Radnor Gardens

Radnor Gardens is a small public riverside garden and recreation ground in Strawberry Hill, south of Twickenham in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It has a First World War memorial, a grass area, a bowling green and a children's playground.[1]

Radnor Gardens
TypeUrban park
LocationCross Deep, Strawberry Hill London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
Coordinates51.4406°N 0.3321°W / 51.4406; -0.3321
Created1903
Operated byRichmond upon Thames Borough Council
StatusOpen all year

Location

Radnor Gardens is located 0.5 miles (0.80 km) south of Twickenham town centre between the A310, Cross Deep, and the Thames riverbank. It affords one of the few pedestrian points of access to the river on the Middlesex bank between Twickenham and Kingston Bridge.

History and etymology
Twickenham War Memorial, Radnor Gardens, erected in 1921

The Gardens were created in 1903 by Twickenham Urban District from several adjacent riverside properties dating back to the 17th century; Radnor House from which the name derives, formed the central section of the gardens, the riverside garden of Cross Deep House provides the southern area, and the grounds of Cross Deep Hall to the north. Several remnants of these form features of the modern gardens including the walls of the base of Radnor House and two gothic structures; a gazebo and Grade II listed polygonal summer house.[2]

After the purchase of Radnor House in 1902, 7,000 cubic yards (5,400 m3) of gravel from the construction of Teddington Lock was used to raise the level of Cross Deep Ait, a former ait adjacent to Swan Island that formed part of the gardens, to protect it from flooding.[3] The two aits are shown as single entity on John Rocque's map of 1746. The channel separating the island from the bank silted up and was filled in the late 1960s. The course of the former channel can be discerned in the lawns during dry weather and metal remnants of connecting footbridges can be perceived lining the central and southern footpaths in the gardens today.

Radnor House and the gardens were officially opened on 11 April 1903.[4]

The bowling green was created in 1920 and has been the home of Strawberry Hill Bowling Club since then. Twickenham War Memorial by Mortimer Brown was erected in 1921, which, despite facing south, was sited to form a focal point of a vista from the Royal Star and Garter Home on Richmond Hill to the north-east.[5][6] The playground was constructed in 2006.[7]

Administration

The gardens are administered by Richmond upon Thames Borough Council and form the southern limit of the Twickenham conservation area.[8] A local group, Friends of Radnor Gardens, liaises with the local authority and helped develop the PPG 17- compliant 'Radnor Gardens Management Plan'.[7] The gardens have been winners of the Green Flag Award since 2010.[9][10]

References
  1. "'Radnor Gardens". Park details. London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  2. Historic England. "Summer House in Radnor Gardens  (Grade II) (1080855)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  3. "Site Description". Friends of Radnor Gardens. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  4. "The History of Radnor House". Twickenham Magazine. February 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  5. "Radnor Gardens". Twickenham Museum. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  6. "Radnor Gardens, Twickenham: War Memorial by Mortimer Brown". Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  7. "Radnor Gardens Management Plan 2010–2015" (PDF). 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  8. "Twickenham Riverside Conservation Area 8" (PDF). London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. 25 January 2006. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  9. Wickham, Chris (29 July 2010). "Richmond's tally of Green Flags reaches nine". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  10. "Plan". Friends of Radnor Gardens. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
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