Description
Two garden enclosures provide communal gardens to the residents of Hyde Park Gardens, a terrace facing onto Bayswater Road and Kensington Gardens. The houses were designed by John Crake, a pupil of Decimus Burton, whose designs for the terrace were exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1836. An engraving of the same year shows the garden railed but open to view.
Practical Information
| Site location | Hyde Park Gardens, Paddington |
|---|---|
| Postcode | W2 |
| What3Words | ///fails.universally.transmitted |
| Type of Site | Garden Square |
| Borough | Westminster |
| Open to Public | No |
| Opening Times | private, residents only |
| Public Transport | Tube: Lancaster Gate (Central) |
| Research Updated | 1 November 2007 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
Land to the north of Hyde Park was for centuries farmland owned by the Church of England, the area known as Tyburnia after the river Tyburn that flows underground. It was at Tyburn Gallows at Marble Arch that public executions were held until 1783. The development of the Bishop of London's large Paddington Estate began after that, with an early masterplan drawn up by Samuel Pepys Cockerell (1754-1827), the estate surveyor, possibly begun in 1805 although little was built until the 1820s. Cockerell was succeeded as estate surveyor by George Gutch (c.1790-1874), who modified and intensified the layout, and drew up his 'Final Plan of Tyburnia' in 1838. The Bayswater area was developed by a number of different speculators, although some of the earlier field boundaries, footpaths and tracks from the previous land use can still be traced.
In 1928 two gardens off Bayswater Road, still owned by the Paddington Estate Trustees, were for the use of residents of adjoining houses and managed by a Committee of occupants. The expenses of maintenance were assessed proportionately on each house, although the Trustees had the power to undertake maintenance in cases of neglect. The gardens were described at that time as 'two enclosures, one a triangular area flanked on all sides by roads, the other a long rectangular area flanked on three sides by roads and on the other (long) side by the rear of good-class dwelling houses. Laid out as attractive ornamental gardens with some fine trees'.
In 1954 a 90-acre area of land within the Church Commissioners estate containing C19th terraces south of Sussex Gardens was consolidated as the Hyde Park Estate. The larger rectangular garden today has a serpentine path running from its eastern end with candy-twist edging tiles and has a boundary of wire mesh and hedging. Planting includes thick shrubbery and mature trees such as yew, holly, laurel, ilex, hawthorn, magnolia and specimen trees. The adjoining houses have access via doors under the terrace to a straight walk. The shrubbery beds and paths are much simplified since the first OS Map recorded a complex arrangement in 1862-65. By 1914 the OS indicates major clearance had taken place. The small triangular garden to the west of Brook Street still forms part of the whole.
In 1928 two gardens off Bayswater Road, still owned by the Paddington Estate Trustees, were for the use of residents of adjoining houses and managed by a Committee of occupants. The expenses of maintenance were assessed proportionately on each house, although the Trustees had the power to undertake maintenance in cases of neglect. The gardens were described at that time as 'two enclosures, one a triangular area flanked on all sides by roads, the other a long rectangular area flanked on three sides by roads and on the other (long) side by the rear of good-class dwelling houses. Laid out as attractive ornamental gardens with some fine trees'.
In 1954 a 90-acre area of land within the Church Commissioners estate containing C19th terraces south of Sussex Gardens was consolidated as the Hyde Park Estate. The larger rectangular garden today has a serpentine path running from its eastern end with candy-twist edging tiles and has a boundary of wire mesh and hedging. Planting includes thick shrubbery and mature trees such as yew, holly, laurel, ilex, hawthorn, magnolia and specimen trees. The adjoining houses have access via doors under the terrace to a straight walk. The shrubbery beds and paths are much simplified since the first OS Map recorded a complex arrangement in 1862-65. By 1914 the OS indicates major clearance had taken place. The small triangular garden to the west of Brook Street still forms part of the whole.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ270808 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 1.1 |
| Site Ownership | Church Commissioners |
| Site Management | Estate Management Scheme; Gardens Committee |
| Dates | 1836 |
| Designers | John Crake |
| Listed Structures | LBII: nos. 1 to 24 and 25 to 38. On the other side the nos. 1 to 21, 14 and 48 (designed by John Crake). |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | Yes |
| Local Authority | Westminster |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Bayswater |
| Tree Preservation Order | Yes |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes - Borough Importance II |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
Gallery
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
Sussex Square was laid out as a garden square as part of George Gutch's 'Final Plan for Tyburnia' (1838) as the south-eastern point of a great axis of gardens, including Gloucester Square, Cambridge and Oxford Squares, and Norfolk Crescent. The garden remained in the ownership of the Paddington Estate Trustees and was provided for the private use of occupiers of the surrounding houses, maintenance out of proportionate expenses levied on the occupants. In 1928 it was described out as a 'circular area surrounded by a thick hedge and shrubbery. Laid out as a lawn and contains some well-grown trees'. The surrounding buildings are now of 1933 or later. The plan of the garden remains circular, the lawn has a circuit walk, and it contains notable London plane trees; the boundary is hedge with wire mesh fencing.
Hyde Park Square was built from 1837 as part of the development of the extensive Paddington Estate of the Bishop of London, which was laid out from the early C19th. The layout of the garden today bears little relation to its early layout and it has been replanted and re-stocked, together with a woodland style area to encourage more wildlife. New gates were erected on the north and west sides in 2005.
Gloucester Square was laid out as part of George Gutch's 'Final Plan for Tyburnia' of 1838 on the estate lands of the Church Commissioners, in an axis containing Sussex Square, Cambridge and Oxford Squares and Norfolk Crescent. Its name derives from William, Duke of Gloucester, who had a townhouse nearby. The south side was designed in 1844 by George Ledwell Taylor; the other three sides are now redevelopments of the C20th. The garden enclosure was provided as a private garden for occupiers of the square. Nowadays there are roses and flowerbeds, and substantial mature London plane trees.
