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 Bushy Park |
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Bushy Park is the second largest of the Royal Parks of London with 1,100 acres (4.5 km in area. Bushy Park lies immediately north of Hampton Court Palace and Hampton Court Gardens. It is in the southwest of London , in the borough of Richmond upon Thames. In this borough, parks take up a great deal of its territory. Together with Bushy Park in this borough are Richmond Park, Kew Gardens , and Hampton Court Park . There are over 100 parks and open spaces within its boundary and 21 miles of river frontage. The palace is located 11.7 miles (18.9 km) south west of Charing Cross and upstream of Central London on the River Thames .
Henry VIII took over Hampton Court Palace from Thomas Cardinal Wolsey in 1529, along with other three parks that make up modern-day Bushy Park; Hare Warren, Middle Park and Bushy Park. Henry VIII was King of England and later King of Ireland from 22 April 1509 until his death. He is considered the most powerful among the British monarchs. Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, from whom he took the park from, was an English statesman and a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the most powerful person in England , besides the King, for many years. He was famous for his remarkable rise to power from humble origins, his high level of intelligence and organization, and his extremely industrious nature, fueled by a driving ambition for power. His rise coincided with the ascension of the new monarch Henry VIII , who brought policies and a diplomatic mindset.
Henry VIII was a keen hunter and so he established the parks, Bushy park included, as deer hunting grounds. His successors, however, not into the same things with the same passion, just added a number of picturesque features to the place . This includes the Longford River , a 19 kilometer canal built on the orders of Charles I of England to provide water to Hampton Court , as well as the Park's various ponds. The Longford River is an artificial waterway that diverts water 19 km. from the River Colne at Longford to Bushy Park and Hampton Court Palace where it reaches the Thames.
It has a "twin," the Duke of Northumberland's River, and both have been diverted on more than one occasion to accommodate the development of Heathrow Airport. The responsibility for the maintenance of the river still resides with the Royal Parks Agency.
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The Park also has its main thoroughfare through Chestnut Avenue , which runs between Hampton Court Road in Hampton and Sandy Lane in Teddington . This Avenue and the Diana Fountain it leads to, were designed by Sir Christopher Wren. Sir Christopher Wren, was an English scientist and architect of the 17th century, most famous for his role in the re-building of London 's churches after the Great Fire of London of 1666.
The Avenue had been responsible for attracting tourists. The Park has long been popular with locals, but also attracts those from further places. From the mid nineteenth century until World War II, Londoners celebrated Chestnut Sunday here, coming to see the blooming of the trees along Chesnut Avenue, upon which this tradition resumed in 1993.
Bushy Park had contributed greatly to the course of history. During World War I, Bushy Park was home to the King's Canadian Hospital, and between the wars hosted a camp for undernourished children. During World War II, General Dwight D. Eisenhower planned the D-Day landings from Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) in the Park. Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the American soldier and politician who served as the 34th President of the United States as well as Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II, with the rank of General of the Army.
Today, the park is currently open to the public as a major tourist attraction. The palace's Home Park is the site of the annual Hampton Court Palace Flower Show . During the late 1800s also, the modern game of field hockey was largely invented at Bushy Park, which is still popular in the place up to today.
Among its fun-filled activities to offer include fishing and model boating ponds, horse rides, formal plantations of plants and trees, wild areas of bracken inhabited by many deer, and wildlife conservation areas. It is also home to several lodges and cottages, the National Physical Laboratory and the Royal Paddocks.
To get to Bushy Park , the closest National Rail stations are: Hampton Court to the south; Hampton Wick and Kingston , both to the east; Teddington to the north; and Hampton to the west. Transport for London bus routes, including the 111, 216, 265, and 411 services all pass by the Hampton Court Gate. The Transport for London ( TfL ) is a local government body responsible for the transport system throughout the City of London and Greater London in the United Kingdom . The role of TfL is to implement the transport strategy for and to manage transport services across London .
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