Royal Parks of London | History of green spaces of London

London is one of the greenest cities in Europe, and apart from numerous smaller gardens and green squares, has 8 major royal parks. Let’s have a quick tour around them. Perhaps two of the most well-known parks are Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, which are situated in each other and together are forming one huge green zone right at the heart of London. In 1536 Henry VIII acquired Hyde Park from the monks of Westminster Abbey and started using it as a private hunting ground. King Charles I was the one who opened the park to the general public in 1637. In 1665, during the Great Plague, Hyde Park was used as a camping territory for citizens who fled the City, hoping to escape the disease. When King William III moved his court to Kensington Palace at the end of 17th century, he found the park dangerous to walk in the evenings, so he had 300 oil lamps installed on his walking route. This was the first artificially lit highway in the country. This route later became known as Rotten Row, which is a corruption of the French ’Route de Roi’ or King’s Road. In 1730s Queen Caroline had initiated major renovations in the park, and created The Serpentine, an artificial lake of more than 11 hectares. In 1866 Edmund Beales’ Reform League marched on Hyde Park, where the marchers clashed with the police. The Prime Minister however allowed the meetings to continue unchallenged, and since 1872 the park has the Speaker’s Corner - a location where anyone can come and speak out on any topic. Kensington Gardens, situated at the park, is the setting of Kensington Palace. One of the most famous features of the Gardens is the bronze statue of Peter Pan. James Barrie, the author of Peter Pan novel, was inspired by Kensington Gardens, and in 1912 he commissioned Sir George Frampton to build the statue and place it there. Next stop - The Regent’s Park. Known as the jewel of the crown, it was once called Marylebone Park, and remained a royal chase until 1646. It was later developed and designed by John Nash, the architect to the crown and friend of the Prince Regent. John Nash designed the rounded park that we see today, surrounded by palatial terraces, a lake, a canal, 56 planned villas and a summer palace for the Prince, which was never built. General public was allowed into the park only since 1835, and only for two days of the week. St James’s Park is the oldest Royal Park in London, and is surrounded by Houses of Parliament, St James’s Palace, and of course, Buckingham Palace. It was a setting of a hospital in 13th century. In 16th century Henry VIII acquired the site as yet another deer park and built St James’s Palace next to it. It was later renovated by following kings, but it was Charles II who made dramatic changes. He had the park redesigned, with avenues of trees planted and lawns laid. The King opened the park to the public and was often visiting it himself, to feed the ducks. The park is home to the Queen Victoria Memorial, which celebrates the days of the British Empire. Right next to St James’s Park is Green Park, a 40-acres-large garden, which is an important link between St James’s Park and Hyde Park in forming a chain of open spaces of the capital. Unlike the other royal parks, The Green Park has no artefacts, not even formal flowerbeds; rumour has it, back in 17th century King Charles II’s wife demanded all the flowers to be removed from there, after she caught him picking flowers for another woman. Let’s cross the river Thames and have a look at Greenwich Park. It is situated on a hilltop with impressive views across the river to the Docklands and the City of London. It’s a setting for Old Royal Observatory, the Royal Naval College, the National Maritime Museum and the Queen’s House. James I gave the park to his wife, Queen Anne, who commissioned Inigo Jones to design her a special home there, later known as the Queen’s House. During World War II Greenwich Park was a setting for anti-aircraft guns, and the tips of some of the trees were cut off to widen the field of fire. Evidence of this can still be seen in the truncated shape of some of the trees. The largest Royal park in London is Richmond park, covering over 2500 acres. Although being surrounded by houses and buildings, the park itself is a mini-forest with a vast wild life. In 1625 Charles I brought his court to Richmond Palace to escape the plague in London. He enclosed the land with walls, although did allow pedestrians the right of way. To this day the walls remain. Last stop - Bushy park. It’s famous for its mix of waterways, gardens and grassland, and roaming herds of deer. During the Second World War the park became the US air base, where General Eisenhower planned Operation Overlord, the code name for the allied invasion of north-west Europe. The military camp’s remains can still be found in the park. Visit for more.