Burlington and Kent were innovators in garden design. They used statues and other features to proclaim a cultural and political manifesto. Avenues of trees stretching into the distance had been the mainstay of Baroque landscaping. At Chiswick House the vistas are terminated with a statue, column or small building (photo to left).
Kent also contributed to the design of the gardens at Stowe near Buckingham for the owner, Lord Cobham, a Whig who left Walpole’s government in 1733. Like those at Chiswick, the Stowe gardens have survived and are being restored, by the National Trust (my photo to right).
The elegant house of Leyton Grange
