Windsor Great Park - Features

Features

The modern enclosed Deer Park is at the northern end of the Great Park. It is home to a large herd of semi-wild deer, reflecting the original medieval purpose of the park.

The Long Walk runs south from Windsor Castle to the 1829 Copper Horse statue of King George III atop Snow Hill where there are impressive views of the castle. It is 2.65 miles (4.26 km) from George IV Gateway at Windsor Castle to The Copper Horse. Other equestrian statues in the park include one of the Prince Consort, to the west of the Polo grounds, and one of The Queen near the Village.

The Royal Lodge was built in the centre of the park as the Deputy Ranger's house. It was made in to a retreat for the Prince Regent from 1812, but was largely pulled down after his death. The remains were renovated, in the 1930s, as a home for the then Prince Albert, later King George VI, and his wife. It is now the official residence of the Duke of York and not accessible by the public.

Other notable buildings in the park include Cumberland Lodge, built in 1652 during the Commonwealth. After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 the Lodge quickly became the home of the Ranger of the Great Park, an office in the gift of the sovereign. Each Ranger made his – or in one case, that of Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough – her own mark on the features of the house and its surroundings.

Throughout her life Queen Victoria was a frequent visitor. Her daughter Princess Helena of the United Kingdom lived at the Lodge for over fifty years, presiding over elaborate re-building after a bad fire in 1869 and extensive alterations in 1912. Lord FitzAlan, last British Viceroy of Ireland, was the last private person to be entrusted with the Lodge. It was in his time, in 1936, that the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin, discussed the crisis over King Edward VIII's desire to marry Wallis Simpson, talks which led to his Abdication of the Crown a few weeks later. In 1947, the King made the Lodge available to the newly established St. Catharine’s Foundation, later known as the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Foundation of St. Catharine’s. Today the organisation is simply known as Cumberland Lodge. Cumberland Lodge today is an educational charity dedicated to initiating fresh debate on the burning questions facing society. The grounds are not generally open to the public, but the house is continually holding conferences, open days and lectures.

The private Cranbourne Tower is easily viewed from surrounding paths. It is all that survives of Cranbourne Lodge, the residence of the Keeper of Cranbourne Chase. It is thought to date back to the 16th century.

In the south-east of the park, near Englefield Green, are the popular Savill Gardens and Valley Gardens which were designed and built by Eric Savill in the 1930s and 40s. They include an extraordinary range of flowers and trees from around the world. Smith's Lawn and Polo Grounds are also nearby.

Virginia Water Lake, in the south of the park, is an artificially created lake of around 1 km² dating from the 1740s. Among the lakeside features are the 100-foot (30 m) high Canadian totem pole commemorating the centenary of British Columbia and a collection of ornamental Roman ruins, transported from the site of Leptis Magna (near modern-day Tripoli) in 1816 and installed at Virginia Water in 1826.

Beside a smaller lake, known as the Obelisk Pond is the Obelisk memorial to the Duke of Cumberland. This is inscribed

It was originally inscribed “Culloden” but this was erased on Queen Victoria's orders and replaced with "CUMBERLAND": "CUMBERLAND" is inscribed within an inset in the masonry, the original surface having had "Culloden".