Richmond Park
- Royal connection back to King Edward in the 12th Century when it was known as the Manor of Sheen
- 2,500 acres – London’s largest Royal Park.
- From it’s high point there is a protected view to St Paul’s cathedral – 12 miles away.
- Name was changed to Richmond during King Henry VII’s reign.
- Charles I moved to the park to escape the plague, turning it into a park for red and fallow deer.
- 1637 he enclosed the land, allowing pedestrians right of way. The wall remains today.
- 1847 Pembrooke Lodge became the home of then Prime Minister Lord John Russell.
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Isabella Plantation
- 17th Century area was known as The Sleyt – meaning boggy ground.
- By 1771 shown as Isabella Slade – corruption of the word isabel meaning dingy or greyish yellow.
- 1831 Lord Sidmouth, Richmond Park deputy ranger, fenced of 42 acres – planting oak, beech and sweet chestnut as a crop for timber.
- 1950 the present layout of gardens, clearings, ponds and streams is established.
- 1953 opened to the public.
- 1960 the main stream is dug through the garden.
- 1989 a wild stream was dug in the northern section of the garden.
- Wilson Kurume Azaelas evergreens feature heavily – first introduced to the west from Japan in the 1920’s
- Specialises in rare and unusual tree types and shrub species.
- Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- Ponds and streams provide habitat for invertebrates and amphibians.