A history of gardening in England

Preface To The Third Edition

A NUMBER of years have already elapsed since the second edition of this book appeared, and during that interval there has been a very great revival of gardening in England, and works on the subject have multiplied with extraordinary rapidity. Few volumes, however, have been devoted to the early history, and but little has been produced^from the sources I endeavoured to open up, and to prepare for further investigation. Although details of countless gardens in the kingdom have been published, no other attempt has been made to classify or arrange them chronologically. No one else has tried to review consecutively the changes which have taken place, and the fashions which have prevailed, or to follow the process of development which has gradually led up to the modern garden, and I believe this volume still remains the only work of reference on the subject.

In these circumstances it appears a new edition may be welcome. Here and there I have been able to add a few facts from original authorities to further illustrate each period, such as notes from the MSS. records of Westminster Abbey, from those of the Gardeners' Company, or of Humphry Repton at a still later date. The most important additions are with regard to the work of Le Notre in this country. For some of this information I am indebted to the help of friends, particularly of M. Edouard Andre, Miss Sybil Buxton, and Miss Godden. The chapter dealing with the nineteenth century has been almost entirely rewritten. Many suggestions of possible developments thrown out fifteen years ago have proved prophetic, and are now facts, and have accordingly been treated viii PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION

historically, and a short chapter touching the most modem aspects of gardening has been appended. A few new illustrations have been added, the more important being those of some lead statues of historical interest. The bibliography has been revised and augmented by several works and editions which have come to light.

It seems necessary to add a few words to explain why I describe myself as a " citizen and gardener of London," which some reviewers of one of my other books supposed to be a fanciful title. I was given the Freedom of the Gardeners' Company in 1896, and was duly admitted to the Freedom of the City of London, through the Court of Aldermen, an honour which for some years I was the only lady to possess, and of which I am extremely proud.

In reprinting the dedication I feel this third edition is a tribute to the memory of my father. I should like to record that I learnt all my practical knowledge of gardening as a child from my mother, who had always been devoted to gardening long years before it was considered a fashionable pastime for ladies ; and but for the help and encouragement of my father and his famous library, now, alas ! dispersed, this book would never have been written. Nearly all the rare gardening works quoted — Macer, the "Aggregator," " Ortus Sanitatis," the works of Turner, Gerard, Parkinson, Tusser, Hill, and countless other writers, were my familiar friends from my childhood in the " Amherst Library," and many other quaint editions were added from time to time as I needed them for my researches. I learnt how to read the cramped handwritings and abbreviations of the old records I had to consult, by practising on the Wyclif, Northewode, Hampole, and other fourteenth-century manuscripts, to which I had free access at my home. This book is chiefly the result of living with these precious volumes, which were collected with great knowledge, and treasured with deep appreciation by my father.

ALICIA M. CECIL.

10, Eaton Place, October, 1909.

Preface To The Second Edition

THE first edition was so quickly sold out that there has been a demand for a second before I have had time to make many additions. There are, however, a few alterations, the chief of them being the insertion of a part of the plans of the Monastery of Canterbury from an early manuscript ; the correct view of Ingestre, instead of that of Castle Bromwich, which was substituted by mistake in the first edition ; and the addition of a view of Gunnersbury.

I must express my thanks to all friends who have kindly pointed out misprints overlooked in the first edition, which I have endeavoured to rectify. I am also indebted to those who have helped me to add the names of a few more books to the

Bibliography.

ALICIA M. T. AMHERST.

Preface To The First Edition

KNOWING that I was fond both of practical gardening and the study of old garden literature, Mr. Percy Newberry suggested to me in the spring of 1891 that I should edit some articles he had written on the " History of Gardening in England down to the Reign of Elizabeth," which had appeared in the Gardener's Chronicle in 1889, and that I should carry on the history from that point. I became so much interested in the subject, and had collected so much new material, that I decided to enlarge on the original plan, and not only to continue the history, but to traverse again all the earlier part, drawing my information afresh from the original authorities. I wish, therefore, to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. Newberry, who so kindly put his articles and notes at my disposal in the first instance.

This work does not pretend to be a history of the gardens of England, which would, indeed, be a delightful task to carry out; therefore many well-known gardens have not been mentioned in the following pages, only a few examples having been cited to serve as illustrations of each successive fashion, and to enumerate others would only have been to multiply instances. It is hoped rather that this work, inadequate though it is in comparison with the vastness of the subject, may in some measure serve as a handbook by which to classify gardens, and fix the dates to which they belong. In many cases it must always be difficult to assign an exact date to a garden, as, although frequently a garden adjoining the house has existed from very eajrly times, the changes, though few, have been so xii PREFACE

gradual that it is almost impossible to determine for certain the time at which they assumed their present condition. I have to thank the many friends who have very kindly afforded me information respecting their gardens, and provided me with plans or photographs, or who have given me ready access to the manuscripts in their possession in public or private collections.

I also wish gratefully to acknowledge the kindness of Mr. J. G. Baker, F.R.S., in looking over the following pages whilst still in proof-sheets. The correction of the proofs had been rendered an easy task for me by the kind co-operation of my friend, Miss Margaret MacArthur. My thanks are also due to Professor Skeat and Mr. James Britten for their help in the identification of some of the plants mentioned in the fifteenth-century manuscripts, and to Mr. R. E. G. Kirk, who assisted me in deciphering some of the earlier Latin ones ; also to Mr. Michael Kemey for revising my bibliography of printed books on Gardening to the end of the seventeenth century. I regret that the continuation from the year 1699 has not received as much time and attention as I wished to bestow upon it, as I have had to complete it rather hurriedly on account of my having been absent abroad for several months.

ALICIA M. T. AMHERST.

DiDLiNGTON Hall, Norfolk,

September, 1895.

Contents

CHAPTER FAl^B.

I. MONASTIC GARDENING ----- I

II. THIRTEENTH CENTURY - - - - -3°

Appendix

SURVEYS OF WIMBLEDON AND THEOBALDS, 1649 - - 317

LIST OF ENGLISH PRINTED BOOKS ON GARDENING CHRONO- LOGICALLY ARRANGED DOWN TO THE YEAR 1 837 - 332 NAMES OF THE AUTHORS OF WORKS ON GARDENING

ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY - - - - 378

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

ORCHARD AND VINEYARD OF THE MONASTERY OF CANTERBURY 8

From MS. c. ii6_s, in Trinity College, Cambridge.

PART OF THE PLAN OF THE MONASTERY OF CANTERBURY - 8

From MS. c. ii6_s, in Trinity College, Cambridge.

VINE PRUNERS - - - - - - - 82

From an Anglo-Saxon MS.^ eleventh century. [B. M. Cotton Tiberins^ B.J.)

ASHRIDGE, SHOWING PART OF THE OLD CLOISTER WALL - 28

GARDEN IN A TOWN - - - - - * S^

From French MS., late fifteenth century. {B. M. add. ig,y20.)

From "Roman de la Rose," Flemish MS., late fifteenth century. (B. M. Harl., 4,433.)

TURFED SEAT IN A GARDEN WALL - - - "SO

From ^^ Roman de la Rose," Flemish MS., late fifteenth century. {B. M. Harl., 4,425.)

From an English MS., •' Speculum," c. 1450. {B. M., 2,838.)

From "Roman de la Rose," Flemish MS., late fifteenth century. (B. M. Harl., 4,423.)

"THE FEATE OF GARDENING," BY ION GARDENER - - 64

MS. c. 1440, Trinity College, Cambridge.

THE MOUNT, ROCKINGHAM - - - - - 70

OLD YEW WALK AND MOUNT, ROCKINGHAM - - - 70

From a drawing by Howard Carter.

GARDEN WITH A GALLERY - - - - - 72

From " The Second Booke of Flowers, Fruicts, Beastes, Birds, and Flies," j6jo.

XV xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

TUDOR GARDEN HOUSE, LOSELEY - - - - "74

From a drawing by Howard Carter.

RAILED FLOWER-BED - - - - - - 76

From French MS. of the " Rofuan de la Rose, ' ' c. 14S0. {B. M, Egerton, 2,022.)

PART OF A PICTURE AT HAMPTON COURT SHOWING THE RAILED

BEDS AND BEASTS - - - - - -76

From the " Gardener's Labyrinth," by Didymous Mountain, 1^77.

THE EAGLE POND, NEWSTEAD ABBEY - - - -78

APRICOT-TREES ON OLD GARDEN WALL, LITTLECOTE - - 84

TOOLS USED IN GRAFTING IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY - 84

From the " Arte of Gardening," by THOMAS Hill, 1^68.

GRAFTING ---.--. 96 From the " Arte of Gardening," by LEONARD Mascall, ijga.

CORNER OF A WALLED GARDEN - - - - - 96

From " Gardener's Labyrinth," 1^77.

PLEACHED ALLEY AT DRAYTON - - - - - ICO

BOSCOBEL AT THE END OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY - - I02

EXAMPLE OF TOPIARY WORK IN COTTAGE GARDEN, H ADDON - 1 06 From a drawing by Lady William Cecil.

ELIZABETHAN TOPIARY WORK, HESLINGTON - - - 106

CHARTER OF THE GARDENER's COMPANY- - - - I18

CASTLE BROMWICH - - - - - - 1 26

From Dugdale's " Antiquities of Warwickshire" 1730.

CASTLE BROMWICH AT THE END OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 1 26

ORANGE COURT AT BURGHLEY HOUSE - - - " T38

From a picture in the possession of the Marquess of Exeter.

From an engraving in the Tyssen Library, Hackney.

From the title-page of his " Herbal" 1^97'

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xvii

From the title-page of his " Paradisus," 1629,

GARDEN GATES, BULWICK, ERECTED ABOUT 1 674 - - 162

SUNDIAL, EUSTON, WITH THE ARLINGTON ARMS, ABOUT 1671 - 164 Drawn from a photograph by Miss Ethel FitzRoy.

GARDEN AND MOAT, HUNSTANTON, LAID OUT ABOUT 163O - 1 64

From a drawing by HoN. Margaret Amherst.

ORANGERIE AT CHISWICK - - - - - - 1 76

From an engraving by ROCQUE, 1736.

ORANGERIE AND CANAL, EUSTON- - - - - 176

From a sketch by Edmond Prideaux, c. 1716. In the possession of Charles Glynn Prideaux Brune, Esq.

LEVENS, PART OF THE GARDEN LAID OUT ABOUT 1 689 - - I90

From a picture by Geo. S. Elgood.

NETHERTON - - - - - - -I 96

From a sketch by Edmond Prideaux, 7727.

LEAD STATUE AT GLEMHAM. ON THE SUNDIAL THE ARMS

From " The Retired Gardener,^' by London and Wise.

PARTERRE (No. VII.) ..---- 204

From " The Retired Gardener,'' by LONDON AND Wise.

PLAN OF CANONS ASHBY, LAID OUT IN 1708 . - - 206

Drawn by SiR Henry Dryden.

PHYSIC GARDEN, CHELSEA (iN 1 894) - - - - 2l6

LEAD STATUES AT GLEMHAM : MARLBOROUGH AND PRINCE EUGENE 2x8

"INGESTRE, THE SEAT OF LORD VISCOUNT CHETWYND " - - 222

From Plot's " Staffordshire," First Edition, 1686.

" CASHIOBURY, THE SEAT OF THE RT. HONBLE. THE EARLE OF

ESSEX IN HARTFORDSHIRE " ... - - 222

From an engravitig by KiP.

BRAMHAM, LAID OUT IN THE REIGN OF QUEEN ANNE - - 224

From a drawing by Vernet Carter.

HALL BARN, LAID OUT IN THE REIGN OF GEORGE I. - - 226

From a drawing by Vbrnet Carter.

xviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

BELTON IN LINCOLNSHIRE - - - - - 228

From an engraving by Badeslad.

PALLADIAN BRIDGE AT STOW - - - - . 232

TITLE-PAGE OF CATALOGUE OF THE SOCIETY OF GARDENERS, 1730 236

GUNNERSBURY PARK : A TEMPLE IN THE GARDEN, DESIGNED BY

CASTLE ASHBY, DESIGNED BY BROWN .... 248

ROCHE ABBEY - ...... 254

From a drawing by Hon. Margaret Amherst.

BURGHLEY : THE TEMPLE DESIGNED BY BROWN - - - 254

From a drawing by HoN. Margaret Amherst.

WOODFORD (No. l), FROM A DRAWING BY H. REPTON j (No. 2), FROM THE SAME DRAWING, SHOWING THE SUGGESTED IMPROVE- MENTS -.-----. 258

From a sketch by Edmund Prideaux about 1731.

Photographed from as nearly as possible the same spot in i8g4.

ARLEY, LAID OUT ABOUT 1 845 IN THE OLD FORMAL STYLE - 278

SHRUBLANDS, LAID OUT ABOUT 1830 IN THE ITALIAN STYLE - 278

HAREWOOD, AN EARLY VICTORIAN ITALIAN GARDEN - • 296

LILIES IN WILD GARDEN ; MISS JEKYLL's GARDEN, MUNSTEAD,

TREE FERNS (" DICKSONIA ANTARCTICA") AT BOSAHAN, I908 - 304 From a photograph by SiR Arthur Pendarves Vivian, K.C.B.

NARCISSUS IN THE SCILLY ISLES . - - - - 304

From a photograph by GiBSON, Penzance.

ROCK-GARDEN, BATSFORD - . . . - . 308

CHAPTER I Virgil: Geor., iv. ii8

THE history of the Gardens of England follows step by step the history of the people. In times of peace and plenty they increased and flourished, and during years of war and disturbance they suffered. The various races that have predominated and rulers that have governed this country influenced the gardens in a marked degree. Therefore, in tracing their history, the people whose national characteristics or whose foreign alhances left a stamp upon the gardens they made must not be lost sight of.

Nothing worthy of the name of a garden existed in Britain before the Roman Conquest. The Britons revered the oak, and held the mistletoe sacred, and stained their bodies with woad,^ but of any efforts they may have made for the cultivation of these or any other plants nothing is known. The history of Horticulture in this coimtry cannot fairly be said to begin before the coming of the Romans. In this, as in other sciences, the Romans were so far advanced that it was centuries before they were surpassed, or even equalled, by any other nation.

They cultivated most of the vegetables with which we are still famihar. At Rome, said Pliny the Elder, " the garden ^ Mr. Baker points out that woad is not wild in Britain.

I constituted of itself the poor man's field, and it was from the garden that the lower classes procured their daily food." The rich indulged in luxury and extravagance in the garden, and vegetables and fruits were raised at great cost for their use, which were not enjoyed by the community at large. But most of the vegetables which are still in general use were common to all classes, and many of these plants were brought by the Romans to this country. Some of them took so kindly to this soil, and were so firmly established, that they survived the downfall of the Roman civilization. A curious example of this is one species of stinging-nettle, which tradition says was introduced by the Romans as an esteemed potherb.

Tacitus, writing in the first century, says that the climate of Britain was suitable for the cultivation of all vegetables and fruits, except the olive and the vine. Before long, even the vine was grown, apparently with some success. It is generally believed that the Emperor Probus, about the year 280 a.d., encouraged the planting of vineyards in Britain. Phny states that the cherry was brought here before the middle of the first century. Perhaps he alludes to some improved variety, as that fruit is indigenous in this country.

It cannot be supposed that the Roman gardens in Britain were as fine as those on the Continent. Gardens on such an elaborate scale as that at PHny's Villa, or at the Imperial Villas near Rome, with their terraces, fountains, and statues, could scarcely have been made in this country. But the remains of Roman houses and villas which have been found in various places in JEngland so closely resemble those found in other parts of the Empire, that doubtless the gardens belonging to them were laid out as nearly as possible on the same lines as those of Italy and Gaul. The South of England could afford many a sheltered spot, where figs and mulberries, box and rosemary, would grow as well as at " Villa Laurentina," seventeen miles from Rome. A " terrace fragrant with the scent of violets," traihng vines and ivy ; or enclosures of quaintly-cut trees in the forms of animals or letters filled with roses, would not there seem out of place. If the Roman gardens in Britain were like this — and why should it be doubted when such noble remains of villas, mosaic pavements, baths, roads, and bridges have been left by that nation ? — it was fully a thousand years before anything as beautiful was again seen in our Island.

The fall of the Roman Empire, and the subsequent invasions of barbarians, struck a death-blow to gardening as well as to all other peaceful arts. During the stormy years which succeeded the Roman rule in Britain, nearly all knowledge of horticulture must have died out. Only such plants as were thoroughly naturalized and acclimatized would be strong enough to continue to grow when not properly cultivated.

The few Saxon names of plants which can be traced to the Latin seem to identify these hardy survivors, or at any rate show that the Anglo-Saxons were well acquainted with many of the Roman plant-names. The following list, given by Mr. Earle in English Plant Names, clearly shows their Latin origin :

Latin.

Anglo-Saxon.

English.

Amigdala Beta

Magdula treow Bete

Almond Beet

Buxus

Box

Box

Cannabis Caulis

Haenep Caul

Hemp Kale

Coliandrum

Celendre

Coriander

Choerophyllum Castanea

Cerfille Cisten beam^

Chervil Chestnut

Cornus

Corn treow

Cornel

Crotalum

Hratele

Yellow rattle

Cuminum

Cymen

Cummin

Cerasus

Febrifugia

Ficus

Cherry

Feverfew

Fig

Feniculum

Finul

Fennel

Gladiolum

Glasdene

Gladden

Lactuca

Lactuce

Lettuce

Laurus

Laur beam^

Laurel

Linum

Lin saed

Linseed

Lihum Lubestica

Lilige Lufestice

Lily Lovage

Malva

Mealwe

Mallow

Morus Mentha

Mor beam* Minte

Mulberry Mint

Beam = the living tree, as Ger. " Baum.

Latin.

Anglo-Saxon.

English.

Napus

Naep

Tuv-ni-p

Papaver

Popig

Poppy

Persica

Persoc treow

Peach

Petroselinum

Petersilie

Parsley-

Pirus

Pirige

Pear

Porrum

Por leac

Leek

Prunus

Plum treow

Plum

Radix

Raedic

Radish

Rosa

Ro-se

Rose

Ruta

Rude

Rue

Sinapi

Senap

Mustard

Unio

Yul leac

Onion

Ulmus

Ulm treow

Elm

Vinea

Win treow

Vine

It may be that some plants, such as the cherry, cabbage, lettuce, leek, onion, radish, rose, and parsley, continued in this country ; although many species which were in cultivation in Britain, in Roman times, had to be reintroduced into England at a later date, having been entirely lost during the years of Teutonic invasion. On the Continent, the same state of things followed the dissolution of the Roman Empire, and horticulture only revived with the spread of Christianity and the establishment of monasteries after a lapse of centuries.

In this country the revival was due to the same cause, and in the early years of England's history undoubtedly the monks were better skilled in horticulture than any other class of the community. The lines in which their lives were cast tended to maintain this superiority. They were left quiet, and, to a great extent, undisturbed by wars ; and when other property was destroyed and plundered, that of the monks was respected. Many of them were men of skill and intelligence, and they were able to learn, not only from books, but from their intercourse with the Continent, both what plants to grow and how to grow them.

The earliest records of gardens on the Continent (after Roman times) date from the ninth century. In the hst of Manors of the Abbey of Saint Germain des Pres, Saint Armand and Saint Remy, in the time of Karl the Great, mention is made of various gardens.^ At other places, as at Corbie, in

^ Polyptyque de I'Ahhe Irminon, ed. by M. B. Guerard, Paris, 1844.

Picardy, and at St. Gall, near the lake of Constance, there remains more than a mere mention of the existence of a garden. At Corbie the garden was very large ; either divided into four, or else four distinct gardens, and ploughs, which had to be contributed annually by certain tenants, were used to keep it in order ; while other tenants had to send men from April to October to assist the monks in weeding and planting.^ At St. Gall, the " hortus " is a rectangular enclosure, with a central path leading from the gardener's house and a shed for tools and seeds situated at one end, with nine long and narrow beds of equal size on either side. The " herbularis," or physic garden, is smaller, with a border of plants all round the wall, and four beds on either side of the central walk ; and the plants contained in each of these beds are carefully noted."

In England there is no such exact description of any garden, and it is only by carefully examining the records of the various monasteries that the existence of gardens or orchards in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and a few of even earlier date, can be proved.

A garden was a most essential adjunct to a monastery, as vegetables formed so large a proportion of the daily food of the inmates. Therefore, as soon as monasteries were founded, gardens must have been made around them, and these were probably almost the only gardens worthy of the name in the kingdom at that time. Still, the number of plants they contained was very limited, and probably many of those grown on the Continent had not found their way into this country. The monks may have received plants from abroad, as some connection with religious houses on the Continent was kept up ; and in bringing back treasures for their monasteries or churches the garden would not be forgotten. But plants were chiefly brought for medicine, and were probably imported in a dry state, as our word " drug " is simply part of the Anglo- Saxon verb " drigan," to dry.

I Soon after monasteries had been estabhshed in this country, missionary monks set forth to convert their Teutonic kinsfolk on the Continent. It has been suggested by Mr. Earle that

* Polyptyque de I' Abbe Irminon, ed. by M. B. Guerard, Paris, 1844. ' AvchcBological Institute Journal,, vol. v.

some of the German names of plants which resemble Old English are not cognates, but were derived from words used by the Saxon missionaries, who first brought with them the knowledge of the virtues of those plants. -"^

The old word for garden was " wyrt5erd," a plant yard, or " wyrttun," a plant enclosure ; also the form " ort5erd," or " orceard," which is the same as our word orchard, though the meaning is now confined to an enclosure planted with fruit-trees. " Wyrt," or " wurt," was used for any sort of vegetable or herb, and is the same as the modern word " wort," suffixed to so many names of plants, as " St. John's Wort," or " herb John." Sometimes a special plant filled most of the enclosure ; thus the kitchen garden was occasionally called the " leac tun," or leek enclosure. We still speak of an appleyard, the old " appultun," or " appul5erd," but we say a cherry-orchard, while the old word was equally simply " cherry 5erd."^ A part of the monastery garden laid down in grass, where no flowers were grown, was called the " gras5erd," and in like manner the space surrounded by the cloisters was the " cloyster3erd." The modern word garden is another form of this word " 5erd," garth, or yard ; all are derived from an Aryan root meaning an enclosure.

At this early period, and for many centuries later, gardens were planted chiefly for their practical use, and vegetables and herbs were grown for physic or ordinary diet. Flowering plants were but rarely admitted solely on account of their beauty. But it does not necessarily follow that bright and pretty flowers found no place within the garden walls. Roses, lilies, violets, peonies, poppies, and such-like, all had medicinal uses, and therefore would not be excluded.

The beauty of flowers appeals to nearly everyone, and even in the most disorderly periods of our early history they may have exercised some softening influence. A pretty story is told of William Rufus, which shows that monarch, as it were for a moment, in a more gentle light than perhaps any other incident during his turbulent reign. Eadgyth, or Matilda, afterwards

*■ The German for Plantago is " Wegbreit," the A.S. " Waegbroede." The old German for Camomile was " meghede," the A.S. " magede.'' 2 MSS. Gardeners' Accounts, Norwich Priory.

the wife of Henry I., was being educated at the convent of Romsey, where her Aunt Christina was Abbess. When the child was twelve years old, the Red King wished to see her, and one day the Abbess was distressed to hear him and his knights demanding admission at the convent gate. The good lady, fearing some evil purpose towards the child, made her wear a nun's veil ; then she opened to the King, who entered, " as if to look at the roses and other flowering herbs." While the rough King thus inspected her flowers, the Abbess made the nuns pass through the garden. Eadgyth appearing veiled among the rest, the King suffered her to go by, and quietly took his leave. ^ The story was told by the Abbess to Ansehn, who narrated it to Eadmer, in whose history this most picturesque scene is recorded.

While the Abbess Christina was adorning her cloister gardens with roses and flowering herbs, other monasteries were being beautified in Uke manner. The first Abbot of Ely, Brithnodus, was famed for his skill in planting and grafting, and improved the Abbey by making orchards and gardens around it.^

It seems as if there were gardens at Ely earher than his time (twelfth century), as the following quaint story impHes the existence of some sort of garden in the neighbourhood of Ely. It is related among various miracles wrought at the tomb of St. Etheldreda^ how the hand of a girl was cured. She was servant to a certain priest, and " was gathering herbs in the garden on the Lord's Day, when the wood which she held in her hand, and with which she desired to pluck the herbs unlawfully, so firmly adhered (to her hand) that no man could pluck it out for the space of five years ; by the merits of St. Etheldreda [she] was cured." The Saint died in 679, and, although of no historical value, surely such a curious legend is worth relating.

* Migne, PatrologicB cursus completus, torn. 159-160, sec. xii. " Eadmer," p. 427. Also D'Achery, Spicilegium (Paris, 1723), vol. ii., p. 893. Freeman, Wm. Rufus, vol. ii., p. 32.

^ Dugdale, Monasticon, vol. i., p. 473 (new ed.).

The earliest view of a monastery garden in this country appears to be that in the plans or bird's-eye views of the monastic buildings at Canterbury, made about 1165, and bound up with the Great Psalter of Eadwin, now in the library of Trinity College, Cambridge. These drawings seem to have been made (probably by the engineer Wibert or his assistants) to record the system of waterworks and drainage of the monastery.^ One of them shows the Herbarium, which occupies half the space between the Dormitory and the Infirmary, surrounded by cloisters ; the other the orchard and vineyard, which were situated beyond the walls. The first plan records also trees within the wall near the fish-pond. In later times a further wall was built beyond the fish-pond, including what was afterwards known as the old convent garden, the site of which was obtained in parcels between the years 1287 and 1368. There must have been another orchard on the west of the great cloister and a garden into which the palace of the Archbishop looked, but these were beyond the limits of the plans, although contemporary with them, as they are associated with the closing scenes in the hfe of Thomas Becket (1170). The knights who were soon after his murderers " Threw off their cloaks and gowns under a large sycamore in the garden, appeared in their armour and girt on their swords," and armed men were collected in the orchard, so that Becket and his attendant monks, flying to the church, had to pass through a small door at the back of the cloister, instead of going by the usual passage through the orchard to the west end of the church.^

Few records of such an early date have come down to us, but monastic hfe did not quickly change, and probably the gardens of the fourteenth century differed little from those of the twelfth. To gain a fuller knowledge of these gardens, we must pass over two centuries to the time when written accounts begin to be preserved, and there is more material on which to work. From the study of old manuscripts the outHnes of the management of these gardens are clear, although the details can only be filled in by imagination.