Bushy Park
Bushy Park is one of the most stunning parks in London, a city not exactly short on parks itself. Bushy Park is located in the London Borough of Richmond-Upon-Thames, in the south west section of London, and is near to Hampton Court Palace and Hampton Court Park. It is the second largest of the Royal Parks of London, and due to its nearby proximity to the tourist favorite Hampton Court Palace, is regularly visited. The majority of the park is open to the public.
According to archaeological evidence, the park has been in use for over 4,000 years and many artifacts dating back to the Bronze Age have been found there. The area first came to prominence in 1529, when the then-monarch, Henry VIII, of England took a liking to Hampton Court Palace. Originally built by his right hand man, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Henry expressed a desire for the luxurious palace and its surrounding grounds. Wolsey, keen to keep the favor of the king and his own head upon his shoulders, relinquished the Palace and the surrounding grounds – including Bushy Park – to Henry as a gift. Unfortunately, the measure did not ensure Wolsey remained high in Henry’s favor for long, and he too became a victim of this most volatile of kings. Wolsey died in 1530 in Leicestershire, while being transported to London on charges of high treason. Hampton Court and Bushy Park are his legacy.
Henry used Bushy Park as a hunting ground, primarily for deer. His successors, not quite as keen on hunting as the exuberant Henry, transformed Bushy Park into a more leisurely area and introduced walkways and ponds that still exist today.
The park has remained a public area ever since. Its boundaries contain a land mass of over 4.5 kilometers, which is over 1,100 acres. This is particularly astonishing when one considers that the smaller of the entire London boroughs are only a little larger than that. As in Henry’s day, the park is home to many deer, mainly of the red and fallow breeds. Unlike their Tudor predecessors, however, these deer need not fear a bloodthirsty monarch!
Bushy Park is an enduringly popular public leisure place. Through the centuries, organizers of the park have followed in the footsteps of Charles I, who expressed a keen desire for the park to be beautiful beyond recognition. The park now has fishing and boat ponds, horse riding, wildlife conservation areas and several allotment areas.
The park is an enjoyable day out for any tourist, particularly when coupled with a visit to the nearby majestic Hampton Court Palace. The closest train station is Hampton Court, with other stations nearby including Hampton Wick, Teddington, Fulwell and Hampton – all of these stations are between 10 and 20 minutes walk from the park itself. The main southern - and most popular – entrance to the park is at Hampton Court Gate, which is a destination for many bus services. Like all of the Royal Parks of London, it is a protected site.