Hyde Park, London
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The Serpentine, viewed from the eastern end
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London and one of the Royal Parks of London. The park is divided in two by the Serpentine Lake. The park is contiguous with Kensington Gardens, which is widely assumed to be part of Hyde Park, but is technically separate. Hyde Park is 350 acres (1.4 km²) and Kensington Gardens is 275 acres (1.1 km²) giving an overall area of 625 acres (2.5 km²).
The park was the site of The Great Exhibition of 1851, for which the Crystal Palace was designed by Joseph Paxton.
The park has become a traditional location for mass demonstrations. The Chartists, the Suffragettes and the Stop The War Coalition have all held protests in the park.
On July 20, 1982 in the Hyde Park and Regents Park bombings, two bombs linked to the IRA caused the death of seven horses and eight members of the Household Cavalry and the Royal Green Jackets.
Grand Entrance




The Grand Entrance to Hyde Park
The Grand Entrance to the park, at Hyde Park Corner next to Apsley House, was erected from the designs of Decimus Burton. It consists of a screen of handsome fluted Ionic columns, with three carriage entrance archways, two foot entrances, a lodge, etc. The extent of the whole frontage is about 107 ft (33 m). The central entrance has a bold projection: the entablature is supported by four columns; and the volutes of the capitals of the outside column on each side of the gateway are formed in an angular direction, so as to exhibit two complete faces to view. The two side gateways, in their elevations, present two insulated Ionic columns, flanked by antae. All these entrances are finished by a blocking, the sides of the central one being decorated with a beautiful frieze, representing a naval and military triumphal procession. This frieze was designed by Mr. Henning, junior, the son of Mr. Henning who was well known for his models of the Elgin marbles.
The gates were manufactured by Messrs. Brama