English Gardens of the 17th Century: From Formality to Landscape Style

Decline of Formal Gardening

By late 17th century, English gardens had degenerated into meaningless imitation of French/Dutch fashions. Conventional plans were mimicked or exaggerated until formality became mere affectation. Complete reaction destroyed the old system, birthing the Landscape Garden—not a garden per se, but cultivated scenery.

English Leadership in Garden Revolution

Having most abused convention, England first rebelled against formal gardening. Seeking beauty in the opposite extreme, "freedom from every restraint" became the new gospel. William Kent (per Walpole) led the charge: gardens should be "set free from prim regularity, gentle streams taught to serpentize." Lord Kames described his method: "paint a field with beautiful objects, natural and artificial, disposed like colors upon a canvas."

Artistic Complexity of Landscape Gardening

Canvas painting requires only figure adjustment. Landscape gardening demands adjusting figures to field varieties—greater genius required.

New Style Elements

Smooth lawns, tree clumps, curved paths, irregular water features. "Nature abhors a straight line"—serpentine meanders for walks and brooks. Kent planted dead trees/stumps to mimic nature's decay marks. These "beautiful wilderness" attempts often created confused disorder, ridiculed even by sentimentalists.