Euston Park, Thetford, England

The following is from the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest.

A 17th-century pleasure ground laid out by Lord Arlington with advice from John Evelyn, with an 18th-century walled garden, all set in a landscaped park of medieval origins for which William Kent and Lancelot Brown produced schemes.

LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING

Euston Park lies on the A1088 Thetford to Stowmarket road which divides the west park from the rest of the site. The road follows the line of the Blackbourne river valley from which the land rises gently to east and west before flattening out on the higher ground. The landscape setting of the park comprises farmland with large fields and woodlands sitting on the edge of the Brecklands. The north boundary is made up of woodland belts with the model village of Euston in the north-west corner. To the east the registered site is bounded by the remains of the once extensive Fakenham Wood and to the south and west by arable farmland. The west lodge sits on high ground overlooking the river valley and as well as forming an eyecatcher from the Hall also offers a place to enjoy fine views west along the Duke's Ride and back across the park past the Hall and up to the continuation of the Ride to the east. The Hall sits on the east bank of the river just above the level of the flood plain with the pleasure ground to the south and the bulk of the park beyond it to the east. The Temple is the most striking eyecatcher, being seen from various points in the pleasure ground and most notably from the church, whilst other notable views include the park glimpsed between The Temple and the church, and the south park seen through the long vista down the pleasure ground.

REFERENCES Used by English Heritage

Country Life, 121 (10 January 1957), p 58; (17 January 1957), p 102; (24 January 1957), p 148

Christopher Hussey, English Landscapes and Gardens 1700-1750 (1957)

N Pevsner and E Radcliffe, The Buildings of England: Suffolk (1975), p 202

Garden History 6, no 2 (1978), pp 22-5

D Stroud, Capability Brown (1984), p 224

J D Hunt, William Kent: landscape garden designer (1987), pp 135, 164

J Harris, The Artist and the Country House (exhibition catalogue) 1995, p 36

J Popham, Euston Estate Landscape Management Plan (3 vols), (1995)

D Dymond, The history of the evolution of Euston Park (in Popham 1995)

Euston Park, guidebook, (no date)

Maps

Mr Brown and J Parker, Map of lands in Euston, Fakenham and Reymer, 1772 (Estate office)

J Hodskinson, The County of Suffolk, 1783 (West Suffolk Record Office)

J Lenny, Survey of Euston Hall estate, 1828, (Estate office)

J Lenny and G Croft, Map of Euston with Lt Fakenham and Reymer, 1836 (373/27B), (West Suffolk Record Office)

Tithe map, 1837 (T86/1 & 2), (West Suffolk Record Office)

OS 6" to 1 mile: 1st edition published 1887; 2nd edition published 1905

OS 25" to 1 mile: 2nd edition published 1905

Archival items

Pridaux drawings of the gardens, around 1716 (private collection)

The majority of the Euston estate archives are held in a private collection.
 

Description written: December 1998

Amended: May 1999; February 2004

Edited: December 1999