MENU CONTACT US VOUCHERS BOOK TICKETS GARDENS & GROUNDS Capability Brown Parkland 1234 HomeBowood House & GardensGardensCapability Brown Parkland VISITOR INFORMATION Opening Times Prices Book Tickets Facilities Find Us F&Q's LANCELOT 'CAPABILITY' BROWN Bowood is regarded as one of the best-preserved examples, with a flowing mix of plantations and sweeping lawns leading down to a mile long lake. Like the House, the park and grounds have also undergone major changes reflecting the tastes and fortunes of the family living at Bowood over the years. The earliest painting of the house from 1725 shows that the park was laid out in a semi-formal style, with ha ha avenues, wilderness and ornamental lakes. All of this was swept away by ‘Capability’ Brown, a fashionable 18th-century garden designer, who was brought in by the 2nd Earl to landscape the park in 1762 through to 1768. Called ‘Capability’ because he told his clients their parkland had capability for improvement. Brown said himself that his landscapes stood for ‘all the elegance and all the comforts that mankind wants in the Country’. Bowood was landscaped when Brown was at the height of his career, creating naturalistic landscapes of sweeping lawns and wooded plantations. Brown used all his skills and experience in designing the great lake that dominates the park. Without mechanical assistance he drained the land, dammed two streams and moved earth to form the mile long lake. In 1841, actress Fanny Kemble confirmed Brown’s achievement at Bowood: “… a home of terrestrial delights … a charming English landscape, educated with consummate taste into the very perfection of apparently natural beauty…” Although other designers and gardeners have worked at Bowood after Brown, the 40 hectares of pleasure grounds and surrounding park have been preserved and added to over the past 250 years. During Autumn you can expect to see the most breathtaking autumnal colours as you explore the grounds that come alive at this time of year. Awash with crisp oranges and deep red hues, it’s worth wrapping up warm and enjoying the beauty of our Arboretum. With a collection of over 700 species of trees, full of interesting and unusual trees and shrubs. Designed by ‘Capability’ Brown in 1762, it retains much of his original vision. Walking through the Arboretum an extensive range of trees can be explored, including 11 Champion trees – the tallest or largest of their kind in Britain. DOWNLOAD OUR TREE GUIDE TICKETS BOOK OPENING TIMES FIND OUT MORE FACILITIES FIND OUT MORE GARDEN TOURS Whether you are a tour operator, special interest group or planning to visit with friends and family, we have a variety of garden tours and packages at Bowood House & Gardens to suit all interests. A guided tour of the enchanting landscape awaits you, with a flowing mix of plantations and sweeping lawns leading down to a mile long lake. Behind the Georgian house through a secret door is Lord and Lady Lansdowne’s Private Walled Garden. Offering guided tours of the four distinct one-acre square garden’s comprising of formal borders, a picking garden, glass houses and a working kitchen garden. Capability Brown Garden Tour Private Walled Garden Tours Group Visits School Visits In my opinion, Bowood is important as one of the earliest examples of Brown’s fully-developed style, with perimeter belts, circuit rides, and no residual geometry. It is also, for my money, one of the best preserved examples of his work. Tom Williamson, University of East Anglia STAY UP-TO-DATE WITH OUR NEWSLETTER Large input SIGN UP Facebook Instagram Twitter COVID-19 CONTACT & FIND US AMEND/CANCEL RESERVATION GIFT VOUCHERS WORK FOR US COOKIE POLICY PRIVACY POLICY TERMS & CONDITIONS SUSTAINABILITY BOWOOD, CALNE, WILTSHIRE Bowood Hotel, Spa & Golf Resort: SN11 9PQ 01249 822 228 Email us Bowood House & Gardens: SN11 0LZ 01249 812 102 Email us Bowood Estate: SN11 0LZ 01249 812 102 Email us © 2013-2021 Bowood. All rights reserved. This site uses cookies: Find out more. OKAY, THANKS