A historic landscape where every stone has a story to tell – the English Garden in Tata is being restored

The English Garden surrounding Lake Cseke in Tata preserves stories, architectural monuments and landscape design concepts spanning centuries. In Hungary’s first English-style garden, buildings constructed for practical purposes, structures that enhance the romantic atmosphere, sculptures and natural features all form a harmonious whole. The site, which has been a nature conservation area since 1955, is now being restored as part of the „Esterházy Heritage – Preserving History for Future Generations” project.

A key priority during restoration work is the preservation of the original building materials, the removal of later, inappropriate repairs, and the authentic restoration of historic buildings.

‘Art Ruins’, built as ruins to tell a story

The history of the English Garden in Tata began in 1783, when Ferenc Bőhm, the estate engineer, laid out the garden in the vicinity of Lake Cseke on behalf of the Esterházy family. The park is situated around the lake, yet in a sense it also extends to the whole of Tata. Its design followed an approach that differed from the earlier, rigid and austere traditions of French garden architecture.

One of the most distinctive structures in the English Garden is the Ruins, situated in the northern part of the park. The structure, designed by Charles Moreau, can be reached via a curved stone bridge. The structure, with its irregular floor plan, was built between 1785 and 1803 using medieval carved stones from the Abbey of Vértesszentkereszt and gravestones from Szőny. According to sources, 24 ornate capital stones were also transported from the original ruins to Tata to be incorporated into the structure.

The name ‘Műromok’ is to be taken literally in this case: the building is not the surviving remains of a former church or castle, but was built from the outset as a ruin, solely for aesthetic purposes. The structure, which evokes the remains of a three-nave, crumbling Gothic church, is a spectacular example of Romantic garden architecture.

A 3rd-century Roman tombstone with a relief, excavated from Látó Hill, has also been placed in one of the building’s niches and against the side of the fence.

It’s not just being spruced up: the English Garden’s historical features are being restored

Restoration work began in the park at the start of June and is expected to continue until the end of November. 

One of the key sites is the Ruins, where the primary focus is on preserving historical values and retaining as much of the original material as possible. During the restoration, the stone surfaces were cleaned. To this end, the experts used dry sandblasting, wet cleaning and a combination of manual and mechanical methods.

Particular attention was paid to preserving the historic mortar joints. In contrast, the later cement-based joints, which were unsuitable from a heritage conservation perspective, were removed.

A similar principle was applied to the stone kerbing along the bed of the Műromok. The previous cement fillings there were removed, and stones from the Tata Stone Depot – which were identical in material and appearance to the original stones – were used to replace the missing sections. The aim was for the restoration to follow the original design as faithfully as possible.

Archaeological research forms part of the authentic restoration

In the next phase of the restoration work, scaffolding will be erected to provide access to the higher sections. This will enable the surfaces to be cleaned and the cement grout to be removed. It was not possible to carry out this work earlier because archaeological investigations are currently taking place in the lower sections. The findings uncovered there could significantly influence the authentic reconstruction of the historic monument. The research is being carried out by staff from the Kuny Domokos Museum: Dr Richárd Schmidtmayer, museum director and archaeologist, and Mihály Giber, archaeologist and museologist.

The fate of a severely damaged capital will also be decided during the restoration work. According to the restorers’ assessments, the damage to the stone element is now so advanced that the original piece will be preserved at the Kuny Domokos Museum. It will be replaced with an authentic reconstruction element, which will ensure the Műrom’s uniform appearance whilst also helping to preserve the structure in the long term.

As part of the project, the St John of Nepomuk Bridge in nearby Várkanyar and the accompanying statue will be restored.