KEW GARDENS

Kew is a beautiful oasis in the west of London.

Henry VII built Richmond Palace in 1501. It became his permanent royal residence and so early 16th century courtiers settled in nearby Kew on private estates. Around 1600, a strip of land farmed by one of the new private estates (Kew Field) would later become the gardens.

The site was acquired from the Capel family in 1731 by Frederick, Prince of Wales, and by Augusta, Dowager Princess of Wales, who established a garden for exotic plants in 1759. A Chinese pagoda was built in 1761 by William Chambers, and by 1769, Kew contained more than 3,400 plant species.

Kew Gardens sprung from the merging of the Richmond and Kew royal estates in 1772, and became famous under the management of Sir Joseph Banks, with collections including specimens from around the world.

In 1840 the gardens became a national botanic garden, and Kew Gardens became a centre for scientific research and the international exchange of plant specimens. Under Kew’s director, William Hooker, the gardens were increased, and by the early 20th century the grounds were expanded to the present size of 300 acres.

Kew’s Palm House, built between 1844-1848, was the first large-scale structural use of wrought iron – now considered the world’s most important surviving Victorian glass and iron structure. The Temperate House followed later and is now the largest Victorian glasshouse in existence.