Hampton Court Park

This article is about Hampton Court Park or Home Park, London. For other uses, see Home Park (disambiguation).
Home Park
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Area of Search Greater London
Grid reference TQ167683
Interest Biological
Area 88.9 hectares
Notification 2014
Location map Magic Map
Hampton Court, from the park

Hampton Court Park – sometimes called the Home Park – is adjacent to Hampton Court Palace and Gardens in South London, United Kingdom, mostly lying within East Molesey, with a smaller area in Kingston upon Thames. Hampton Court Park is a royal park, but not one of the eight Royal Parks of London because it is the site of a Palace. It is managed by the Historic Royal Palaces.[1] In September 2014 part of it was designated a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest together with Bushy Park and Hampton Court Golf Course as Bushy Park and Home Park SSSI.[2][3][4]

It is a walled deer park of around 700 acres (280 ha) in area, with a herd of aroung 300 fallow deer,[5] and has been open to the public since 1894. The A308 road and the River Thames form its boundaries. North of the A308 is the better-known Bushy Park. The Royal Mews still graze some of their horses on the park during the summer months.

One of the main features of the park is the Long Water which runs roughly eastward from the back of Hampton Court Palace. At the eastern end is the Golden Jubilee Fountain.

Flower Show

The annual Hampton Court Flower Show is held in 25 acres (10 ha) of the Home Park. It is organized by the Royal Horticultural Society and began in 1990. Many prefer it to the better known Chelsea Flower Show because there is more space, and plants and equipment can be bought at the show. As it is the world's most popular event of this type extensive traffic jams can build up. The show has sometimes been criticized for risking damage to historic features in the park.

The Mediaeval Oak

The Mediaeval Oak – said to be 750 years old

A tree, called the Mediaeval Oak (or Methuselah's Oak), situated in one of the tees for the golf course in the southern part of the park, is said to be 750 years old.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Richmond Borough Council
  2. ↑ "Bushy Park and Home Park citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Map of Bushy Park and Home Park". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "Bushy Park and Home Park Unit List". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  5. ↑ "Home Park". Retrieved 2016-01-11.

External links

Coordinates: 51°24′13″N 0°19′36″W / 51.40357°N 0.32655°W / 51.40357; -0.32655


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, January 12, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.