ASTLEY CASTLE KNOT GARDENS

All about Tudor knot gardens Knot garden designs Knot gardens have been fashionable since the Tudor times. The Tudors found the inspiration for their gardens from the gardens in Italy, where architects began building houses and gardens that followed a strict geometric pattern. The shapes and the sizes that featured in the design of the house were repeated in the layout of the garden. The Tudors built many grand homes and liked the idea of geometry and proportion. Knot gardens are still popular with designers today. Not only were Tudor knot gardens designed to look good, but they were often a symbol or even a puzzle. For example, this popular design shown on the right was called The True Lovers Knot. It often featured in the gardens of newly married couples. These images below are drawings of knot garden designs that appeared in books during the Tudor times. The designs for knot gardens were similar to those found on fabric, in windows, jewellery and furniture.

These designs are interlacing - this means they weave in and out. They fit into a square and they are symmetrical. During the Tudor times there weren’t many plants that flowered in the autumn and the winter. Materials such as crushed bricks and sand were used to create colour and pattern all year round. Scented herbs were used such as marjoram, thyme, southernwood, lemon balm, hyssop, lavender, rue and myrtle. Box hedging which is often used to create knot gardens today wasn’t very popular in the Tudor times. They thought the plant had an evil smell!

ASTLEY CASTLE KNOT GARDENS

Knot gardens in use

This is a bird’s eye view drawing of a typical mid 16th century Tudor Garden with a ‘knot pattern’ as the centre piece to the square design. There are flower beds around the outside, a wooden lattice fence with decorative posts and a sheltered spot to sit on the right hand side. The Tudors liked their gardens to be peaceful and private places. The gardens were often the only place you could go to get away from family and nosey servants.

This image is of Nonsuch Palace. It was Henry VIII’s most beautiful creation. This palace and garden were the most fashionable residence around during the Tudor times. Sadly it was demolished in1683. You can see the knot gardens at the bottom of the image. Each knot is almost like a separate garden. Trees would have created shade and the scent of herbs would have filled the air in the summer. In the winter the gardens could still be enjoyed from inside. When you looked down from the windows you could see the design and pattern. During the Tudor times, Astley Castle belonged to the Grey family. They were an important, wealthy and respected family who would have wanted their houses to be fashionable. They planted gardens around the castle and although we do not have any drawings that show us what they looked like, we think they would have featured knot patterns. These original Tudor gardens have long since disappeared.

ASTLEY CASTLE KNOT GARDENS

Modern gardens at Astley Castle

Around 1900 a new knot garden was planted in front of the castle. This drawing shows what it looked like. Below is a picture of Astley Castle. After World War II the castle became a hotel and restaurant. This photograph shows the castle with the local church on the left and the knot garden in fore-ground.

There was a terrible fire at Astley Castle in 1978.Since then the building has not been lived in or looked after. The knot garden is now old and has lost its shape. Some of the box hedge has died and trees have grown up where the hedges should be.

ASTLEY CASTLE KNOT GARDENS

A new garden for Astley Castle The Landmark Trust has now chosen a winning knot garden design by Kate Heppell. Her design was based on the three queens linked to Astley Castle. Knot gardens might look complicated but are fun to design once you get the hang of it. To help get you started, here are three things to think about. Pattern All knot garden designs are symmetrical. This means that it looks the same reflected either side of a line. In the case of the design there is a line running horizontally and vertically. This means that you only need to design a quarter of the space! You will need four squares of tracing paper - all the same size. On one piece draw a design. Allow some of the lines you draw to run to the edge of the paper. Trace your design onto the other three squares. Arrange your squares together to create your knot garden pattern. You can create four different designs by turning the squares around. Meanings of Knot Gardens Tudor knot gardens had a meaning. Some symbolised love, others were designed to incorporate an initial or a family crest. Some were like puzzles, with complicated lines that wove in and out. The images below relate to the history of Astley Castle and the people who lived there. See if you can find other pictures that might help inspire your knot garden design. There are pictures of Astley Castle on our website www.landmarktrust.org.uk/future_landmarks/Astley.htm

The crest of the Astley family who lived at The crest of the Grey family who lived at the castle from the 12th century Astley from 1420 to 1600. to 1420.

ASTLEY CASTLE KNOT GARDENS

When the Grey family owned the castle in the Tudor times, the inside of the castle would have been decorated with wooden panelling and fabric wall hangings. Some of the walls may have been painted with repeat patterns - like an early form of wall paper. The Tudors liked a style of embroidery called ‘black-work’. It was called this because the patterns were sewn onto white fabric with black thread. Many of these patterns can also be found on Tudor jewellery, windows, woodwork and knot gardens.

Look at pictures of Tudor people, buildings and decoration. These may give you ideas for your design. Colour Knot gardens were also about colour. The lines or the pattern was created by planting some form of hedge, but the spaces in between were filled either with coloured plants or with coloured gravel, sand, crushed bricks and stones. When creating your design don’t worry about the types of plants or materials. Just think about the colours you would like to see in the garden. This design on the right was created in the Victorian times. The Victorians really liked knot gardens too. They created some very large and very expensive designs in parks and gardens. Look how carefully the designer has thought about colour. When you have decided on your pattern decide which colours you would like to use. The trick is not to use too many colours. Just pick three or four and repeat them.