Bushy Park in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is the second largest of London's Royal Parks, at in area, after Richmond Park. The park, most of which is open to the public, is immediately north of Hampton Court Palace and Hampton Court Park and is a few minutes' walk from the west side of Kingston Bridge. It is surrounded by Teddington, Hampton, Hampton Hill and Hampton Wick and is mainly within the post towns of Hampton and Teddington, those of East Molesey and Kingston upon Thames taking the remainder. In September 2014, most of it was designated a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest together with Hampton Court Park and Hampton Court Golf Course as ''Bushy Park and Home Park SSSI''. The park is listed at Grade I on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

History

The area now known as Bushy Park has been settled for at least the past 4,000 years: the earliest archaeological records that have been found on the site date back to the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

. There is also evidence that the area was used in the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

period for agricultural purposes. When

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagr ...

took over Hampton Court Palace from Cardinal

Thomas Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic bishop. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling figu ...

in 1529, the King named three parks that make up modern-day Bushy Park and a small area beside: Hare Warren, Middle Park and Bushy Park. A keen hunter, he established them as deer-hunting grounds. His successors, perhaps less involved in traditional sporting activities, added a number of picturesque features, including the Longford River, a canal built on the orders of Charles I to provide water to Hampton Court, and the park's various ponds. This period also saw the construction of the main thoroughfare, Chestnut Avenue, which runs from Park Road in Teddington to the Lion Gate entrance to Hampton Court Palace in Hampton Court Road. This avenue and the Arethusa '

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997) ...

' Fountain were designed by Sir Christopher Wren as a grand approach to Hampton Court Palace. BushyParkAutumn

The park has long been popular with locals, but also attracts visitors from further afield. From the mid-19th century until

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Londoners came here to celebrate Chestnut Sunday and to see the abundant blossoming of the trees along Chestnut Avenue. The customs were discovered and resurrected in 1993 by Colin and Mu Pain. Among those who served as ranger (an honorary position, long including residence at Bushy House) was King William IV, while Duke of Clarence (1797–1830). To ensure his consort Queen Adelaide, could remain at their long-time home after his death, he immediately appointed her as his successor as ranger (1830–1849), after whose death the position was left vacant and fell into disuse. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Bushy Park housed the King's Canadian Hospital, and between the wars it hosted a camp for undernourished children. During

, General Dwight D. Eisenhower planned the D-Day landings from

Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF; ) was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces in north west Europe, from late 1943 until the end of World War II. U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was the commander in SHAEF ...

(SHAEF) at Camp Griffiss in the Park. A memorial by Carlos Re

dedicated to the Allied troops who fell on D-Day now marks the spot where General Eisenhower's tent stood. The nearby Eisenhower House is named in the General's honour, and Shaef Gate is named after the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force. From May 1942, a group of temporary buildings on the north-east of the park, codenamed ''Widewing'', hosted the ''de facto'' headquarters of the US

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces ...

under Generals Carl Spaatz and, later, Ira Eaker. Spaatz went on to command the US Army Air Forces throughout the European Theatre of Operations (ETO) and in early 1944 became commander of the newly formed US Strategic Air Forces ( USSTAF) in Europe at ''Widewing''. Also known by its US Army code, AAF-586, Camp Griffiss/''Widewing'' was often confused with the wartime headquarters of

VIII Fighter Command The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European The ...

(part of

) at ''Bushey'' Hall, near Watford, Hertfordshire.

The park today

Originally created for royal sports, Bushy Park is now home to Teddington Rugby Club and four cricket clubs - Teddington Town Cricket Club, Hampton Wick Royal Cricket Club, Teddington Cricket Club, and Hampton Hill Cricket Club. Teddington Hockey Club was based in the Park until it moved to Teddington School; from 1871 onwards, the rules of the modern game of

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shootin ...

were largely devised at Bushy. It also has fishing and model boating ponds, horse rides, formal plantations of trees and other plants, wildlife conservation areas, and herds of both

red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...

and

fallow deer ''Dama'' is a genus of deer in the subfamily Cervinae, commonly referred to as fallow deer. Name The name fallow is derived from the deer's pale brown colour. The Latin word ''dāma'' or ''damma'', used for roe deer, gazelles A gazelle ...

. The park also contains several lodges and cottages: Bushy House, housing the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) at the Teddington end, and the Royal Paddocks and two areas of allotments — the Royal Paddocks Allotments at Hampton Wick and the Bushy Park Allotments at Hampton Hill. The original

Parkrun Parkrun (stylised as parkrun) is a collection of 5K run, events for walkers, runners and volunteers that take place every Saturday morning at more than 2,000 locations in 23 countries across six continents. Junior Parkrun (stylised as junior p ...

began in Bushy Park in October 2004, initially as the 'Bushy Park Time Trial', then

Bushy Parkrun Bushy Parkrun (stylised Bushy parkrun) is a running event that takes place every Saturday morning at 9am in Bushy Park, Teddington, London. It was the very first Parkrun, founded by Paul Sinton-Hewitt in October 2004 under its original name Bus ...

. It is a free, timed, 5K run that takes place every Saturday morning at 9am, attracting up to 1,500 runners each week. Events also take place annually on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. As part of an upgrade of the park facilities, the new Pheasantry Café was added, and the restored and largely reconstructed Upper Lodge Water Gardens were opened in October 2009. The work was supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Flora and fauna

Bushy Park is part of the ''Bushy Park and Home Park SSSI'' designated in September 2014 for its range of semi-natural habitats such as acid and neutral grassland, scrubland, woodland, and wood pasture. There is an internationally important assemblage of invertebrates due to the mosaic of habitats including two hundred

veteran trees A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

. A fungus gnat – a type of fly – new to the UK was found in the Waterhouse Woodland Gardens by

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

Peter Chandler and identified as ''Grzegorzekia bushyae'' and also known as the Bushy Gnat. This fly has since been found in a forest in south-east France.

Transport

The closest

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

stations are Hampton Court in East Molesey to the south, Hampton Wick to the east, Teddington and Fulwell to the north, and Hampton to the west. All are within a 10- to 20-minute walk. Transport for London bus routes 111, 216, and 411 pass the Hampton Court Gate on Hampton Court Road (the main southern entrance to the Park). R70, R68, and 285 buses stop near the two Hampton Hill Gates off the High Street, while the R68 also serves the Blandford Road Gate (next to the NPL on Hampton Road, Teddington) before continuing to Hampton Court Green via Hampton Hill. To the north, the main Teddington gate on Park Road, and a second on Sandy Lane, are only served by a half-hourly 481 bus service. But, the main gate is best reached, either on foot or by bike, from Teddington's town centre, which is served by the 33, 281, 285, 481, R68, and X26 services, via Park Road, or from the railway station. The main north and south gates, connected by the Chestnut Avenue private highway, provide vehicle access to through traffic from 6.30am until dusk (or to 7.00pm in the winter months). There is one straight road through the Park between the two gates. There is 24/7 bicycle access via the main avenue between the north and south gates and cycle paths/restricted access private highways across the park.

References

External links