Richmond Park
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| Royal Parks of London |
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Richmond Park is the largest of the Royal parks in London, close to Richmond upon Thames, Kingston upon Thames and East Sheen and has an area of almost 10 km².
Originally the Royal deer hunting grounds of Edward I, the park is Europe's largest urban walled park and very picturesque, due to the herd of over 650 deer (both red and fallow) that roam freely around it, and the delightful Isabella Plantation, a cornucopia of different plants in a green haven. There is also a protected view of St Paul's Cathedral from King Henry VIII's Mound in the park.
Richmond Park is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a National Nature Reserve and a cSAC Special Area of Conservation for the Stag Beetle.
The park has roads linking these areas running through it, however these are only open during daylight hours, the speed limit is 20 mph, and no commercial vehicles are allowed. The park is enclosed with a high wall with several gates. The gates open to motor traffic are Sheen Gate, Richmond Gate, Ham Gate, Kingston Gate, and Roehampton Gate. Robin Hood Gate (close to the Robin Hood roundabout on the A3) was closed to motor vehicles in 2003 as part of a traffic reduction trial - the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are presently deciding whether to re-open the gate in line with requests from local councils.
Richmond Park is also the name of a Parliamentary constituency comprising some of the districts that surround the park (Richmond-upon-Thames, Barnes, Kew, Ham, Petersham, Sheen and parts of Kingston-upon-Thames. The present MP is Susan Kramer
External links
- Royal Parks (http://www.royalparks.gov.uk/)
- For more information on Stag Beetles (http://www.jwhs.co.uk/SB/RPSBP.htm)no:Richmond Park