Desperately seeking daffodils, or any other sign of spring, I embarked on a visual journey through my collection of images. It’s been a long and tedious end of winter (with snow flurries that appear to be a permanent weather feature) so please indulge my memory of springtime visits to London’s Saint James’s Park.
One of eight Royal Parks in greater London (see previous posts about Kensington Gardens and Regent’s Park), the 57-acre Saint James’s Park’s location, adjacent to Buckingham Palace, makes it a particular favorite with tourists. It is one of the most visited parks in the world.
Once a low and swampy wasteland flooded by the River Tyburn and owned by an ancient hospital for lepers, the site that became the park was drained and enclosed by King Henry VIII in 1536 as a deer park to complement his hunting lodge, now St. James’s Palace.
Rosamund’s Pond (with Westminster in the distance) by John Feary, 1765 – 1788.
In 1603, when James I ascended the throne, the land was drained and landscaped, retaining elements of its rustic character. A large pool, Rosamond’s Pond, was located at its western edge while a series of small ponds, channels and islands provided habitat for waterfowl appropriated for the royal table.
Birdcage Walk, London by John Chapman (active 1750-1780
King James kept a collection of animals in the park including camels, crocodiles and an elephant. The Royal Menagerie and Aviaries of exotic birds were placed along what remains known as the Birdcage Walk. Near St James’s Palace a flower garden was created.
Andre Mollet’s Plan for Saint James’s Park
When Charles II became king in 1660 the park was redesigned in the formal style uniting his two principal London Palaces at Whitehall and Saint James. Its design, attributed to French landscaper Andre Mollet, was centered on a straight canal, 2,560 feet long and 125 feet wide, lined on each side with avenues of trees.
After Marco Ricci, View of the Mall in Saint James’s Park, , after 1709-1710, oil on canvas, Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection
The king entertained guests in the park, including his favorite mistress, Nell Gwen. He was an avid fan of the game pall mall, which is similar to croquet, originated in Italy (palla a maglio), and was a fashionable craze in France where he had lived. The king had a long-fenced in court built just inside the park and the game gives its name to the present-day Pall Mall, established in 1662.
Saint James’s Park is well-known for its waterfowl, another legacy of Charles II who enjoyed feeding its ducks while walking with his spaniels.
The Russian ambassador gifted a pair of pelicans to the king and these remain one of the park’s most popular attractions.
During the 18th century minor changes were made to the park including filling in one end of the canal to make the Horse Guard’s parade ground (site of the 2012 London Olympics volley ball competition).
The romantically named Rosamond’s Pond disappeared and most significantly in 1761, the royal family purchased the building at the end of the Mall, Buckingham House. Enlarged to create a new Palace with a vast marble arch at its entrance, this site most associated with Royal events, provided a focal point for the park.
The park’s landscape as we see it today is the handiwork of architect John Nash whose redesign in 1829 was one of many projects, including Regent Street and Park, commissioned by the Prince Regent, George lV.
Green Park and St. James’s Park section of “Improved map of London for 1833, from Actual Survey. Engraved by W. Schmollinger, 27 Goswell Terrace”
Remodeled in the naturalistic style, the canal was transformed into a curving lake, winding paths replaced formal avenues and the traditional flower beds were converted to shrubbery.
Today these are bordered by flowerbeds which are seasonally planted providing the best of both worlds.
One of my favorite spots within the park is Duck Island with its picturesque cottage and garden.
The cottage is an evocative reminder of the park’s long history and its tradition of harboring wildfowl colonies who unimpeded by boats (which are not allowed on the lake) have thrived here for more than 350 years. The position of bird keeper, established in 1837, remains to this day.
Duck Island’s current cottage, designed by John Burgess Watson dates from after 1840, and is the home of London’s Parks and Garden Trust whose mission is “to increase knowledge and appreciation of parks, squares, community gardens, cemeteries, churchyards – all those places that form London’s open space network.”
Saint James’s Park remains today very much as Nash designed it with a few small changes. The Saint James Café, with its roof deck and outdoor seating provides a comfortable place for breakfast or lunch.
There’s a playground, located near the western entrance and the seven-mile Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walk, which passes through four Royal Parks and along famous buildings and locations associated with the Princess during her life, traverses much of the park.
The oldest Royal Park in London and the first to be open to the public, Saint James’s Park is surrounded by three palaces, Westminster (now the Houses of Parliament) Saint James’s Palace and Buckingham Palace.
It contains innumerable monuments, statues and fountains including the Tiffany Fountain, restored in 2011 with a gift from the Tiffany Foundation as part of the Tiffany Across the Water in the Royal Parks project.
Saint James’s Park, visited by more than 5.5 million people a year, serves as the focal point for many of London’s national activities in the heart of the city.
Despite its central location the park retains opportunities, like the one seen above, where a person can experience nature in the midst of the chaos, a characteristic which many of London’s urban parks retain. It’s urban greenery at its very best.
The park is maintained by The Royal Parks a charity created to support and manage 5,000 acres of Royal parkland across London on behalf of the government. 
Copyright © 2018 Patrice Todisco — All Rights Reserved
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You could charge those of us in the Northeast to look at those beautiful flower beds. Gorgeous. 🙂
My sentiments entirely. Perhaps it was the warm days we had in February which have been followed by the relentless cold that have made this spring season so frustratingly slow to reveal itself.