Ewenny Priory is situated on the flood plain of the Ogmore valley, just to the south of a canalized stretch of the river, to the south of Bridgend (Nprns143 & 308). A Benedictine priory was founded here in about 1141. The gardens lie to the south, east, and west of the house. They occupy the monastic precinct (300298) and were largely created by Richard Turbervill Picton in 1803-05 at the same time as the present house was built, their present layout attained by 1877.

There are three main garden areas. The core of the garden is the lawned area in which the house is set and through which the drives pass to a circle on the south front of the house. The area is bounded on the west by the walled garden (700169), on the south by the ha-ha, and on the east by the east wall of the precinct. Two towers of medieval origin, the south gatehouse (309108), and the dovecote tower (37532), stand at the south-west and south-east corners. A flight of steps, shown on the 1877 map, lead down from the lawn to the archery field opposite the front door of the house. To the east of the house the lawn forms three levels, separated by slight scarps, and with plantings of beech, elm and ash.

The second section of the gardens is the informal grounds to the south-west of the house. It is largely wooded former parkland and has been laid out as ornamental woodland by the present owner. This includes a small informal pond to the west of the drive, a mown clearing in the woodland beyond it, and planted ornamental trees and shrubs within the woodland.

The third garden section is a rectangular area at the east end of the garden beyond the precinct wall, and was originally an orchard. A greenhouse dating to 1890 is set against the north wall. The area is laid out to lawn and beds with a gravel path running east from the resited Romanesque doorway (309109) and a north-south central gravel path with wooden pergola. At its southern end is a linear pond with central fountain, and an informal area of trees and shrubs laid out in the 1930s when winding rills and pools were created using water channelled from the pond. Many of the trees are nineteenth century in date and include pines and a large horse chestnut planted in 1815 to commemorate Sir Thomas Picton's departure for Waterloo. Underplanting is dominated by ornamenal shrubs, including bamboo. The enclosure to the immediate east is now occupied by a conifer plantation.

Sources:
Cadw 2000: Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales, Glamorgan, 236-9 (ref: PGW(Gm)14(GLA)).
Ordnance Survey First Edition 25-inch map, sheet: Glamorgan XL.12 (1877).

RCAHMW, 17 May 2022

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