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Summary

Grimsthorpe Castle gardens and park, Edenham.

Full description

A landscape park of medieval origin which was developed in the 17th and 18 centuries. It is about 810 hectares in size. It is also the site of a Cistercian Abbey of Vaudey, founded in 1147, 1.5 km south of the Castle (see PRN 33650). The Castle gardens were laid out to the south, by George London in about 1690, and are shown in engravings from Beeverell, 1707 and Knyff and Kip, 1714. The gardens are laid out in formal and geometrical schemes including symmetrical parterres and foundations to south. There are enclosed kitchen gardens to the east, the 1300m long North Avenue, and long approach drives to the south and south-west. Developments from about 1720 are attributed to Stephen Switzer, which were sketched by William Stukeley in 1736. Stukeley's four drawings are of gardens to the south - parterre beneath southern door of Castle, and woodland and great avenue stretching for 1km beyond. The circular area of woodland immediately beyond the parterre is crossed by radial avenues terminating in 'bastions', slightly raised viewing points with rudimentary ha-ha on outer side. Outlines of several formal features survive, including long approach drives. These are both interrupted and diverted by a stream and lakes which divide the upper part of Grimsthorpe Park. Four Mile Riding, the Wern approach, crosses the lakes by a causeway, the Red Bridge; Chestnut Avenue passes round the southern end of the main lake. Landscaping was well advanced in 1768, when it was praised by Arthur Young, though the main lake was not enlarged to its present size until Capability Brown was called in, in 1771-72. Brown made several plans for alterations of the grounds, including a design for an (unexecuted) sham bridge, to cross between the lakes. The present causeway, the Red Bridge, was probably made by John Grundy, who worked at Grimsthorpe from the 1750s onwards. The south parterre was redeveloped in the 19th century, with an extensive rectangular lawn on central axis, paved pathways to left and right, with bedding, topiary, urns and sculpture - this is now maintained in simplified form. There is a slightly raised rectangular grassed terrace on the west side of the Castle. On the east side is a walled kitchen garden designed by Lady Ancaster, in 1965. It was laid out as two rectangular parterres, with the northern part being geometrically divided with herbs and vegetable filling, and the southern part planted with fruit trees. There is a herbaceous border and climbers on the east wall. {1}{2}{3}{4}{5}{6}{7}{8}{9}{10}{11}

The park is recorded on the c.1880 and c.1905 Ordnance Survey maps. {12}{13}

A small, roughly rectangular hollow was recorded in August 2010, during the archaeological monitoring of the replacement of electrical cables at Grimsthorpe Castle, Edenham (PRN 33661a - TF 0467 2297). The hollow was interpreted as the remains of a small post-medieval cottage enclosure, and was filled with a levelling layer of demolition waste, from which a small assemblage of post-medieval material was recovered. The assemblage included mid 16th century pottery, late 17th to 18th century clay pipe stems, animal bone, glass, a piece of lead and a ferrous nail.
A subsequent earthwork survey recorded the enclosure with a series of rear garden terraces. A hollow way, bound by low banks and leading to the enclosure from the north-east, was also recorded. {14}{15}

A single copper alloy cartridge case was identified during archaeological monitoring of repair works to the Vaudey Pond. Grimsthorpe Park is known to have been used for a short period during the Second World War, as a base for elements of the 1st Battalion The Parachute Regiment, prior to their deployment in 1944 as part of Operation Market Garden. The cartridge was of .303 calibre, as would be used in a variety of weapons, although it was quite corroded and was not retained. {16}{17}

<1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Card Index, TF 02 SW: 7 (Index). SLI2344.

<2> J. Charles Cox, 1924, Little Guide: Lincolnshire (Second Edition), pp.121-2 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI896.

<3> TIPPING, H.A., 1928, ENGLISH HOMES - PERIOD 4 1649-1736, vol.2, pp.295-322 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI964.

<4> Nikolaus Pevsner and John Harris, 1964, Buildings of England: Lincolnshire (First Edition), pp.554-8 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI860.

<5> 1897->, Country Life, 12th April 1924, p.572 (Serial). SLI3918.

<6> STROUD, D., 1975, CAPABILITY BROWN, - (Bibliographic Reference). SLI846.

<7> WILLIS P, 1977, CHARLES BRIDGEMAN, PL 167a-168b (Bibliographic Reference). SLI942.

<8> THOROLD AND YATES, 1965, LINCOLNSHIRE: A SHELL GUIDE, - (Bibliographic Reference). SLI1082.

<9> ENGLISH HERITAGE, 1987, REGISTER OF PARKS AND GARDENS OF SPECIAL HISTORIC INTEREST IN ENGLAND, GD1976 (Index). SLI2865.

<10> ST JOSEPH, J.K.S., 1945-79, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY COLLECTION, 23-25EU, JG53-58, OW 33-34 (Aerial Photograph). SLI111.

<11> Skempton, A.W., 1984, ‘The Engineering Works of John Grundy (1719-1783)’ in Lincolnshire History and Archaeology, vol.19, pp.65-82 (Article in Serial). SLI752.

<12> Ordnance Survey, 1883-1888, 6 Inch County Series Map - First Edition, - (Map). SLI9454.

<13> Ordnance Survey, 1902-06, 25 Inch County Series Map - Second Edition, - (Map). SLI3566.

<14> Northamptonshire Archaeology, 2010, Watching Brief and Earthwork Survey During Electrical Cable Replacement at Grimsthorpe Castle, Edenham, - (Report). SLI13438.

<15> Northamptonshire Archaeology, 2010, Watching Brief and Earthwork Survey During Electrical Cable Replacement at Grimsthorpe Castle, Edenham, LCNCC 2010.104 (Archive). SLI13439.

<16> Archaeological Project Services, 2016, The Vaudey Pond, Grimsthorpe, APS site code: GCVP 16 (Report). SLI15678.

<17> Archaeological Project Services, 2016, The Vaudey Pond, Grimsthorpe, LCNCC 2016.42 (Archive). SLI15679.

Monument Types

• ARTEFACT SCATTER (Post Medieval - 1550 AD to 1799 AD)
• GARDEN (Post Medieval to Modern - 1600 AD to 2050 AD)
• PARK (Post Medieval to Modern - 1600 AD to 2050 AD)

Associated Finds

• ANIMAL REMAINS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• CAME (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• NAIL (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• SHERD (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• WINDOW GLASS (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)
• CLAY PIPE (SMOKING) (Post Medieval - 1650 AD to 1799 AD)

Associated Events

• Watching Brief During Electrical Cable Replacement at Grimsthorpe Castle, Edenham
• Earthwork Survey During Electrical Cable Replacement at Grimsthorpe Castle, Edenham
• The Vaudey Pond, Grimsthorpe

Protected Status

• Registered Park or Garden
• SHINE

Sources and further reading

Related records

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