Home Page About blog Photo Contact us About authors

 Previous Post

Living in Ireland

Powerscourt Gardens – a masterpiece of park design in Ireland


A hallmark of Ireland is considered to be the north-west part of the island, which contains the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands and the Giant’s Causeway. At first, this may seem fair, but on the other hand, the inner landscape of Ireland has an appearance that is just as striking.

Ever-green hills, low mountains, karst-landscapes like those at the Buren National Park, golf courses and of course parks; give Ireland that unique atmosphere that cannot be found in any other country.

Personally, the parks here are then things that amaze us most. They combine top-notch design, grooming and also, some sort of everlasting charm, like that in Phoenix Park. There are also parks where the landscaping isn’t just good; it’s an absolute masterpiece. Today we are going to tell you about one such masterpiece.



This place can be found in the Wicklow Mountains, not far from Glendalough and has the same name as the Powerscourt waterfall. It is Powerscourt Gardens. Powerscourt Gardens and the Powerscourt Estate fit in with the Wicklow mountains so perfectly that it’s impossible to add or subtract anything to or from the scene.

The history of the Powerscourt Estate begins 800 years after the time when this place, in the XIII century, was home to the castle of Frenchman Le Power, hence the name of this place.

A new era began in this estate from 1603 when a marshal called Wingfield receive the estate of Powerscourt and the castle mentioned above as reward from Queen Elizabeth. There is a well-known historical event associated with this. During an audience with the Queen, the marshal was invited to choose a reward for his exploits. But marshal Wingfield said that all he wanted was a scarf from the Queen’s shoulder. The Queen decided to give Wingfield Powerscourt Estate and the title of a knight along with the scarf.



Later on, in the years 1731 to 1741, Powerscourt Estate, under the leadership of architect Richard Cassels, was rebuilt and got an almost modern look. Sadly, in 1974 the house was heavily damaged by fire, this is why we must compliment the originality of the current design.

The design of Powerscourt Gardens also went trough a few changes. Powerscourt Garden started to develop since construction of it first began in 1731, but it acquired its modern look only in 1880. It is noteworthy that the last stage of the landscaping lasted 20 years.

We cannot precisely say whether this was because of the magnitude and complexity of the work, or because of the fact that the lead designer Daniel Robertson liked to drink Sherry during work. He suffered from gout and because he drank a bottle of Sherry, he often had to be carried home in a wheelbarrow, long before the workday ended.



Nevertheless, he didn’t lack perspective and finished his work. As a result of his work and effort a garden that can be called nothing less than a masterpiece was formed. From an angle, the Powercourt house offers a magnificent view of the Sugar Loaf Mountain, which fits so wonderfully into the landscape of the area that it make the atmosphere almost, ‘enchanting.’ No wonder British monarchs love visiting this place!

Now we would like to tell you a bit more about what you can see in this wonderful place. Firstly, there are three gardens here; ‘The Italian Gardens,’ ‘The Japanese Gardens’ and ‘The Walled Gardens.’ The most unusual is the Japanese Garden. Although it is not as big as the one on Co. Kildare, but the whole essence of a Japanese Garden is, in our opinion, captured. In the Walled Garden you can find many exotic plants that aren’t properly adapted to Irish winds.

Another interesting place in the western part of the estate is Tower Valley or Pepper Tower, which was built in honour of the Prince of Wales’ visit to the Powerscourt Gardens and is an exact replica of the pepper sprinkler from the Wingfield family’s dinner table.



In the heart of the Powerscourt Estate there is a lake called Triton, along with a working fountain; also, the entire area from the fountain to the house is occupied with lawns and flower beds, located on their original terraces. Since, in Ireland's, the lawns are green all year round, and flowers can be seen even in the winter months, visitors can see the beauty of the Powerscourt Estate all year round. As proof of the statement we just made, please note that our pictures were taken in February.

Describing such a beautiful place isn’t easy. This is why we urge you to; at least, see the Powerscourt Gardens and the eponymous mansion in our photo gallery for yourselves.


Подписаться на мой канал в YouTube
London hotels


Your comment will be first




RSS

 Subscribe by e-mail:

Delivered by FeedBurner



Travel Blogs
travel blog
itravelnet.com Travel Blog

Travel blogs

blog abroad

Copyright © 2010-2050. Life in Ireland. All rights reserved.
Blog Collector Blogs Archive Blogs Rating expat Travel Blogs
blog directory