The Serpentine (also known as the Serpentine River) is a 40-acre (16 ha) recreational lake in Hyde Park, London, England, created in 1730 at the behest of Queen Caroline. Although it is common to refer to the entire body of water as the Serpentine, the name refers in the strict sense only to the eastern half of the lake. Serpentine Bridge, which marks the boundary between Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, also marks the Serpentine's western boundary; the long and narrow western half of the lake is known as the Long Water. The Serpentine takes its name from its snakelike, curving shape, although it only has one bend. Originally fed by the River Westbourne and Tyburn Brook in the 1730s, the lake's water was then pumped from the Thames in the 1830s. The water is now pumped from three boreholes within Hyde Park, the most recent being installed in May 2012 as part of the 2011–2012 restoration of the lake. The Serpentine provided a focal point for The Great Exhibition of 1851, and more recently was a venue for the men's and women's triathlon and marathon swimming events in the London 2012 Olympics. Since 1864, the Serpentine Swimming Club has organised a 100-yard race every Christmas morning. In 1913, the Peter Pan Cup was inaugurated for this race by J. M. Barrie, the creator of the fictional character Peter Pan. There are many recreational facilities around the Serpentine, as well as boating on the lake itself. In 1860, the Serpentine was to be modified into a skating pond with formal edges. This scheme was not implemented. Among the landmarks near the lake is the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain.
Geography of the lake
Originally the lake was fed by the River Westbourne entering at the Italian Garden at the north-western end of the Long Water. The Westbourne ceased to provide the water for the Serpentine in 1834, as it had become polluted so water was for some years pumped from the tidal Thames. The water is now supplied by three boreholes drilled into the Upper Chalk. The first borehole is at the Italian Gardens, the second at the Diana Memorial and the third, drilled in 2012 to a depth of 132 m (433 ft), is within 50 m (160 ft) of there. The Long Water runs south-east from this point to Serpentine Bridge, where the lake curves to the east, following the natural contours of the land. At the eastern end, water flows out via a sluice in the dam, forming a small ornamental waterfall at the Dell where a small garden exists landscaped in the 1870s by Lord Redesdale. The outflow has not historically maintained the waterfall, and re-circulation pumps were installed in the Dell, below the dam, to sustain this feature. The restoration work in 2012 restored the flows into the Serpentine and this waterfall is now restored as originally designed. Historically the river flowed mainly exposed due south from this point as the mutual limits of Westminster and Kensington, but since 1850 is culverted (runs underground) to reach the Thames near Chelsea Bridge. The lake has a maximum depth of 17 ft (5.2 m); it is often reported to be deeper, but bathymetric surveys by the Royal Park in 2010 revealed the design of the lake. There are two lakeside restaurants and various recreational facilities on the lake shore.
History
In 1730 Queen Caroline, wife of George II, ordered the damming of the River Westbourne in Hyde Park as part of a general redevelopment of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. Original monastic ponds may have existed in the location and these were modified as part of the 1730–1732 scheme to create a single lake. At that time, the Westbourne formed eleven natural ponds in the park. During the 1730s, the lake filled to its current size and shape. The redevelopment was carried out by Royal Gardener Charles Bridgeman, who dammed the Westbourne to create the artificial lake, and dug a large pond in the centre of Kensington Gardens (The Round Pond) to be a focal point for pathways in the park. At the time of construction, artificial lakes were typically long and straight garden canals, as at St James's Park, where the canal was excavated in the 1660s (later turned into a curving lake). The Serpentine was one of the earliest artificial lakes designed to appear natural, and was widely imitated in parks and gardens nationwide.
The lake achieved notoriety in December 1816 when Harriet Westbrook, the pregnant wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, was found drowned in the Serpentine having left a suicide note addressed to her father, sister and husband. Shelley married Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin less than two weeks later.
The lake formed a focal point of the 1814 celebrations which marked a century of Hanoverian rule and re-enacted the British victory at Trafalgar nine years previously, and of the 1851 Great Exhibition, with the Crystal Palace standing on its southern shore. Following the introduction of more stringent regulations to protect the environment in the park, the relocation of the Crystal Palace, and the construction of the nearby Albertopolis complex of museums and exhibitions, large-scale events ceased to take place on the banks of the Serpentine. However, it was the location for the 1977 Silver Jubilee Exhibition, and a venue for the 2012 Olympics. In the 1820s, the park was extensively redesigned by Decimus Burton. At the same time, John Rennie the Younger designed and oversaw the Serpentine Bridge as part of newly built West Carriage Drive bounding Hyde Park against Kensington Gardens, dividing the lake into the Serpentine (east) and the Long Water (west).
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
