Elizabeth in the Garden: A Story of Love, Rivalry and Spectacular Design

The beguiling story of how Elizabeth I’s two great courtiers fought a lifelong duel for her affections - by creating ever more lavish gardens for their queen. Lord Robert Dudley, Elizabeth’s lover, and Sir William Cecil, her chief political adviser, were the most powerful men in the country. Famous for their extravagant houses, gardens and parties, they went to extraordinary lengths to win Elizabeth’s favour. Dudley’s aim was to woo her; Cecil’s, to stop Dudley in his tracks. At Kenilworth Castle Dudley laid out an intoxicatingly romantic garden set in a landscape dominated by an enormous lake surrounding his castle on three sides. When she came to stay, he threw spectacular outdoor parties. Cecil countered by building Theobalds, a sumptuous palace with amazing gardens overseen by the most famous gardener in the country, John Gerard. Within a decade, the Elizabethan garden had changed dramatically.