Ghostly outline of long-lost garden at Winston Churchill’s birthplace revealed in aerial photos

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Sweltering heat in the United Kingdom has revealed the remains of a long-lost 18th-century garden at a major tourist attraction.

Aerial photos show the outline of the 300-year-old formal garden at Blenheim Palace, an estate about eight miles northwest ofOxford, England,news agency SWNS reported.

Blenheim Palace, aUNESCO World Heritage Sitebuilt between 1705 and 1722, is famously the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill, as well as the ancestral home of the Dukes of Marlborough.

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The outline was revealed during the latest heat wave this summer after prolonged dry weather created parch marks, or dry patches in the grass, across the grounds.

�until cooler temperatures arrive and sufficient rain falls to green up the shallow-rooted grass.”

Split image of aerial of palace grounds, 18th century map

Sweltering summer heat in the United Kingdom has revealed the outline of a long-lost 18th-century formal garden at Blenheim Palace, Winston Churchill’s birthplace, after prolonged dry weather.(Pete Seaward/SWNS)

“There isn’t currently any rain in the forecast for the next few weeks, so it will be visible for a while yet,” the representative added.

The patches, officials say, reveal the outline of the original garden, giving a glimpse of what it looked like 300 years ago.

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It was originally created in 1705 by royal gardener Henry Wise and was once protected by a high stone wall with bastions.

The garden was dismantled in 1760s, SWNS said, when Blenheim Palace’s gardener Lancelot “Capability” Brown redesigned the palace grounds.

Split image of Churchill, aerial of gardens

Blenheim Palace visitors can explore the historic estate, including the room where Sir Winston Churchill was born, alongside its expansive gardens and State Rooms.(Bettmann via Getty Images;Pete Seaward/SWNS)

The technical term for the garden is a “parterre,” from the French term par terre, meaning “on the ground.”

Pictures show that the parterre consisted of symmetrical flower beds and paths.

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In a statement, Blenheim Palace head gardener Andy Mills said the parch marks “allow us to trace the intricate design and scale of the original parterre.”

“The excessively dry weather has given us a fascinating bird’s-eye view into Blenheim’s past,” said Mills, as SWNS noted.

“It’s a brilliant reminder of the formal gardens that came before.”

Mills added, “It’s a brilliant reminder of the formal gardens that came before and thelayers of historythat continue to shape the palace’s landscape.”

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The palace ispopular among touristsfor its opulent State Rooms and extensive gardens, as well as the room where Churchill was born.

Blenheim Palace welcomed 980,678 visitors in 2025, according to visitor data compiled by Historic Houses.

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