Ashburnham Place, Battle, England

The grounds in their present form were designed and constructed in the mid-18^th-century by Lancelot Brown. He laid out the three large lakes which encircle the house and built the Orangery, which is home to a number of interesting and unusual plants, as well as the oldest camellias in the country. 

The gardens also contain a temple and the 'Ladyspring' grotto, a classical style ruin built around a freshwater spring. The walled kitchen garden is still used to provide flowers and vegetables.

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

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

The Ashburnham family became established on the estate from at least the mid 12th century. In 1665, John Ashburnham built a new house on the site of the present mansion, replacing an older house. He died in 1671. His nephew was created Baron Ashburnham, the baronetcy becoming an earldom in 1731. The second Earl reconstructed and enlarged the house between 1759 and 1763 and commissioned Lancelot Brown (1716-1783) in 1767 to lay out a new park and gardens around the house of which the lakes and much of the planting structure survive.

The third Earl succeeded in 1812, his additions between 1812 and 1817 including the terraces to the south and east of the house and the bridge across Front Water. The sixth Earl died in 1924 and the line ended with the death of his niece, Lady Catherine Ashburnham in 1953. The Reverend J Bickersteth, a grandson of the sixth Earl, inherited the estate and in 1960 gave Ashburnham Place and 89 hectares, including the main gardens and pleasure grounds, to the Ashburnham Christian Trust who have since developed it as a Christian Conference Centre. The remaining parkland is farmed on behalf of the Trustees of the Ashburnham Estate.