407:, a celebrated landscape designer. It was Leicester's first public park of significant size, and was opened on 29 May 1882 by the Prince and Princess of Wales, an event commemorated by an ornate plaque at the Abbey Park Road entrance. The park was created in an area that had previously been described as "marshy ground in a poor district" at a cost of over £40,000. The works included the widening and deepening of the river over a length of around a mile, with the excavated earth used to create mounds within the park, as well as the construction of stone weirs and locks. Three new bridges were constructed crossing the river. An artificial lake was created and over 33,000 trees planted. Excavations as part of the work discovered remains of animals including elephants and rhinoceros. The resulting park occupied 57 acres of land between the River Soar and the
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graves were found, but no magnificent tomb of the sort popularly hoped for. Having exposed and mapped the extent of the Abbey Church and a variety of monastic buildings, the workforce built low walls to mark out the foundations and pier bases. They also carried out extensive repairs to the stonework and brickwork of the medieval boundary walls particularly along the north and western sides of the site, traditionally ascribed to
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the city council attempted to alleviate local poverty by employing a team of workmen to clear pernicious weeds from the overgrown site, and the architect W K Bedingfield was able to utilise this process to also search for, and then uncover the buried foundations of the Abbey buildings. A variety of
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Although the new park was called Abbey Park, the site of the abbey itself, bounded by substantial medieval masonry and brick walls, was not within the park, but was in agricultural land on the other side of the River Soar. The exact location of the Abbey was unknown, with no standing remains other
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in order to develop flood prevention plans. Planning for this first incarnation of the park was underway by 1879, as part of designs by the borough surveyors for the relief of flooding in the area. However the design for the park itself was opened up to a competition. The winning design, with its
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The park was the site of an annual flower show dating back to the 19th century, which included a swimming gala and evolved into the Abbey Park Show in the 1940s, with the addition a range of entertainment and displays. It continued until 1995, when it was abolished due to falling attendances and
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rising costs, although a return is periodically discussed. It was also the site of the
Pageant of Leicester, held in 1932. The Abbey Park Festival was an annual music festival which was held for over twenty years from 1981. An annual bonfire and fireworks event is held in the park around
445:. Paths were laid out across the grounds, tennis courts were built, a large oval was levelled for use as a cricket pitch, and a new stone bridge in a classical style, was built across the River Soar to link the two parts of the park.
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at the end of 1925. Several years of preliminary works, and sporadic attempts to pin down the site of the Abbey buildings, were followed by more thorough work undertaken in 1929-30. With the rise in unemployment culminating in the
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than the boundary walls and the ruins of the sixteenth century
Cavendish House. Archaeological investigations of a limited nature began in the 1920s, and popular enthusiasm was fuelled by the 1922 discoveries in Egypt of
383:, still bounded by large medieval walls. The park includes the archaeological sites of the Abbey and the ruins of Cavendish House, along with a wide range of decorative and recreational parkland features.
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455:. He died while en route from York to London on 29 November 1530. A statue of him also stands next to the Park's cafe. Alongside the site of the 12th century
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operated by
Leicester Society of Model Engineers since 1949, a visitor centre, cafe, children's play area with paddling pool, pets corner,
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423:'s tomb might be similarly discovered. After assorted modest excavations, the 32 acre Abbey Grounds site was donated to the city by the
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in 1645; after he left, his soldiers set fire to it leaving the house gutted. The charred stone window frame is still visible today.
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In 1876 Leicester town council bought 57 acres (23 ha) of marshy ground between the river and canal from the
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incorporating the Abbey
Gatehouse, and by tradition built using stone from the abbey). The house was used by
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Buckley, Richard (2007). "The
Archaeology of Leicester Abbey". In J. Story, J. Bourne and R. Buckley (ed.).
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The Abbey has been the site of training excavations by
Archaeology students at
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Despite the absence of a tomb, the abbey ruins received a memorial slab to
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Abbey Park
Miniature Railway - The Leicester Society of Model Engineers
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Leicester city mayor Sir Peter
Soulsby backs return of Abbey Park Show
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Pleasures and
Treasures of Britain: A Discerning Traveller's Companion
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Leicester Abbey: medieval history, archaeology and manuscript studies
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360:
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The park now has an area of 89 acres (36 ha), and has formal
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1106:
East
Midlands Today on Tour: Abbey Park, Leicester - August 9th
569:"Abbey Park, Leicester: Register of Historic Parks and Gardens"
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bandstand, rustic bridges and planted gardens, was the work of
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The Historic Parks and Gardens of Leicestershire and Rutland
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Since 2010 Abbey Park has housed the offices and studios of
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and Abbot Cloune. The north and western wall is now named
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1147:University of Leicester Archaeological Services.
857:"The Official Opening of Abbey Park in 1882 Coin"
137:Grade II* (Register of Historic Parks and Gardens
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1014:Green Flags for Leicester parks and open spaces
375:. It opened in 1882 on the flood plain of the
921:"Abbot Penny's Wall (Grade I) (1361406)"
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386:It is Grade II* listed in Historic England's
1123:"Abbey Park Bonfire & Firework Display"
1046:, 17 September 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2014
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709:Cantor, Leonard; Squires, Anthony (1997).
1176:, Takeover Radio. Retrieved 20 April 2017
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461:William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire
794:"Opening of a Public Park for Leicester"
767:Mr Leicester: Fifty-seven heavenly acres
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467:after the siege of Leicester during the
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1216:Parks and open spaces in Leicestershire
993:Frommer's England and the Best of Wales
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1020:, 25 July 2011. Retrieved 24 June 2014
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775:, 24 June 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014
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1149:"Leicester Abbey training excavation"
1112:, August 2005. Retrieved 29 June 2014
893:. Leics Arch and Hist Soc. p. 6.
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547:Grade I listed buildings in Leicester
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532:within one of its Gatehouse Lodges.
1189:Abbey Park - Leicester City Council
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1006:
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1231:Grade II* listed parks and gardens
926:National Heritage List for England
625:National Heritage List for England
371:flows. It is owned and managed by
35:Bridge over River Soar, Abbey Park
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506:. The park has regularly won the
211:Grand Union Canal, Leicester line
16:Public park in Leicester, England
542:Scheduled monuments in Leicester
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1174:TAKEOVER RADIO 103.2 - History
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1:
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388:Register of Parks and Gardens
145:River Soar & boating lake
713:. Kairos Press. p. 66.
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971:, Shire Publications Ltd.,
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10:
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393:
1067:British Newspaper Archive
995:, John Wiley & Sons,
969:Discovering Famous Graves
835:British Newspaper Archive
803:British Newspaper Archive
745:British Newspaper Archive
685:British Newspaper Archive
502:, a bowling green, and a
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1095:. Retrieved 29 June 2014
967:Pearson, Lynn F. (2004)
826:"Leicester Town Council"
598:"Abbey Park and Grounds"
443:Grade I listed structure
302:Ruins of Cavendish House
741:Nottingham Evening Post
314:site of St Mary's Abbey
105:; 142 years ago
620:"Abbet Park (1000956)"
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373:Leicester City Council
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121:Leicester City Council
1058:"A Leicester Pageant"
950:, Dundurn Group Ltd,
602:greenflagaward.org.uk
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475:Facilities and events
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95:89 acres (36 ha)
991:Dalton, Nick (2012)
650:"Abbey Park History"
523:Leicester University
367:, through which the
359:is a public park in
1194:22 May 2008 at the
1127:visitleicester.info
1089:Abbey Park Festival
946:Kemp, David (1992)
831:Leicester Chronicle
687:. 27 September 1879
201:A B B E Y P A R K
72: /
1036:2014-08-02 at the
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439:Abbot Penny's Wall
419:, and a hope that
417:Tutankhamun's tomb
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1043:Leicester Mercury
772:Leicester Mercury
496:miniature railway
485:Miniature railway
469:English Civil War
409:Grand Union Canal
254:Miniature Railway
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1151:. Archived from
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747:. 5 January 1882
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508:Green Flag Award
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863:. 1 July 2015
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805:. 3 June 1882
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1153:the original
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1069:. 5 May 1932
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259:Boating lake
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483:Abbey Park
441:, and is a
435:Abbot Penny
290:Pets Corner
150:Designation
79: /
54:Coordinates
1210:Categories
720:1871344158
631:6 December
553:References
377:River Soar
369:River Soar
357:Abbey Park
352:Abbey site
276:'The Oval'
206:River Soar
153:Green Flag
110:1882-05-29
64:52°38′49″N
24:Abbey Park
1221:Leicester
504:bandstand
465:Charles I
361:Leicester
67:1°08′10″W
1192:Archived
1132:13 April
1034:Archived
1003:, p. 555
958:, p. 260
867:13 April
659:14 April
579:20 April
536:See also
450:Cardinal
45:Location
1073:19 June
979:, p. 47
932:5 March
841:29 June
809:29 June
751:29 June
691:29 June
604:. 2017.
492:gardens
394:History
365:England
158:Website
108: (
1159:18 May
999:
975:
954:
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196:220yds
134:Status
100:Opened
142:Water
1161:2013
1134:2017
1075:2014
997:ISBN
973:ISBN
952:ISBN
934:2022
869:2017
843:2014
811:2014
753:2014
715:ISBN
693:2014
661:2017
633:2023
581:2017
194:200m
126:Open
92:Area
1110:BBC
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1093:BBC
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1018:BBC
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