Exploring the rich history of Chichester’s Bishop’s Palace Garden

Bishop’s Palace Garden, Chichester: A History is published by the Chichester Local History Society in association with the University of Chichester at £5 and is available from Kim’s Bookshop, 28 South Street, Chichester, PO19 1EL.

Brian, who lives in Chichester, said: “When I looked into the history of Bishop’s Palace Garden, I realised that it must be one of the oldest continuous gardens in England; it commenced in 1075! As such it ought to be of national importance. And of great benefit to people interested in history as well as in gardens. Its seven county champion trees on 5.5 acres (2.2 ha) shows that some of the bishops must have had a great interest in it. Again, this should be of interest to many people.

"The 1875, 1:500 scale, OS map is a most valuable document in that it shows the garden’s layout and all its trees. It is the most detailed map of Chichester ever produced; only some 400 towns were mapped on such a large scale. During the Covid-19 pandemic the garden was often full of visitors. Often it was difficult to find a seat. Many of the visitors I talked to were keen to know more about the garden.”

As for the book: “My involvement commenced when, with Geoff King, I was invited to a meeting of CDC’s community policy review committee in 2004 to discuss the generally poor state of CDC’s parks and gardens. I assume we were chosen due to our involvement with the Chichester City Tree Trail (2000). In the years following the tree trail, I led a series tree walks during Chichester’s Festival/Festivities.

"They were very popular and showed that people had a great interest in tees. Many people know me as ‘the tree man.’

“I had been interested in local history since my schooldays in the Lake District. The meeting with CDC led to the formation of the Friends of Bishop’s Palace Garden.

"This, and the realisation that the garden was very old, stimulated me to look into its history. It is a stand-alone book but I hope to write something about its trees in more detail and about its uses: by residents (bishops, servants, evacuees) and visitors; flower shows, other open days and entertainments. Chichester’s first balloon ascent took place from the Palace in 1784!”

Brian’s previous books include: Forest and Savanna: an introduction to tropical plant ecology with special reference to West Africa, Heinemann (1965), intended for use in the first year at universities, for students studying botany, agriculture or forestry; Forest and Savanna: an introduction to tropical terrestrial ecology with special reference to West Africa (second edition with different subtitle and more pages, 1974); and A Field Key to the Savanna Trees of Nigeria (with D P Stanfield) Ibadan University Press, (1966).

Apart from as an undergraduate and at school, Brian started writing when he started research in 1950.

“The last piece of field work for my PhD was on the yew trees at Kingley Vale and involved my first encounter with Chichester.”