19th Century Battle of Styles

Towards the end of Queen Victoria's reign in England, the high Victorian garden saw a decline in popularity. Like many garden styles of the past, it was becoming overdone and tawdry. People interested in gardening were interested in developing something fresh and new, and as a result, a battle of styles ensued. The two key players in this battle were William Robinson and Sir Reginald Blomfield. They clashed over how they believed the high Victorian garden style should be abandoned.

Robinson, trained as a gardener and horticulturist, advocated that gardens return to their roots, and that gardeners should be the ones to design gardens, as they understood the plants. He was inspired by observing a summer with poor weather during which the wimpy plantings of the Victorian bedded gardens failed, and people complained that their gardens looked bad. Robinson believed that gardens could and should be hardy, and, if planted correctly, could be beautiful in all seasons. His gardens utilized strong native plants in a naturalistic and artful way to create a peaceful escape.

A Robinson Garden Design

Blomfield, on the other hand, saw gardens as an extension of the architecture of the house. In his eyes, the gardens should be formal, and it should be obvious that they were designed along with the buildings. He was influenced by the formality of the English renaissance garden, and his designs included geometric shapes and often, axial symmetry. Blomfield wanted gardens to look orderly and seamless, and as a result, his designs were formal and focused on close-clipped grass and hedges, along with organized flower beds.

Blomfield Garden at Sulgrave Manor

The Battle of Styles ended in a compromise: the collaboration of Gertrude Jekyll and Sir Edward Lutyens. Jekyll was a gardener and Lutyens was an architect. They meshed both personally and professionally, and this cooperation brought about the garden of the Arts and Crafts movement. This garden style saw the end of the high Victorian gardens, and was the advent of naturalistic, painterly flower gardens that Robinson dreamed of combined with architecture of which Blomfield would be proud.