The fundamental principle and model of all gardens, according to Christian ideas, is paradise, a garden planted by God, sinless, holy, abundant with everything that a person needs, with all types of trees, plants, and inhabited by animals living peacefully with each other. This original paradise is surrounded by a fence beyond which God banished Adam and Eve after their fall. Therefore, the main “significant” feature of the Garden of Eden is its enclosure; the garden is most often referred to as “hortus conclusus” (“fenced garden”). The next indispensable and most characteristic feature of paradise in the ideas of all times was the presence in it of everything that can bring joy not only to the eye, but also to hearing, smell, taste, touch - all human senses. Flowers fill paradise with color and fragrance. Fruits not only serve as a decoration equal to flowers, but also delight the palate. Birds not only fill the garden with singing, but also decorate it with their colorful appearance, etc.

The Middle Ages saw art as a second “revelation” that revealed wisdom, harmony, and rhythm in the world. This concept of the beauty of the world order is expressed in a number of written works of the Middle Ages - in Erigena, in the “Sex Days” of Basil the Great and John Exarch of Bulgaria and many others. etc.

Everything in the world had, to one degree or another, a multi-valued symbolic or allegorical meaning, but the garden is a microcosm, just as many books were a microcosm. Therefore, in the Middle Ages, a garden was often likened to a book, and books (especially collections) were often called “gardens”: “Vertograds”, “Limonis”, or “Limonaria”, “Prisoned Gardens”, etc. The garden should be read like a book, extracting from it benefit and instruction. The books were also called "Bees" - a name again associated with the garden, for the bee collects its honey in the garden.

As a rule, monastery courtyards, enclosed in a rectangle of monastic buildings, adjoined south side churches. The monastery courtyard, usually square, was divided by narrow paths crosswise (which had a symbolic meaning) into four square parts. In the center, at the intersection of the paths, a well, a fountain, and a small pond were built for aquatic plants and watering the garden, washing or drinking water. The fountain was also a symbol - a symbol of purity of faith, inexhaustible grace, etc. It was often arranged and small pond, where fish were bred for fasting days. This small garden in the courtyard of the monastery there was usually small trees- fruit or decorative and flowers.

However, commercial orchards, apothecary gardens and kitchen gardens were usually established outside the monastery walls. A small orchard inside the monastery courtyard was a symbol of paradise. It often included a monastery cemetery. The pharmaceutical garden was located near the monastery hospital or almshouse. The apothecary's garden also grew plants that could serve as dyes for painting initials and miniatures of manuscripts. AND healing properties herbs were determined mainly by the symbolic meaning of a particular plant.

Evidence of how much attention was paid to gardens and flowers in the Middle Ages is the rescript of 1812, by which Charlemagne ordered the flowers to be planted in his gardens. The rescript contained a list of about sixty names of flowers and ornamental plants. This list was copied and then distributed to monasteries throughout Europe. Gardens were cultivated even by mendicant orders. The Franciscans, for example, until 1237, according to their charter, did not have the right to own land, with the exception of a plot at the monastery, which could not be used except for a garden. Other monastic orders were specifically engaged in gardening and vegetable gardening and were famous for it. Every detail in the monastery gardens had a symbolic meaning to remind the monks of the basics of divine economy and Christian virtues.

Gardens in castles had a special character. They were usually under the special supervision of the mistress of the castle and served as a small oasis of calm among the noisy and dense crowd of inhabitants of the castle that filled its courtyards. They were also grown here medicinal herbs, and poisonous, herbs for decoration and had symbolic meaning. Special attention devoted to fragrant herbs. Their aroma corresponded to the idea of ​​paradise, delighting all human senses, but another reason for their cultivation was that castles and cities, due to low sanitary conditions, were full of bad odors. In medieval monastery gardens they planted decorative flowers and bushes, especially roses taken by the crusaders from the Middle East. Sometimes trees grew here - lindens, oaks. Near the defensive fortifications of the castle, “meadows of flowers” ​​were set up for tournaments and social fun. “Rose Garden” and “Meadow of Flowers” ​​are one of the motifs of medieval painting of the 15th-16th centuries; The Madonna and Child were most often depicted against the backdrop of a garden.

Library of the Swiss Monastery of St. Gall was included in the list of UNESCO monuments in 1983. About 2,000 medieval manuscripts are kept here, but only one of them prompted the inclusion of the library on the UNESCO list - the earliest plan of a medieval monastery that has survived to this day. Here he is:

Created in 819-826, the unique plan has been perfectly preserved to this day. Its purpose still remains a mystery. As experts suggest, most likely, it was not a fixation of the real state of affairs in the monastery, but some kind of ideal model to follow. There are 333 inscriptions on the plan, allowing you to identify in detail all parts of the monastery: the cathedral, garden, school, services, etc.



This copy of the plan shows all the "garden" parts of the monastery:
X is a vegetable garden, “under” which is the gardener’s house, Y is an orchard combined with a cemetery, Z is a garden of medicinal plants.
Thanks to the inscriptions, we can find out what grew in each of them.
In the garden of medicinal plants - sage, watercress, rue, caraway, iris, lovage, pennyroyal, fennel, peas, marsilia, costo (?), fenegreca (?), rosemary, mint, lilies and roses.
IN orchard- apples, pears, plums, mistletoe, bay, chestnuts, figs, quinces, peaches, hazelnuts, amendelarius (?), mulberries and walnuts.
In the arcaded courtyard adjacent to the cathedral (cloister), divided into four parts by paths, juniper grew.

And on this wonderful website http://www.stgallplan.org/en/index.html you can see the most the smallest details plan and read (using the transcript and English translation) all 333 inscriptions! And of course, learn a lot more about the plan of the monastery of St. Gall.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, for many centuries, the dominant role in European society began to be played by the church instead of secular culture. Monasteries became centers of education: there were libraries, hospitals, schools; At the monasteries, small gardens were laid out for household needs.

The Roman tradition of public parks for citizens was forgotten. The monks who worked in the garden were primarily guided not by aesthetic considerations, but by practical benefits. Spicy herbs, vegetables and fruits were grown in the monastery gardens - in fact, these were vegetable gardens that supplied the monastery with food. Usually vegetable gardens were located outside the monastery fence. There were also apothecary gardens where they grew medicinal plants, they were arranged near a hospital or almshouse at the monastery. In many cases, given the low level of development of medicine in those years, the healing properties of the plant were determined by the symbolic meaning attributed to it, and not by medical practice. Plants that produced bright dyes (some of them were even poisonous) were also cultivated there: before the invention of printing, books were written by hand by learned monks, and natural dyes were needed to design footers, illustrations, and capital letters in manuscripts.

But at the same time, the fundamental principle of the very idea of ​​a garden has never been forgotten - this is Eden, the Garden of Eden, created by God, beautiful, full of plants, birds and animals, replete with everything that man needed. After the Fall, Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden. Therefore, any attempt by man to build a garden on earth was interpreted as a kind of “return to Eden,” an attempt by man to realize paradise on earth. Thus, the orchard was interpreted as a symbol of heaven and was supposed to remind the monastic brethren of Christian virtues.

Narrow paths crosswise divided the garden into four parts - this detail, of course, had a symbolic meaning. At the crossroads in the center there was a well, a pond, perhaps a fountain, for drinking water and watering plants. The source of water had the meaning of a symbol of the purity of the Christian faith. Grew up there ornamental plants and fruit trees, and, of course, flowers. If there was room in the garden for a pond, fish were bred there for fasting. Brought to Europe during crusades exotic plants, especially roses, have gained great popularity. The Madonna was often identified with the rose, and the lily was also a symbol of the Mother of God. Each plant in the garden had a symbolic meaning.

All monastic orders, even mendicants like the Franciscans, who for a long time The charter prohibited the ownership of land, except for a small vegetable garden; orchards were cultivated. Many monasteries became famous and are still remembered precisely for their gardens and vegetable gardens.

Kings and nobility in the Middle Ages also paid considerable attention to gardening: Charlemagne’s decree concerning the flowers that needed to be planted in his gardens has been preserved; the list included about six dozen names. The lords arranged gardens at their castles; caring for the garden was one of the main responsibilities of the mistress of the castle. Behind the fence, next to the defensive walls, “meadows of flowers” ​​were arranged for knightly tournaments and entertainment for the nobility.

In those years, castle gardens were arranged according to the same principles as monastery gardens. Great importance had cultivation herbs: this was, firstly, one of the few ways to diversify the medieval cuisine, which was rather meager even in rich houses, and secondly, spicy aromatic plants gave off a pleasant smell. Paradise Gardens, recreated by man on earth, provided food for all five senses. Trees - apple trees, plums, apricots, cherries nourished the taste. Flowers delighted the eye, spices delighted the sense of smell, and the birds that lived in the gardens enchanted the ears with their singing. We can proudly admit that the glorious medieval tradition of gardening continues today in every Russian summer cottage.

The era of antiquity with its architecture, art, and sciences ended its existence at the end of the 4th century. A new time has come - the era of feudalism, or the Middle Ages (5th–15th centuries).

During the Middle Ages, the formation of European states, constant internecine wars, and uprisings took place. It was at this time that Christianity was established. Slavery gave way to the feudal system.

The history of medieval architecture is divided into three periods:

1) early medieval (4th–9th centuries);

2) Romanesque (10th–12th centuries);

3) Gothic (late 12th–14th centuries).

Architecture, art, especially park construction, are very vulnerable and require a peaceful environment for their existence, therefore, in conditions of unrest in the world, especially in Europe, the development of landscape art is suspended. The size of gardens is sharply reduced, internal gardens appear within monasteries and at castles, where they like

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then safety from destruction is guaranteed. It was the inner garden that became the only link between the city dweller and nature.

Decorative and fruit plants, as well as medicinal herbs, were grown in the inner garden. The trees grew in even rows and were mostly of local origin, with some exotic ones too.

Orchards surrounded on the perimeter for protection hardwood(linden, ash, poplar).

The prototype of modern flower beds were regular beds with medicinal and ornamental plants: mallow, wormwood, sage, tea, poppy, Bogorodskaya grass, rue, etc. The formation of the beds was in the form of prisms. Their slopes were strengthened with turf, poles or wickerwork.

In the Middle Ages the following appeared main types gardening facilities :

- monastery gardens;

- castle gardens;

- university gardens;

First botanical gardens at academic centers.

IN monastery gardens often two cross-shaped intersecting paths divided them into four parts. In the center of the intersection, a cross was installed or a rose bush was planted in memory of the martyrdom of Christ. Gardens at monasteries had a utilitarian purpose. Aesthetic issues were usually relegated to the background.

The enclosed courtyard inside the monastery, where ornamental plants were grown, was called a cloister.

Castle gardens served for relaxation and meetings, were arranged with decorative elements and were small in size.

Small indoor garden areas have led to the emergence of a new technique - labyrinth – a section of specially entangled garden paths, separated by clipped greenery (Figure 4). It fit into some geometric shape, usually a square or hexagon.

The technique was borrowed from the builders of temples, who laid out a mosaic pattern on the floor, leading along complex paths, like labyrinthine paths, to the center of the hall. Crawling along such a pattern on their knees, pilgrims imagined that they were making a distant pilgrimage. Subsequently, this idea was transferred to the garden.

The late Middle Ages are characterized by the development of science and the opening of the first universities (in Paris, Oxford, etc.). Reached

High level of development of botany and horticulture. The first began to appear botanical gardens, opened to the general public already in the Renaissance.

Figure 4 – Example of a labyrinth (photo from engraving)

So, features of landscape gardening art of the Middle Ages in central Europe the following:

Simplicity and geometric layout of internal gardens;

Development of a new technique - a labyrinth;

The emergence of the beginnings of botanical gardens and preparations for their opening to the general public by the first half of the 15th century.

Hispano-Moorish (Arab) gardens

Education in the 7th century played an important role in the development of world landscape art. Arab Caliphate, which united the conquered lands of Palestine, Syria, Iran, Egypt, Iraq and Spain.

Social conditions. Muslim art of the East is distinguished by majestic monumentality, schematism and abstraction.

In the early period of development of Islamic architecture, the premises of mosques, religious educational institutions and other buildings were grouped around a large courtyard decorated with covered galleries. The most famous masterpieces of landscape art that have survived

to this day, are the gardens in Spain.

The Arabs applied the experience of Egypt and Rome in constructing irrigation structures and created a powerful hydraulic system, where they used the melting snow on the mountain peaks, turning waterless Spain into a flourishing land.

A new type of garden has emerged in Spain - Spanish-Moorish (patio).

It resembles the garden of a medieval monastery and the atrium-peristyle garden Ancient Rome. Patio was small sizes– from 200 to 1200 m2, surrounded by the walls of a house or a high stone fence and was a continuation of the premises under open air. His plan was distinguished by strict regularity. The main decorative elements were pools, canals, and miniature fountains. Much attention was paid to paving, due to the hot climate of Spain, which did not allow the use of lawn. The paving on the patio was two-color, organized with river or sea pebbles. Majolica (colored tiles) was used. It was used to line the bottom and edges of reservoirs, and lined retaining walls and benches. The main colors are blue, green, yellow, as if softening the heat.

Natural conditions. The climate is hot and arid, which forced them to resort to irrigation. Frequent dry winds, sand, and dust provided the basis for the construction of powerful walls around it.

Vegetation . Preference was given to evergreen species (boxwood, myrtle), which formed trimmed hedges or borders. They grew thujas, laurels, oleanders, almonds, orange and tangerine trees, and cypresses. The walls of buildings in cool colors served as a good backdrop for lemon trees and jasmine.

Flowers did not play a decisive role in landscaping. They were mainly valued for their aromatic properties. Rose and jasmine were especially popular. Wisterias, magnolias, agave, irises, daffodils, and mallows were widely used.

Water and its meaning. Paradise is identified with perfect garden and the abundance of water in it. It usually reached the edge of the reservoir and even overflowed. The correct shape of a container with water in the center of the garden or at the intersection of paths symbolized stability.

The location of the garden was always chosen taking into account the source of water.

Fountains were initially used as filters - to purify water from insect larvae, but later, when the variability of flowing water was appreciated, they began to be used for the pleasure of the eyes, and the noise - “like music for the ears.”

Water devices of Spanish-Moorish gardens are divided into types:

- channels,

- narrow streams,

- swimming pools,

- fountains.

The specific features of the gardens of this time are:

Compositional relationship between the architecture of the building and the gardens;

Lack of common axial structure.

The interior is so fused with the courtyards that it is not always clear whether the visitor is inside or outside. This is achieved by the fact that the transition from the house to the garden was decorated with arches, and the gardens and interiors were decorated with identical plants.

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1. Gardens of the Arabs in Spain.

At the end of the 4th century. The brilliant era of antiquity with its sciences, art, and architecture ended its existence, giving way to a new era - feudalism. The period of time spanning a thousand years between the fall of Rome (late 4th century) and the Renaissance in Italy (14th century) is called the Middle Ages, or the Middle Ages. This was the time of the formation of European states, permanent internecine wars and uprisings, the time of the establishment of Christianity. “But at the same time, in these torments, a new human society was born. In wars and uprisings, famine and epidemics, slavery was destroyed and replaced by the feudal system.”

In the history of architecture, the Middle Ages are divided into three periods: early medieval(IV-IX centuries), Romanesque(X-XII centuries), Gothic(late XII-XIV centuries). The change in architectural styles does not significantly affect park construction, since during this period the art of gardening, which is the most vulnerable of all types of art and more than others requires a peaceful environment for its existence, suspends its development. It exists in the form of small gardens at monasteries and castles, that is, in areas relatively protected from destruction.

Monastery gardens. Herbaceous medicinal and ornamental plants were grown in them. The layout was simple, geometric, with a pool and fountain in the center. Often two crosswise intersecting paths divided the garden into four parts; in the center of this intersection, in memory of the martyrdom of Christ, a cross was erected or a rose bush was planted.

Castle gardens arranged inside their territory. They were small and introverted. Flowers were grown here, there was a source - a well, sometimes a miniature pool and fountain, and almost always a bench in the form of a ledge covered with turf - a technique that became widespread in parks.

Garden labyrinth- a technique that was formed in the monastery gardens and took a strong place in subsequent park construction. Initially, the labyrinth was a pattern, the design of which fit into a circle or hexagon and led to the center in complex ways. In the early Middle Ages, this drawing was laid out on the floor of the temple, and later transferred to the garden, where the paths were separated by the walls of a trimmed hedge. Subsequently, labyrinth gardens received wide use in regular and even landscape parks. In Russia, such a labyrinth was in the Summer Garden (not preserved), a regular part of Pavlovsk Park (restored) and Sokolniki Park, where its roads looked like intertwined ellipses inscribed in the spruce massif (lost).

The late Middle Ages are characterized by the opening of the first universities (Bologna, Paris, Oxford, Prague). Horticulture and botany have reached high level development, the first botanical gardens appeared (Aachen, Venice, etc.).

Arab gardens in Spain

In the 8th century Arabs (Moors) settled on the Iberian Peninsula and stayed here for almost seven centuries. Toledo became a major center of education, and Cordoba the most civilized city in Europe.

Borrowing the experience of Egypt and Rome in constructing irrigation structures, the Arabs were able to use the melting snow on the mountain peaks and created a powerful hydraulic system, turning waterless Spain into a flourishing land. A new type of garden was formed here - Spanish-Moorish. This is a small courtyard (200-1200 m2) of atrium-peristyle type (patio), surrounded by the walls of the house or fence, and is a continuation of the front and living quarters in the open air.

A complex of such miniature patio, included in the complex structure of the palace, are the gardens of Grenada, created in the 13th century. in the residences of the caliphs - Alhambra (650X200 m) and Generalife (area 80X 100 m).

In the Alhambra, the palace premises were grouped around the Court of Myrtle and the Court of Lions. The myrtle courtyard (47X 33 m) is surrounded by walls of buildings with an elegant arcade, richly decorated with ornaments. In the center there is a pool (7X45 m), elongated along the long axis and framed by rows of clipped myrtle. The main effect is the reflection of the arcade of the tower in the water of the pool. The Court of the Lions (28 X 19 m) is also surrounded by walls and an arcade, crossed by two mutually perpendicular channels, in the center of which there is a fountain of two alabaster vases supported by 12 black marble lions.

There is also the Queen's Courtyard, decorated with a fountain, 4 cypress trees in the corners, and most importantly - a complex covering ornament, into the design of which both the pool and the cypress planting sites are woven.

The Generalif Ensemble is the summer residence of the caliphs, located 100 m above the Alhambra. It is a complex of isolated patio gardens on terraces. The most famous is the courtyard with the canal. It is elongated and surrounded by an arcade; in the center there is a narrow 40-meter canal, decorated with two rows of fountains. Their thin streams form an arched alley. The garden is freely planted with small trees and shrubs.

In general, the traditions of the Spanish-Moorish garden are characterized by the following features: simplicity of planning and individuality of the solution. The layout is regular, determined by the geometric plan of the patio. The garden has a compositional center, most often a swimming pool. The entrance to the garden is often placed not in the center, but on the side, thereby breaking symmetry and enriching the overall picture of the garden.

The connection between the indoor and outdoor spaces of the garden appearance is achieved by arranging viewpoints decorated with arcades. This method of interconnection was subsequently widely developed in landscape art.

Water is the main motif of the garden. It is present in every patio in the form of channels, pools, and springs gushing out of the ground. The water either flows down channels made in the railings of the stairs, then permeates the plane of the garden in a narrow strip, then spreads out like a vast mirror (Myrtle Courtyard), then forms fountain streams. In all its diversity there is a desire to show the value of every drop.

Vegetation is used in such a way as to demonstrate the individual merits of each specimen. Cypress trees, orange and tangerine trees, jasmine, almonds, oleander, and roses were planted freely. Haircuts were rarely used as an architectural element.

The hot climate did not allow the use of a lawn, so most of the territory was decorated with decorative paving.

IN color scheme Characterized by a combination of an overall restrained color scheme of walls, greenery of trees and shrubs with bright splashes of beautifully flowering plants or colored coverings. Decorative paving is one of the important elements Spanish-Moorish garden. Sometimes the retaining walls and benches of the garden were lined with colored majolica. Primary colors are blue, yellow, green.

Thus, the Spanish-Moorish style was formed with a set of its own techniques that corresponded to the requirements of time, nature, and national traditions.