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For opening hours see listings above
The Orangery provides the perfect setting for morning
coffee, cakes, light lunches and traditional afternoon teas.
The Orangery (known as the 'Greenhouse'
in the late 18th and early 19th centuries), was built for Queen
Anne in 1704-5 and was used during the winter months for housing
plants, and in the summer for court entertainments. In 1718, for
example, The Post Boy reported: 'Yesterday being the Anniversary
of HM's Birth Day, the Court at Kensington was more numerous than
hath been known for many Years: at night there was a Ball in the
Green House.'
The design of the Orangery, attributed
to Nicholas Hawksmoor, was modified by Sir John Vanbrugh and the
initial estimate of £2,599 had more than doubled by the time work
was completed. The building was restored in the late 19th century
when much of the panelling was replaced. The panelling, cornice
and the 24 Corinthian columns are all painted white, following the
original scheme.
Above the arches at either end of
the room are pine and pearwood carvings by Grinling Gibbons. Beneath
them are niches which now contain four statues of female deities
by Pietro Francavilla, bought by Frederick, Prince of Wales in 1751.
In the two circular rooms beyond are a pair of large vases sculpted
by Caius Gabriel Cibber and Edward Pearce at the end of the 17th
century for the gardens at Hampton Court. The surrounding niches
contain copies of Roman busts.
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