With glorious color photographs, paintings, prints, and original designs, noted historian and author Sir Roy Strong presents Britain's royal gardens of today and yesterday--magnificent designs that reflect the personalities of the kings, queens, princes and princesses who have been and are passionately involved in their gardens. Strong, a former director of the Victoria and Albert Museum and the author of Small Period Gardens ( LJ 8/92) and Lost Treasures of Britain ( LJ 5/1/92), states, "One of the great expressions of human personality is the garden." He explores this theme through four centuries of the British monarchy and their "green spaces." From Charles II's grand vision at Hampton Court, to Victoria's somber seclusion at Windsor and Prince Charles's "Ecological Nostalgia" at Highgrove, we see the monarchy's preoccupations and passions as well as the changes in status through the years. Sumptuous prints, paintings, and designs from the Royal Archives are supplemented by 197 specially commissioned photographs by Andrew Lawson, showcasing the gardens in seasonal splendor. Highly recommended for both English history and gardening collections. For a related work on Highgrove, see HRH The Prince of Wales's Highgrove: An Experiment in Organic Gardening and Farming , reviewed on p. 136.--Ed. - Joseph Hewgley, Nashville P.L. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. Used Book in Good Condition