Brunel’s Hidden Kingdom awarded “Book of the Year” by the Devon History Society.
“Brunel’s Hidden Kingdom” - the full story of the estate he created and his planned house at Watcombe Torquay - was one of 161 new books on Devon’s history that were published in 2007, so it was up against some stiff competition as the Devon History Society’s Judging Panel made their decision. The announcement of the winner was made by their Chairman, Shirley Purves, at the Devon History Day at Exeter Central Library on Saturday November 8th 2008. The award was then presented to the author, Geoffrey Tudor, by Cllr Sheila Hobden, Executive Member for Culture, Devon County Council.
Winning the “Book of the Year Award” was an unexpected accolade and all concerned are delighted that their efforts have received such prestigious recognition. This achievement will raise the profile of “Brunel’s Hidden Kingdom” and increase awareness of the need to continue to restore and preserve Brunel’s estate as a treasured part of Devon’s heritage.
Brunel's Hidden Kingdom - Reviews
I must declare an interest in this fascinating
book, as my husband is the great, great
grandson of I K Brunel's head gardener and
estate manager, Alexander Forsyth. Forsyth
was a fine gardener, now almost totally
forgotten; the creator of the arboretum
at Alton Towers and "a great tree man"
who carried out Brunel's great tree-planting
scheme at his West Country estate at Watcombe.
Geoffrey Tudor's diligent research has done
much to bring Forsyth back to life and perhaps
to the deserved notice of posterity. However,
other readers will naturally read Brunel's
Hidden Kingdom with the correct aim of finding
out more about Brunel himself, and they
will not be disappointed for this is the
most interesting theme of the book.
Through understanding Brunel's endeavours
to create his estate, new lights are shown
on the character of the great engineer.
Alongside his incredible drive, work rate,
vision and inventiveness (which extended
to the science of planting trees upright
on steep slopes), Tudor discovers a more
complex picture of Brunel as a more private,
gentle, family man; as a philanthropist,
anxious to take good care of his employees,
and as a man who, by his eminent position
and landholdings, felt obliged to live up
to his responsibilities in local politics
and to do good in the local community, even
to the extent of quietly rescuing the local
vicar who was neither provident nor practical;
and also (successfully) objecting to an
industrial scheme that would have ruined
a local beauty spot. As such, Tudor's book
sheds very interesting lights upon the social
relations in the 19th century at a time
of rapid change, when far-flung and isolated
parts of the country were becoming linked
to the rest and gentrified.
Yet the creation of his estate was clearly
no diversion from the cares of London and
"proper" engineering schemes;
Tudor overthrows previous assumptions and
shows how Brunel was as obsessed and driven
in its creation as he was in building his
ships and railways, and at the same time.
If Brunel's estate provided him with a refuge
and diversion from the cares of London,
it was a diversion whose design was pursued
with nothing less than his normal vigour
and rigour. Sadly, Brunel's achievement
at Watcombe - with the considerable assistance
of Forsyth - is little known now, and primarily
for two reasons. Firstly, Brunel died before
building his house there and by the time
the magnificent grounds had matured, 20
or 30 years later, they no longer had associations
with the great man. Second, the integrity
of the estate - which Brunel had always
said should be open for any local person
to freely wander in - was eroded by the
piecemeal sell-off of areas for building,
and finally by the destruction of many of
the fine trees in storms. Fortunately, the
central part of the Watcombe estate does
survive, with some magnificent trees, and
is presently being restored by dedicated
volunteers.
It is to be hoped that this fine book will
bring public attention to one of Brunel's
greatest - and most unusual - achievements,
and to hitherto neglected aspects of his
character, as a landscape designer, family
man and as a prominent local landowner and
philanthropist.
Karen Magrath, January 2008
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