Agarden square is a type ofcommunal garden in an urban area wholly or substantially surrounded by buildings; commonly, it continues to be applied to public and private parks formed after such a garden becomes accessible to the public at large.
The archetypal garden square is surrounded by tallterraced houses and other types oftownhouse. Because it is designed for the amenity of surrounding residents, it is subtly distinguished from atown square designed to be a public gathering place: due to its inherent private history, it may have a pattern of dedicatedfootpaths and tends to have considerably more plants than hard surfaces or large monuments.
At their conception in the early 17th century, each such garden was a privatecommunal amenity for the residents of the overlooking houses akin to a gardencourtyard within a palace or community. Such community courtyards date back to at leastUr in 2000 BC where two-storey houses were built of fired brick around an open square.Kitchen, working, and public spaces were located on the ground floor, with private rooms located upstairs.[1]
In the 20th century, many garden squares that were previously accessible only to defined residents became accessible to the public. Those in central urban locations, such asLeicester Square in London's West End, have become indistinguishable from town squares. Others, while publicly accessible, are largely used by local residents and retain the character of garden squares or small communal parks. Many private squares, even in busy locations, remain private, such asPortman Square inMarylebone in London, despite its proximity to London's busiest shopping districts.
London is famous for them; they are described as one of the glories of the capital.[2] Many were built or rebuilt during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, at the height ofGeorgian architecture, and are surrounded bytownhouses.
In 1913, TheUK Parliament passed the1913 London Squares Preservation Act. The act provided enhanced legal protection to garden squares and other public spaces, ensuring they were preserved against inappropriate development and remained accessible for community enjoyment.
Large projects, such as theBedford Estate, included garden squares in their development. TheNotting Hill andBloomsbury neighbourhoods both have many garden squares, with the former mostly still restricted to residents, and the latter open to all. Other UK cities prominent in theGeorgian era such asEdinburgh,Bath,Bristol andLeeds have several garden squares.
Householders with access to a private garden square are commonly required to pay a maintenance levy.[3] Normally the charge is set annually by a garden committee.
Sometimes private garden squares are opened to the public, such as during Open Garden Squares Weekend.[4]
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Privately owned squares which survived the decades after theFrench Revolution and 19th centuryHaussmann's renovation of Paris include thePlace des Vosges andSquare des Épinettes in Paris.The Place des Vosges was a fashionable and expensive square to live in during the 17th and 18th centuries, and one of the central reasons thatLe Marais district became so fashionable for French nobility. It was inaugurated in 1612 with a grandcarrousel to celebrate the engagement ofLouis XIII toAnne of Austria and is a prototype of the residential squares of European cities that were to come. What was new about thePlace Royale as it was known in 1612 was that the house fronts were all built to the same design, probably byBaptiste du Cerceau.
In town squares, similarly green but publicly accessible from the outset, is theSquare René Viviani. Gardens substantially cover a few of the famousPlaces in the capital; instead, the majority are paved and replete with profoundly hard materials such asPlace de la Concorde. Inspired by ecological interests and a 21st-century focus on pollution mitigation, an increasing number of the Places in Paris today many have a focal tree or surrounding raised flower beds/and or rows of trees such as thePlace de la République.
The enclosed garden terraces (French: jardins terrasses) and courtyards (French: cours) of someFrench former palaces have resulted in redevelopments into spaces equivalent to garden squares. The same former single-owner scenario applies to at least one garden square in London (Coleridge Square).
Grandiose instances of garden-use town squares are a part of many French cities, others opt for solid material town squares.
The Square de Meeûs and Square Orban are notable examples in Brussels.
Dublin has severalGeorgian examples, includingMerrion Square,Fitzwilliam Square,Mountjoy Square,St Stephens Green andParnell Square.
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Perhaps the most famous garden square in the United States isGramercy Park in southernMidtown Manhattan. Famously, it has remained private and gated throughout its existence; possession of a key to the park is a jealously guarded privilege that only certain local residents enjoy.
The tradition offee simple land ownership in American cities has made collective amenities such as garden squares comparatively rare. Very few sub-dividers and developers included them in plats during the 19th century, with notable exceptions below.
Rittenhouse Square in theCenter City, Philadelphia encases a public garden, one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century. It was first named Southwest Square.
NearbyFitler Square is a similar garden square named for late 19th century Philadelphia mayorEdwin Henry Fitler shortly after his death in 1896. The Square, cared for through a public private partnership between the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Fitler Square Improvement Association.
InBoston tens of squares exist, some having a mainly residential use.
TheKingstowne development inFairfax County, Virginia, nearWashington, DC, contains several townhouse complexes built around garden squares.
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In Africa, garden squares are rare. Many squares and parks in Africa were constructed during colonial rule, along with European-styled architecture.
A well-known square like this isGreenmarket Square, in the center ofCape Town,South Africa, which previously hosted more townhouses at its edges but has been mostly paved over.
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Garden Squares generally do not occur throughout Asia.Parks usually occupy the need for urban green spaces, while historic and modern gardens exist as attractions, not central communal spaces.
