Information for record number MWA6965:
Ragley Hall Formal Gardens, Ragley

Summary The site of formal terraced garden which surrounded Ragley Hall during the Post Medieval period.
What Is It?  
Type: Formal Garden, Terraced Garden, Rose Garden, Walk
Period: Modern - Modern (1840 AD - 2050 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Alcester
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 07 55
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Registered Park or Garden (Grade: II*)
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1
2 Formal terraced gardens lie to the west of the Hall, with informal pleasure grounds to the south and an area of shrubbery and informal pleasure ground to the north. A gravelled terrace below the south facade is retained by a rusticated buttressed stone wall which returns below the west facade to retain a rectangular lawn. A flight of stone steps aligned on the centre of the west facade descends to the second terrace which comprises two sunken square panels of lawn, each with a central circular rose bed. The lawns are divided by an axial gravel walk, and there is a further gravel walk to the east of the lawns. Further stone steps descend from the north and south ends of the upper terrace to the eastern gravel walk. This walk is terminated to the north by a stone panel carved with a coronet and the date 1873. A narrow stone-kerbed border extends below the retaining wall of the upper terrace and is planted with roses and ornamental shrubs. The second terrace is enclosed to the north and south by ornamental shrubbery; to the north a stone bird-bath on a tapered pedestal stands in a recess within the shrubbery. A further flight of stone steps placed on an axis with the west facade descends to the rose garden on the third and lowest terrace, which comprises a circular gravel walk which encloses a circular lawn divided into quarters by cruciform gravel walks. Each quarter is laid out with two outer segmental beds and one inner segmental bed, all of which are planted with roses. At the centre of the terrace a narrow circular lawn surrounds a circular rose bed. stone steps aligned on the west facade of the Hall descend from the rose garden to an area of informal lawns planted with 19th century specimen trees and groups of ornamental shrubs; the lawns are separated from the park to the west by 19th century metal estate fencing. A pair of 19th century wrought-iron gates with close-placed spear-headed rails leads from the pleasure grounds to a walk which extends the central axis of the terraced gardens west through the park to a wide avenue cut through the plantation on the east-facing hillside opposite the Hall to frame a view of the skyline.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Register of Parks and Gardens of special historic interest in England
Author/originator: English Heritage
Date: 1994
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Statuatory List
Title: National Heritage List for England
Author/originator: Historic England
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
back to top

Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
none Registered Park or Garden Parks and gardens that are considered to be of historic importance are placed on a register. The register comprises a variety of town gardens, public parks and country estates. The main purpose of the register is to help ensure that the features and qualities that make the parks and gardens special are safeguarded if changes are being considered which could affect them.

The gardens on the register are divided into three grades in order to give some guidance about their significance, in a similar way to Listed Buildings. The majority of parks and gardens on the Register are of sufficient interest as to be designated as grade II. Some, however, are recognised as being of exceptional historic interest and are awarded a star giving them grade II* status. A small number are of international importance, and are classified as grade I.
 		back
period Modern The Modern Period, about 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
more -> 		back
period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
more -> 		back
period modern About 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
more -> 		back
monument ROSE GARDEN * A garden, often geometrical in layout, or area for the cultivation of roses. back
monument TERRACED GARDEN * A garden with one or more platforms with walks, often on different levels, usually close to the house. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument BORDER * A strip of ground forming a fringe to a garden. Use more specific type where known. back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument FORMAL GARDEN * A garden of regular, linear or geometrical design, often associated with the traditional Italian, French and Dutch styles. back
monument PARK * An enclosed piece of land, generally large in area, used for hunting, the cultivation of trees, for grazing sheep and cattle or visual enjoyment. Use more specific type where known. back
monument FACADE * Use wider site type where known. Only use term where no other part of original building survives. back
monument WALK * A place or path for walking in a park or garden. Use more specific type where possible. back
monument PEDESTAL * A concrete, cylindrical pedestal on which a spigot mortar was mounted. The pedestal is often the only evidence for a Spigot Mortar emplacement to survive. back
monument SQUARE * An open space or area, usually square in plan, in a town or city, enclosed by residential and/or commercial buildings, frequently containing a garden or laid out with trees. back
monument GARDEN * An enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of flowers, fruit or vegetables and/or recreational purposes. Use more specific type where known. back
monument PLANTATION * A group of planted trees or shrubs, generally of uniform age and of a single species. back
monument GATE * A movable stucture which enables or prevents entrance to be gained. Usually situated in a wall or similar barrier and supported by gate posts. back
monument LAWN * A flat, and usually level area of mown and cultivated grass, attached to a house. back
monument STEPS * A series of flat-topped structures, usually made of stone or wood, used to facilitate a person's movement from one level to another. back
monument SHRUBBERY * A plantation of shrubs. back
monument WALL * An enclosing structure composed of bricks, stones or similar materials, laid in courses. Use specific type where known. back
monument RETAINING WALL * A wall constructed for the purpose of confining or supporting a mass of earth or water. back
monument TERRACE * A row of houses attached to and adjoining one another and planned and built as one unit. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record