The English Garden

Garden design in England was entirely reinvented during the eighteenth century. The strictly symmetrical gardens of the French Baroque were replaced by artificial landscapes which soon became almost indistinguishable from natural scenery.

What continues to govern our notions of a beautiful landscape, even today, is the ideal image of Nature conceived by eighteenth century English landscape gardeners.

Hans von Trotha’s journey through the history of the English garden introduces us to twelve of the mot important, original and beautiful parks in Britain, all of which can be visited today. On the way, we learn how the new landscape garden was born of the spirit of political opposition. We also learn the significance of imitation Greek temples and Gothic ruins.

The foreword presents a historical outline of the origins of the English garden, the appendix a brief survey of the most important ‘English’ gardens in Germany.

HANS VON TROTHA was born in Stuttgart in 1965 and studied literature in Heidelberg and Berlin, doing a PhD in 18th century gardens. He became a radio journalist and later a university lecturer. He is now Editorial Director at Nicola Verlag in Berlin.