Prince Albert Gardens is a park in Swanage, Dorset, England. It was established in 1996.
Prince Albert Gardens is a park in Swanage, Dorset, England. It was established in 1996.
The site was originally open grazing land. [1] Prior to being established as a park, Prince Albert Gardens was the site of a miniature golf course. [2]
Prince Albert Gardens was established in 1996 as part of the Swanage Seafront Improvement Scheme. In 1997 the project received a commendation at the Civic Trust Awards. [3]
The landscaping of the gardens forms a gradual transition from the urban edge of town to the wilder adjoining landscape of the Downs. [4]
A sculpture by Mary Spencer Watson, the Lady of the Rocks, made from Purbeck stone, is located in the gardens. [5] [6]
The gardens also feature two Ionic columns, made from Portland stone and dating from the early 19th-century, around which is built an outdoor amphitheatre. The columns, which are Grade II listed, were formerly part of the forecourt of the Grosvenor Hotel, which has been demolished since the columns were listed. [7]
The Prince Albert Memorial was erected by George Burt in 1862, and was the first civic memorial to Prince Albert. It was removed from its original site in 1971, and stored, until it was re-established at the eastern end of Prince Albert Gardens in 2021. [8] There had been earlier attempts in 1996 and 2000 to place the memorial in the gardens. [9]
In June each year the gardens host the Swanage Fish Festival. [10] An episode of BBC's Songs of Praise was filmed in the gardens in 2021. [11] Other music and theatre performances take place in the gardens. [12] The open air theatre group, SISATA, started with a week's run in the gardens in 2012. [13]
Dorset is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of 2,653 square kilometres (1,024 sq mi), Dorset borders Devon to the west, Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north-east, and Hampshire to the east. The county town is Dorchester, in the south. After the reorganisation of local government in 1974, the county border was extended eastward to incorporate the Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch. Around half of the population lives in the South East Dorset conurbation, while the rest of the county is largely rural with a low population density.
Bournemouth is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the English south coast, equidistant from Dorchester and Southampton. Bournemouth is part of the South East Dorset conurbation, which has a population of 465,000.
The Albert Memorial, directly north of the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington Gardens, London, was commissioned by Queen Victoria in memory of her beloved husband Prince Albert, who died in 1861. Designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the Gothic Revival style, it takes the form of an ornate canopy or pavilion 176 feet (54 m) tall, in the style of a Gothic ciborium over the high altar of a church, sheltering a statue of the prince facing south. It took over ten years to complete, the £120,000 cost met by public subscription.
The Jurassic Coast is a World Heritage Site on the English Channel coast of southern England. It stretches from Exmouth in East Devon to Studland Bay in Dorset, a distance of about 96 miles (154 km), and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in mid-December 2001.
Studland is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, England. The village is located about 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the town of Swanage, over a steep chalk ridge, and 3 miles (4.8 km) south of the South East Dorset conurbation at Sandbanks, from which it is separated by Poole Harbour. The parish includes Brownsea Island within the harbour. In the 2011 census the parish had 182 households and a population of 425, though many of the houses in the village are holiday homes, second homes, or guest houses, and the village's population varies depending upon the season.
Swanage is a coastal town and civil parish in the south east of Dorset, England. It is at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck and one of its two towns, approximately 6+1⁄4 miles (10 km) south of Poole and 25 miles (40 km) east of Dorchester. In the 2011 census the civil parish had a population of 9,601. Nearby are Ballard Down and Old Harry Rocks, with Studland Bay and Poole Harbour to the north. Within the parish are Durlston Bay and Durlston Country Park to the south of the town. The parish also includes the areas of Herston, just to the west of the town, and Durlston, just to the south.
The Isle of Purbeck is a peninsula in Dorset, England. It is bordered by water on three sides: the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the north. Its western boundary is less well defined, with some medieval sources placing it at Flower's Barrow above Worbarrow Bay. John Hutchins, author of The History and Antiquities of the County of Dorset, defined Purbeck's western boundary as the Luckford Lake steam, which runs south from the Frome. According to writer and broadcaster Ralph Wightman, Purbeck "is only an island if you accept the barren heaths between Arish Mell and Wareham as cutting off this corner of Dorset as effectively as the sea." The most southerly point is St Alban's Head.
Wareham is a historic market town and, under the name Wareham Town, a civil parish, in the English county of Dorset. The town is situated on the River Frome eight miles (13 km) southwest of Poole.
Durdle Door is a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast near Lulworth in Dorset, England. It is privately owned by the Weld Family who own the Lulworth Estate, but it is also open to the public.
George Burt was a public-works contractor and businessman from Swanage, England, who managed the construction company Mowlem, founded by his uncle John Mowlem.
Durlston Country Park is a 320-acre country park and nature reserve stretching along the coast of the Isle of Purbeck on the outskirts of Swanage in Dorset, England. The park is a popular destination for tourists to enjoy the walks, views, visitor centre, climbing, and wildlife, including Durlston Castle, the Great Globe, Tilly Whim Caves, and Anvil Point Lighthouse. It is a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site, forms part of the 630 mile South West Coast Path, and is owned by Dorset Council.
Wareham railway station serves the town of Wareham in Dorset, England. It is situated about 0.6 miles (1 km) north of the town centre. It is 120 miles 70 chains (194.5 km) down the line from London Waterloo. On tickets it is printed "Wareham Dorset" to avoid confusion with Ware railway station.
Wilts & Dorset is a bus and coach operator providing services in East Dorset, South Wiltshire, and West Hampshire. It operates services under the morebus brand around Bournemouth and Poole, and under the Salisbury Reds brand around Salisbury and Amesbury. It is part of Go South Coast, a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group.
Durlston Castle stands within Durlston Country Park, a 1.13 square-kilometre (280-acre) country park and nature reserve stretching along the coastline south of Swanage, on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset.
St Alban's Head is a headland located 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) southwest of Swanage, on the coast of Dorset, England. It is the most southerly part of the Purbeck peninsula, and comprises an outcrop of Portland Stone from the overlying Lower Purbeck Stone. It is part of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site. It is designated a Special Area of Conservation under the European Union's Habitats Directive.
Ithaca War Memorial and Park is a heritage-listed memorial and park at Enoggera Terrace, Paddington, Queensland, Australia. The memorial was designed and built by Arthur Henry Thurlow between 1921 and 1925. The park was built and designed by Alexander Jolly. It is also known as Alexander Jolly Park. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Swanage Town Hall is a municipal building on Swanage High Street in Dorset. Constructed by the local building contractor George Burt in 1882–83, it reused materials salvaged from demolition works in London. The façade was rescued from London's 17th-century Mercers' Hall and the external clock is dated to 1826. It was not universally welcomed and one critic in the 1930s described it as "positively dreadful". The hall serves as the chamber for the current town council and has previously hosted the magistrates' court, fire brigade and citizens' advice service.
Poole Civic Centre is an Art Deco municipal building in Poole, Dorset. Since 7 October 2019 the building has been a Grade II listed building. Also sometimes known as Poole Town Hall, the civic centre was the headquarters of Poole Borough Council until 2019.
The Prince Albert Memorial is a memorial in Swanage, Dorset in the form of a stone obelisk to Prince Albert, the consort of Queen Victoria, who died in 1861. The memorial was erected in 1862, and is notable for having been the earliest civic memorial to the Prince. It was dismantled in 1971, and only rebuilt 50 years later, in 2021.
The Recreation Ground is a public park in Swanage, Dorset. It was acquired prior to WWI, but only properly established in the 1920s.