Claremont gardens…The ampitheatre

Today I visited Claremont NT gardens again with a friend for a dog walk. Very chilly but still some nice autumn colour on the trees.
This is the view over the amphitheatre taken from the terrace. The Amphitheatre was part of the original garden laid out in 1720. Over the years it was used for many performances both by the Royals living there and also more recently concerts organised by the National Trust.
In 1922 much of the estate was sold for housing development. Claremont House was converted into a school and in 1949 the surviving 49 acres of the garden were given to the National Trust. For about 20 years Claremont was run by the Esher Council and little was done except mowing the grass and maintain the trees. In the 1960s the National Trust decided to take the garden back in hand when the amphitheatre was cleared of invasive scrub to once again reveal its beauty and impressive scale.