
duty of supporting the fish and watering the vegetables.” 
In the troublous period which succeeded the Norman Conquest, the quiet pleasures of a garden could not 
be enjoyed. For the better security of life and property it was necessary to choose positions as inaccessible as 
possible for castle sites, in direct contrast to the course followed by the monastic orders, who as a rule chose 
to place their monasteries in some fertile valley, giving shelter for their orchards, gardens and vineyards. 
Of the gardens surrounding the Royal Palaces the most prominent was that of Woodstock, where 
Henry III. carried out many improvements for his Queen. Here was the famous labyrinth which concealed 
Fair Rosamund’s Bower. The labyrinth was an invention of very early times, and, from being merely a winding- 
path cut in the ground, developed into the maze which formed such a feature of the seventeenth-century garden. 
There were also Royal gardens at Windsor, Westminster, Charing and the Tower, and others of importance 
belonging to the nobility, and surrounding their houses in the neighbourhood of London. 
During the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries more peaceable times permitted an advance in the art of 
horticulture. A class of smaller landowners was growing up, who, gradually throwing off allegiance to their 
feudal lords, built for themselves small farms and manor-houses, surrounding them with orchards and gardens, 
and by the end of the fourteenth century almost every small manor and farm had its garden. During the 
Wars of the Roses the gentle arts received a check which lasted until the restoration of peace in Tudor times. 
We now arrive at a time when a great change came over the Domestic Architecture of this country; a 
time when the castle with its fortified enclosures, built perhaps in some inaccessible ravine or on the summit of 
some steep hill, was succeeded by the more comfortable manor-house, surrounded by a moat, and usually situate 
on a site much more adapted to the development of gardens. In many cases, as, for example, at Broughton 
Castle, the moat enclosed an area sufficient for the formation of a very fairly sized garden, which would be 
devoted to the cultivation of flowers and other purposes of pleasure, whilst the orchards or vineyards would 
be just without the moat. The increasing sense of security diminished the necessity for keeping all property 
within the protecting lines of a moat, and the space beyond, thus gained for the pleasure grounds, afforded 
greater scope for play of fancy in garden design. 
One of the first innovations was the garden bed, enclosed by a low railing of trellis-work, or raised a little 
from the ground with a low wall of brick or stone. Another important feature introduced at this period was 
topiary work, which had been used in Roman gardens. This soon found much favour in this country, and 
whilst confined to its simpler forms added much to the quaint aspect of a garden. To this period also is 
ascribed the introduction of the mount in England, though one can readily believe that it is of greater antiquity ; 
it is a feature that came into very common use, and is thus recommended by Bacon in his essay: “I would also 
1 See “ The Praise of Gardens,” by A. Forbes Sieveking. 
