Cassiobury Park has an incredible history. Not only is it one of the
remnants of the greatest lost estates in the country, it is now one of
the most popular parks in the country and locally is the largest park in
Hertfordshire, and the principal park of its primary town, Watford. It
covers an impressive area which is twice the size of Hyde Park in
London. Arthur Capel was made the Earl of Essex and in time moved to
Cassiobury. The Capels had a major impact on Cassiobury. By 1800, the
5th Earl of Essex employed noted and respected architect James Wyatt to
rebuild his house. Successive landscape gardeners were employed here,
from Moses Cook to Humphry Repton, with the landscape captured by J. M.
W. Turner on visits to Cassiobury. By 1881, the parkland was already
well established with fine trees, woodland walks, with many deer in the
park, often traded with the royal deer parks at Richmond, Bushy and
Windsor Great Park. By the beginning of the twentieth century, decline
had set in and large areas of the park had been sold off to Watford
Borough Council for public parkland - the beginnings of the public park
we know today. Cassiobury Park: The Postcard Collection takes the reader
on an evocative journey into the park's rich past through a selection of
old postcards that offer a fascinating window into its history and
continuing development.
