Records of the Royal Parks Division

Division within WORK

1653-2001

Correspondence and papers, registered files and maps, plans and drawings relating to the various royal parks and gardens in and around London for which the Office of Works and its successors were responsible.

Files are in WORK 16. Plans and drawings are in WORK 32.

Records of the Brompton Cemetery are in WORK 97, WORK 98 and WORK 100.

Royal Parks and Pleasure Gardens: London Region estate management registered files (prefix LRE/D), WORK 99.

See also the Records of the Royal Parks Agency in: KW

Related records of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings are in

Public Record(s)

English

• Department of the Environment, 1970-1997
• Department of the Environment, Royal Parks and Palaces Division, 1981-1992
• Ministry of Public Building and Works, Royal Parks Division, 1962-1970
• Ministry of Works and Buildings, Royal Parks Division, 1940-1942
• Ministry of Works and Planning, Royal Parks Division, 1942-1943
• Ministry of Works, Royal Parks Division, 1943-1962
• Office of Woods, Forests, Land Revenues, Works and Buildings, Works Department, 1832-1851
• Office of Works, 1378-1832
• Office of Works, 1851-1940
• Office of Works, Royal Parks Division, 1902-1940

6 series

Topics

Maps and plans

Royal Parks

Prior to 1831, the management and administration of the royal parks and pleasure gardens lay with the Commissioners of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues and their predecessors. Upon the amalgamation of the Office of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues and the Office of Works in 1832, the Surveyor General of the Works was made responsible to Parliament for the maintenance of all royal parks and gardens. When the Office of Works was revived as a separate institution in 1851 its Commissioners took over from the Commissioners of Woods all duties relating to the maintenance of royal parks and gardens. The First Commissioner had specialised powers in connection with the regulation of certain commons and open spaces.

Royal parks continued to be administered as a distinct unit within the Office of Works and its successors, headed by the Bailiff of the Royal Parks.

Responsibilities passed to the Department of the Environment in 1970 and the Property Services Agency in 1972. In 1993 maintenance of the royal parks was taken over by the Royal Parks Agency. The Royal Parks were created as a Next Steps Agency in 1993 sponsored by Department of National Heritage, to be known as The Royal Parks. Responsibility for the agency rests now with DCMS. Although the title given is the one commonly used, the full title is the Royal Parks Agency.