David Andrews writes:
The Tudor garden at
Cressing Temple, Essex. A Friends Group formed
The great medieval barns at Cressing Temple have been
dominant features of the landscape of this part of central Essex for 800
years. This was one of the most valuable
manors of the Knights Templar, and later the Hospitallers when the Templars
were suppressed in 1312, and the barns are witness to their agricultural
enterprise and the technical skill of their carpenters. It was here that Cecil Hewett carried out some
of his early studies on medieval carpentry, and argued that they were much
older than previously thought. His
theories have been supported by tree-ring dating, which shows the Barley Barn
to be the oldest known timber barn, built between 1235-50.
The importance of the barns was the motivation for Essex
County Council to buy them when the estate was sold in 1987. But the county acquired much more than just
the barns. There was farmhouse, farm
buildings and a walled garden. The two
initial tasks were to understand and research what they now owned, and to carry
out necessary repairs. The third was to
explain and display the site as a heritage attraction for the people of
Essex. When in their turn the
Hospitallers in England were dissolved at the Reformation, the manor was
acquired by Sir John Smyth and remained in his family until 1657. The Smyths replaced the Templars timber hall
and stone chambers with a great brick mansion of the sort typical of the Tudor
period. In the 18th century, a later
non-resident owner rented the estate to a farmer and the house was taken down
brick and has totally disappeared, though its site has been excavated.
All that remains of this period of Tudor splendour is the
walled garden which stood behind the mansion.
Originally a pleasure garden, it had later been used as a kitchen
garden. This was an asset that cried out
for something to be made of it, and so the idea was born of creating a new
Tudor garden which would become one of the attractions of the site. An archaeological excavation to identify any remains
of the original garden was not very informative, but did show that there had
been a raised brick terrace along one side of it, and brick paving round parts
of its perimeter. The new garden was
designed by John Hunter and Martin Wakelin, both sadly no longer with us. It was based on an accurate study of gardens
of the period, and included no features or plants which would have been
introduced after 1600. A timber viewing
platform on one partially reconstructed the original brick terrace. It looks over a knot garden towards the focal
structure of the garden, a brick fountain with four spouts representing the
four rivers of paradise. From the
fountain a rill leads to a still pool. To
one side of the knot garden is the arbour or covered walkway covered with
climbing plants. The rest of the garden
is divided into compartments typical of the period, including a nosegay garden
with scented plants, beds with medicinal herbs, a potager or formal vegetable
garden, and a flowery mead.
The garden was a considerable achievement, unique in the
county and probably East Anglia, and has been popular with the public. However, in the straitened economic
circumstances of the last few years, maintenance has become an issue, prompting
an initiative, sponsored by the Essex Gardens Trust, to set up a Friends
Group. The County Council has welcomed
this development and approved a constitution, which envisages the group working
to promote the gardens, to generate funds, and provide practical help through
volunteering.
For more information on Cressing Temple, go to www.cressingtemple.co.uk.
For information about the Friends of Cressing Temple
Gardens, contact David Andrews (dormerandrews@gmail.com)
or Christine Barrett (crbarrett@blueyonder.co.uk).
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