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Inventory Site Record

Rembrandt Gardens (Westminster)

Brief Description

Rembrandt Gardens overlook the Regent's Canal on the eastern side of the basin at Little Venice by Browning's Pool. Created here in the 1950s these ornamental gardens were originally called Warwick Avenue Gardens. In 1975 5000 tulips and 500 hyacinths were donated to mark the 700th anniversary of the foundation of the City of Amsterdam and the gardens were renamed Rembrandt Gardens. There are numerous ornamental beds, shrubs, and a low wall along towpath. During 2006 the gardens underwent a major upgrade of its infrastructure and horticultural features.

Practical Information
Previous / Other name:
Warwick Avenue Gardens
Site location:
Warwick Avenue
Postcode:
W2 1XB
What 3 Words:
envy.scope.lately
Type of site:
Public Gardens
Borough:
Westminster
Open to public?
Yes
Opening times:
8am - dusk
Has taken part in Open Garden Squares Weekend 7 times, most recently in 2011.
Special conditions:
No dogs
Facilities:
Toilets
Events:
Public transport:
Tube: Warwick Avenue (Bakerloo). Bus: 6, 18, 46, 187, 414
Research updated:
01/06/2006
Last minor changes:
14/07/2022

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.westminster.gov.uk

Full Site Description

Rembrandt Gardens are ornamental public gardens overlooking the Regent's Canal on the eastern side of the basin at Little Venice by Browning's Pool, so-named after Robert Browning, who lived in Warwick Crescent and reputedly planted additional trees on the island in the basin, today planted with Willows. The garden had been created here in the 1950s and was originally called Warwick Avenue Gardens. While the tree-lined avenues beside the Regent's Canal had remained smart, the area south-west of the pool, hemmed in farther south by railway lines, had decayed in the later C19th and by 1950 the east side of the pool had large derelict houses as well as some artists' studios. Described in 1952 as 'surrounded by a good deal of sordidness', with slums on the west side and more to the north. Plans to demolish the studios and replace them with flats were fought successfully and the public garden was laid out instead. The campaign was supported by artist Feliks Topolski, who had a studio here, the Labour party, eminent residents and the LCC.

In 1975 5000 tulips and 500 hyacinths were donated to the gardens to mark the 700th anniversary of the foundation of the City of Amsterdam ('Venice of the North'), and the gardens were renamed Rembrandt Gardens. At the presentation ceremony the Dutch were in full national costume. The gardens have numerous ornamental beds, shrubs, and a low wall along towpath. During 2006 the garden underwent a major upgrade of its infrastructure and horticultural features, funded by WCC and the Paddington Community Fund, costing c.£400,000. To the south of the main garden is Stone Wharf, which is linked to Rembrandt Gardens via the canal tow path under a road bridge. It is scheduled to be upgraded within the next few years to include the installation of the Brunel Bridge and surface crossings to make access easier. Stone Wharf is open to the canal along one side and sunken from the Harrow Road on the other and comprises of a rectangle of paving with two levels, a grid of trees, and an area of grass.

Access to Rembrandt Gardens is also over a footbridge from a canalside path between London Street and Westbourne Terrace Road. There are lime trees along Blomfield Road and Clifton Nurseries are adjacent to Westbourne Terrace Road bridge, railed lawn with ornate drinking fountain.

Sources consulted:

OGSW leaflet; 'Paddington: Maida Vale', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 9: Hampstead, Paddington (1989), pp. 212-17; WCC Rembrandt Gardens Management Plan 2007 - 2012

Further Information (Planning and Conservation)
Grid ref:
TQ263818 (526243,181865)
Size in hectares:
0.568
Site ownership:
WCC
Site management:
Parks Service (Contractors: Continental Landscapes Ltd)
Date(s):
1950s; 1975
Designer(s):
Listed structures:
None
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:

No

Local Authority Data

The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.

On Local List:
No
In Conservation Area:
Yes
Conservation Area name:
Little Venice
Tree Preservation Order:
No
Nature Conservation Area:
No
Green Belt:
No
Metropolitan Open Land:
No
Special Policy Area:
Other LA designation:
None
Photos

Rembrandt Gardens

Rembrandt Gardens - Photo: Gavin Gardiner
Date taken: 13/06/09 16:45

Click a photo to enlarge.

More photos

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.