Colin Crosby Heritage Tours

Kew

Kew is a district of Greater London, within the Borough of Richmond (Surrey).

It has a charming green and cricket ground, and these are overlooked by elegant 18th century houses, and by the 18th century red brick church where the painter Thomas Gainsborough is buried.

Kew Palace, a charming Jacobean mansion originally known as the Dutch House, was used as a country retreat by George III and his family, and is where his widow Queen Charlotte died in 1818.

Kew Gardens, properly named the Royal Botanic Gardens, are internationally famous. Started as a botanic garden in her widowhood by that king`s mother, Princess Augusta, the gardens were given to the nation by Queen Victoria in 1841.

Covering over 300 acres beside the River Thames, the gardens are part pleasure ground and part research centre. They contain tens of thousands of plants, shrubs and trees, both native and foreign.

The Palm House was designed by Decimus Burton and the Pagoda by William Chambers.

The gardens were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003.

The Public Record Office has been at Kew since 1996.

Blue Badge Guide Colin Crosby is available to lead Guided Walks around Kew for groups.