The site where the Harborough Canal was crossed by the road near Great Bowden was an obvious place for development. Early in the 19c The Britannia Inn was built to serve the canal navvies and waterway workers when the Grand Union canal was opened from Foxton to Market Harborough in 1809. In 1857, Great Bowden Hall was a development and an extension of The Britannia Inn.
- Walled Kitchen Garden
It is likely that the WKG was created between 1857 and 1886 when the Britannia Inn was converted into Bowden Hall.
The WKG is approximately 0.66 of an acre and is situated on the opposite side of Leicester Lane to the Hall. The South wall borders the road and there was originally a farmyard outside the western wall. The buildings there have been converted into dwellings. The canal is on the West side of the farmyard.
The garden slopes gently down towards the North, more so on the Eastern side. It is rectangular in shape but the South side is on a slant as it follows the line of the adjacent road.
Currently, after years of neglect this WKG has been sympathetically restored and is being developed as a garden by the current owners.
Ariel view of Great Bowden Hall showing the WKG Ariel view showing bridge and the canal This photo shows the renovated East and South walls and the planting at the time of our visit This is taken from the outside of the East wall and shows the buttresses. It also shows the extent of the renovation of the wall. Two examples of the decorative coping that is thought to have been used on the original South wall The new glasshouse and frames sited along the North wall. Also shown are the new shed, the new fruit cage, the whitewash on the wall from the original glasshouse and the restored doorway near the site of the pump See our full research report on the Walled Kitchen Garden here:
Great Bowden Hall, Great Bowden
- Photos