Hestercombe Gardens
Ownership of the estate and its surrounding lands was transferred to Coplestone Warre Bampfylde (1720-1791) in the 18th century, who was a friend of Henry Hoare.
In preparation for the Normandy invasion, the 398th General Service Engineer Regiment was stationed on the premises, and an American hospital was established following D-Day.
The council repurposed the building for administrative functions and, to this day, it serves as the headquarters for the Somerset Fire and Rescue Service.
Bampfylde himself envisioned and designed the landscape garden, drawing inspiration from the contemporary "Arcadian style", which was highly fashionable at the time.
The watercolors of the landscape garden, preserved by Bampfylde himself, who was also a painter, proved to be invaluable resources for ensuring an authentic restoration.
It features scented perennials in hues of blue, silver, and white, including lavender, rosemary, catnip, and baby's breath.
It is bordered on the north side by a boundary wall made from quarry stones, connecting to the house's elevated level.
The relatively large area of the Great Plat was geometrically structured and broken up by Lutyens primarily through a diagonally running wayside cross.
Encircling the parterre on three sides are robust walls made from sturdy rubble stone, crafted from fragmented slate slabs, and adorned with plantings.
The Great Plat area is divided into four triangular beds, with natural stone slabs and bands of planted Bergenia cordifolia forming the edges.
Crafted from locally sourced quarry stones, the pergola boasts a rhythmic arrangement of rounded and angular columns.
For instance, she strategically placed tall grass perennials as focal points, visually connecting the Great Plat with the three elevated sides of the garden.
Traversing the length of the 43-meter side terraces, two petite walled water channels flow from north to south, surrounded by lawns and planting beds.
[12] For the central garden element, the partially circular intertwined water channels, Gertrud Jekyll drew inspiration from the intricate patterns of traditional needlework.
Lutyens' architectural rendition, inspired by Christopher Wren, is graced by geometric lawn panels, creating a haven of tranquility.
Large white-flowered Yucca gloriosa stand as vertical focal points, with accents of purple-flowered dwarf lavender (Lavandula), catmint (Nepeta), silvery Stachys, Santolina, and rosemary.
The strict regularity and order of the architectural components served as a kind of framework for Gertrud Jekyll's "plant pictures," or herbaceous and floral borders.
[16] Even during the extensive restoration of the formal garden that commenced in 1973, the perennial and summer flower beds were not replanted exactly; rather, they were reimagined in a more streamlined manner, according to Jekyll's original design blueprint.
[17] Edward Lutyens held exclusive responsibility for the construction planning, architectural facets of the formal garden, and the selection and use of the building elements and materials required for it.
Lutyens incorporated Hestercombe House's natural surroundings and, most importantly, the view of the southwest English countryside that was available to him in order to achieve this goal.
[9] Inspired by this way and further developing his ideas, Lutyens preferred geometric structures in the layout of the garden areas, which alternated in many cases.
As a result, Hestercombe Gardens have many elevation changes with stairs going up and down, aligned views, pergolas, vantage points (called "vistas"), and water features like basins and channels.
He intentionally designed connections between the stonework and the plants, like the vegetation on the tall terrace walls of the side garden spaces.
Locally occurring slate (native Lias, called Morte) was used on a larger scale, mainly for walls, stone slabs, step installations, or water basins.
[8][9] Lutyens adopted the technique of building dry-stone walls using shale layers, a method commonly found in the southwest of England where the garden is located.
On the other hand, Jekyll assumed the role of curating planting schemes, ensuring botanical arrangements, and evaluating the holistic interplay between architectural forms and vegetation.
Collaboratively, Jekyll and Lutyens crafted garden arrangements characterized by segmented layouts, visual focal points, and varied elevations.
Together, architecture and planting strategy created aesthetic and horticultural works, few of which survive in their original state, but whose influence resonates in countless gardens.
"[23] Simultaneously, Hestercombe Gardens stands as an important contemporary manifestation of the Arts and Crafts movement that gained popularity at the time.
Fundamental principles of the movement, such as closeness to nature and solid craftsmanship, or material fairness in the selection of building resources, were consistently implemented here.
