After a gap of almost 66 years the magnificent cast iron gates
to Royal Victoria Park are back, thanks to a Heritage Lottery grant
organised by Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Replicas of the cast iron Victorian originals were installed in
the park this week (Tuesday, 4 March).
Altogether 18 gates, painted in green and with gilt decoration,
are being returned to the two entrances on each side of Marlborough
Lane, and the Queen’s Parade entrance.
The restoration has been made possible by a Heritage Lottery
grant which enabled the changes to be achieved at virtually no cost
to council tax payers.
In every detail the new gates are as near identical to the
originals as is possible - the result of lengthy detective work and
research that involved lots of old photographs, scratch marks on
stones, and a hunt for designs similar to the originals.
The gates disappeared in October 1942, part of a national drive
for iron and steel when the country was losing shipping at an
alarming rate and desperately short of raw materials. The gates
could have been excluded from the cull as works of artistic merit,
but six months after the Bath blitz local feelings were still
running high, and it was decided to donate them along with all
railings around the park.
Restoration has not been an easy job. When conservation
architect Rhys Brookes, of Harrison Brookes Architects, started
researching the design of the original gates he found that almost
none of the drawings and specifications had survived. This forced
him to rely heavily on old postcards and any photographs that
included the gates. Marks on the stone pillars of the gateways
yielded more evidence and finding a gate in Bathwick Hill which
appeared to have come from the same foundry confirmed other
research and filled in many details that could not be discovered by
any other means.
While the gates were being made, the stonework of the gateways
was renovated, electrical wiring and switchgear renewed, and road
levels changed to accommodate the gates.
At the end of last year the pair of Coade stone lions on either
side of the Queen’s Gate were restored to their original bronze
colour and replicas of the original lanterns erected there. A
contribution for this part of project was also provided by the
Council's Property Services team.
For Glenn Humphreys, Bath & North East Somerset Council's
Heritage Parks Manager, who compiled the lottery bid and has
overseen the project, this is a highlight in a programme of
improvements to the park carried out over recent years.
Improvements have included replacement of lost perimeter railings
with hand-forged replicas, the planting of thousands of shrubs and
the restoration of the bandstand and Royal Crescent ha-ha wall.
Work is also due to start very shortly on the final part of the
renovation programme: converting the Temple of Minerva in the
Botanical Gardens into an interpretation and educational resource
centre for local groups and schools.
Cllr Charles Gerrish, Cabinet Member for Customer Services said:
"This has been a glorious restoration project by Bath & North
East Somerset Council’s Heritage Parks team. Now these impressive
gates will serve to remind people how special this public space
is.
"Residents and tourists alike will have a grand welcoming to
Royal Victoria Park, one of the finest of its kind in the
region."
