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Hyde Park is the largest of the Royal Parks, taken from
the monks of Westminster in 1536 by Henry VIII to indulge in his
passion for hunting. It was not until the 17th century that the park
became opened to the public for the first time.
William III hung 300 lamps from the branches of trees
from Kensington Palace to St James Palace in order to make his journeys
safer along the notorious Route Du Roi (Rotten Row), this was the first
road in England to be lit.
Today the park has a lot to offer:
The Serpentine Lake was constructed in the 1730's and
can be enjoyed by boat or sitting quietly in the Serpentine Bar. The
beautiful tea pavilion now the Serpentine Gallery built in 1934
regularly attracts over 400,000 visitors a year and is renowned for its
exhibitions of modern and contemporary art.
Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain was designed
by Kathryn Gustafson and built with 545 pieces of Cornish granite, the
flow of the water is intended to represent the flow of Diana's life.
Nearby is the The Lido Café on the south side of
the Serpentine with a paddling pool for kids.
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