Welcome to The Italian Garden
Great Ambrook
An extraordinary garden on the edge of Dartmoor, lost for decades…
Completed in 1912 for Arthur Smith Graham, the garden inspires everyone who visits. Influenced by the Edwardian fashion for Italianate gardens, it takes a more informal, picturesque design approach suited to the Devon landscape.
The secluded location was chosen for a specific client who could not create a flamboyant, open to all garden because of his homosexuality. The garden provided the setting and facilities for Graham and his friends to socialise and relax together without restraint - which would otherwise have not been possible in mixed society.
The garden includes a number of buildings and structures of unusual design which are integral to the experience of the garden - the long pergola, the observatory at the summit of the garden, the swimming and plunge pools, rills, walkways and tennis court.
Despite decades of neglect, the garden remains remarkably close to its original design because of the survival of the original layout and features.
Since reclaimed by nature, it is now being gently restored by a team of enthusiastic volunteers with support from the National Heritage Lottery Fund.
“Our mission is to give this important garden a sustainable future”
“If a thing’s worth doing at all, it’s worth doing well”
