228 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
September  22,  1898. 
STONELEIG-H  abbey. 
!  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  many  readers  of  the  Journal  of 
Horticulture  would  see  in  the  columns  of  the  daily  papers  two  or  three 
weeks  back  extended  references  to  the  golden  wedding  anniversary  of 
Lord  Leigh  of  Stoneleigh  Abbey,  Kenilworth.  They  would  also  observe 
references  to  the  gardens,  grounds,  and  parks  of  this  beautiful  estate, 
but  these  were  comparatively  brief,  owing  to  the  importance  of  the 
festive  occasion.  To  make  up  this  deficiency  it  is  now  proposed  to 
give  a  few  paragraphs  that  it  is  hoped  will  not  prove  uninteresting  to 
“  Journalites.”  Much  of  the  information  given  in  the  above  references 
called  attention  to  Lord  Leigh’s  popularity  as  a  land  owner  in  Warwick¬ 
shire,  as  well  from  the  intense  interest  he  displays  in  his  tenantry,  as  for 
his  kindness  in  throwing  open  his  parks  tor  the  admission  of  all  and 
sundry.  A  privilege  of  this  nature  is  a  great  boon  to  the  dwellers  in 
Leamington,  Coventry,  Warwick,  and  Birmingham,  of  which  the  three 
first  named  are  comparatively  close  to  the  parks  of  Stoneleigh. 
Such  is  the  high  appreciation  in  which  the  privilege  is  held  that  th<- 
name  of  the  “  Hyde  Park  of  the  Midlands  ”  has  been  applied  to  it,  and  ii 
is  by  no  means  a  misnomer.  The  immense  parks,  one  in  the  immediate 
contiguity  to  the  Abbey  itself,  and  the  other — reserved  for  the  great  herds 
of  deer  —  cover  many  hundreds  of  acres,  aDd  both  are  undulating  and 
beautifully  wooded.  To  either  of  these  free  admission  is  granted,  and 
visitors  are  at  perfect  liberty  to  roam  at  their  own  sweet  will.  They 
the  nearest  fence  ;  wUile  now  any  number  of  visitors  may  come,  and  they  are 
welcome  to  enjoy  the  attractions  of  wood,  river,  garden,  and  field  around 
them.  And  of  wood  there  is  much  to  admire,  both  collectively  and  in 
individual  specimens,  for  no  part  of  “  leafy  Warwickshire  ”  is  better 
timbered  than  this.  On  every  hand  are  groves  and  plantations  of  vary¬ 
ing  sizes,  and  containing  different  kinds  of  trees  in  enormous  numbers. 
The  banks  of  the  Avon  in  places  are  most  beautifully  clad  in  verdure, 
and  present  many  a  picture  that  has  no  doubt  delighted  the  artist 
and  found  work  for  his  reproducing  brush.  Here  and  there  the 
trees  dip  into  the  water,  and  as  one  stands  on  the  banks  the  reflections 
are  singularly  attractive.  The  general  effect  of  Stoneleigh  cannot  but 
impress  every  observer  with  a  sense  of  its  beauty  and  its  diversity,  as  well 
as  its  stately  grandeur. 
Under  the  guidance  of  Mr.  H.  T.  Martin,  the  gardener,  we  traversed 
what  we  will  term  the  home  park  and  the  deer  park  in  the  cool  of  an 
August  evening,  passing  from  the  Grecian  Lodges  on  the  one  hand  to 
Tantary  on  the  other.  Of  all  the  trees  noted  in  this  pleasant  walk  the 
Beeches  were  perhaps  the  most  conspicuous,  though  Silver  Birches, 
Planes,  Sycamores,  and  Sweet  Chestnuts  were  little  less  inferior.  The 
last  named  are  abundant,  and  some  of  them  splendidly  formed.  As 
gnarled,  and  in  many  instances  decrepit  specimens,  the  Oaks  would  be 
difficult  to  surpass.  But  to  see  grand  Oaks  so  far  as  timber  is  concerned 
we  have  to  go  beyond  the  Grecian  Lodges  to  an  adjacent  wood,  where 
there  are  numbers  handsome  in  their  symmetry  and  strength.  These  are 
j-r*. 
Photo,  by  Mr.  \V.  P.  Kimberley, 
Castle  Studio,  Kenilworth. 
Fig.  40.— THE  MONASTERY  AT  STONELEIGH. 
may  recline  beneath  the  shade  of  aged  Oaks  or  loll  on  the  banks  of  the 
lovely  Avon  and  watch  the  fish  disport  themselves  in  the  clear  waters. 
Glimpses  that  may  be  caught  of  the  winding  river  through  the  trees  from 
many  vantage  points  show  a  variety  of  scenery  that  is  as  surprising  as  it 
is  attractive.  Four  miles  of  the  immortal  river  are  on  Lord  Leigh’s 
property,  and  these  waters  he  keeps  clean.  The  river  runs  a  winding 
course,  and  wanderings  in  the  parks  and  grounds  are  continually  bringing 
it  into  view  in  the  most  unexpected  quaiters,  and  this  alone  renders 
Stoneleigh  more  than  ordinarily  interesting. 
If  it  were  wished  to  treat  the  Abbey  from  a  historic  aspect  we  should 
have  to  carry  our  readers  back  prior  to  the  days  of  the  Second  Henry, 
for  it  was  this  monarch  who  handed  it  over  to  a  body  of  Cistercian  monks 
in  1154  From  the  “Pall  Mall  Magazine,”  in  which  the  Hon.  Miss 
Mary  Leigh  gave  a  most  interesting  account  of  Stoneleigh,  we  learn 
that  the  estate  first  came  into  the  family  in  the  reign  of  Bluff  King  Hal, 
when  it  was  purchased  by  Sir  Thomas  Leigh.  Those  were  troublous 
times,  as  were  others  in  the  time  of  Charles  I.,  when  the  then  owner,  to 
quote  Miss  Leigh’s  words,  “  was  reputed  a  giant ;  and  it  is  told  of  him, 
though  with  what  truth  we  know  not,  that  on  one  occasion,  finding  a 
man  riding  a  donkey  trespassing  within  his  park,  he  lifted  up  man  and 
beast  and  threw  them  over  the  gate.  This  giant  was  created  a  baron  by 
the  First  Charles.” 
How  different  must  have  been  the  ideas  of  the  owners  of  Stoneleigh  in 
those  days  from  the  opinions  of  the  present  Lord  Leigh  !  Then,  if  tres¬ 
passers  were  not  prosecuted,  they  were  thrown  more  op  less  gently  over 
not  the  only  trees  observable  by  the  way,  for  there  are  Limes  and  Elms 
with  others,  but  they  serve  the  purpose  of  illustrating  the  variety  in  the 
parks  alone.  As  we  proceed  towards  Tantary  we  see  herd  after  herd  of 
deer  here  reposing,  there  quietly  feeding,  and  yonder  standing  beneath 
the  shade  of  some  wide-spreading  Beech  or  waving  Bracken.  It  was  a 
most  enjoyable  walk  over  the  thick  turf,  and  one  which  could  be  thoroughly 
appreciated  after  the  sweltering  heat  of  London’s  stuffy  streets. 
If  the  parks  of  Stoneleigh  are  attractive,  the  pleasure  grounds  and 
gardens  are  much  more  so,  at  any  rate  from  a  horticultural  standpoint.  In 
one  portion  of  the  former,  known  as  The  Grove,  and  which  is  reached  by 
crossing  the  river  and  mounting  a  very  steep  incline,  there  are  several 
beautiful  peeps,  one  including  the  river,  and  the  mansion  with  the  park 
on  the  left  and  beyond,  being  particularly  pleasing.  On  the  summit  of 
the  walk  is  a  summer  house,  whence  there  are  numbers  of  charming 
pictures.  The  value  of  water  and  trees  in  a  landscape  were  never  better 
exemplified,  and  Nature  has  done  what  man  never  could  do,  though  Art 
has  added  to  the  scene.  The  winding  stream  glistening  amidst  the 
greenery  cannot  fail  to  attract  every  observer.  On  the  banks  near  the 
mansion  flowering  plants  that  appreciate  the  moisture  have  been  utilised, 
as  have  foliage  plants  with  similar  proclivities.  One  ever  hears  of  the 
beauty  of  the  Avon  at  Stratford,  but  less  often  of  its  attractions  at  Stone¬ 
leigh,  and  yet  they  are  worthy  the  best  pen  of  the  writer  or  cleverest 
brush  of  the  painter.  At  all  seasons  it  is  lovely,  but  I  should  say  more 
especially  so  in  the  spring  and  autumn  months. 
In  front  of  the  Abbey  there  is  a  formal  flower  garden,  surrounded  on 
