34 C O N T E X T 1 4 5 : J U LY 2 0 1 6 did not value previous layers of garden design where they were in his way. He was ruthless in his art and simply swept away anything he could not use or re-use for his purpose. This ruthless single-mindedness presents an aspect of his character that encourages us to briefly put aside Brown’s undisputed artistic brilliance and admire the sheer vastness of his commercial endeavour, which is every bit as breathtaking as his completed landscapes. In today’s world Brown’s success would be considered great, but not unique. No doubt he would be hailed as a business leader, and would sit on infrastructure and industrial commissions. But what he achieved, in his time, was highly unusual for Georgian Britain.With none of the media or communication potential we have today, he created a nationwide practice for the rich and famous, based on reputation and networking alone. How did he do this? The short answer is that this was accomplished by way of a flexible system of subcontracting and delegation. Brown’s accounts reveal payments of irregular amounts to various landscape gardeners and architects such as Nathaniel Richmond, Andrew Gardiner andWilliam Ireland, among others. The work of these associates, who worked with Brown over decades, included the supervision of contract labour (managing the armies of men who moved earth and dug lakes to such great visual effect) and the supply of materials and trees. Brown had favourite workers across the country, including a number of semi-permanent surveyors, foremen and subcontractors he could call on. This system of delegation was the only way he could have sustained his business, since he could not be in several places at one time and had no immediate way of communicating with each estate to assess progress or deal with practical problems as they arose. However, the set-up was not without its problems and misunderstandings. Brown was forced to spend days in the saddle, often riding 50 to 60 miles a day, for weeks on end, travelling between his various sites. Although asthmatic and often exhausted, he maintained this pace, with its not insignificant hardships, well into his 60s. He deplored the need for it as well as its inefficiency, complaining to Lord Tottenham that ‘when I am galloping in one part of the world my men are making blunders and neglects’. Despite the problems of operating a nationwide practice in the 18th century, Brown managed to achieve landscape contracts to the value of £712 million in today’s money.3 His appointment as Royal Gardener between 1765 and 1783 earned him £35,000 (£75 million in today’s money). By the time he died he had a personal fortune with death bequests amounting to £19.3 million4. The contract at Blenheim Palace alone earned him £21,000 (£50 million at the current rate). Clients fought and competed to get him and they almost always did exactly as he suggested. Above all, Brown was a peopleperson. He seems to have been almost universally liked, trusted and respected. Between 1761 and the time of his death in 1783, he had 125 clients, including seven dukes, 26 earls, 20 other peers, 19 knights or baronets, two generals and a judge, all of whom are listed in his accounts book. This is nothing short of a spectacular achievement for any contractor in any age. Brown’s son-inlaw, Henry Holland, once said of him that ‘he left his clients pleased and they remained so long as he lived’. Often he would dine with his patrons and he discussed politics with royalty. Lord Coventry of Croome ‘held him very high as an artist and esteemed him as a most sincere friend’.5 It is said that he had the ear of George III.When Brown considered that he had been overpaid for a job, he gave money back to his clients, endearing himself to them even further and usually for life. Brown was a visionary as well as a civil engineer, hydraulics expert, plantsman, project manager and businessman. In his own words he offered his clients ‘all the elegance and all the comforts that mankind wants in the country’. During his lifetime his success was international. Many people now consider that his unique style, his art, was the greatest contribution that Britain has ever made to the art and culture of Europe. With the anniversary of Jane Austen’s death in 2017, the anniversary of James Paine’s birth also in 2017, and Humphry Repton’s death in 2018, the opportunity to look again at key historic figures will prove irresistible to many. And, yes, the facts about Sir Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown are already known, and his creativity and business acumen already much applauded. But with such a figure as Brown, his life and works are surely worth revisiting from time to time, and an anniversary provides the perfect opportunity to do that. Exhibitions celebrating Brown and his endeavours include those at Charlecote Park until 30 October, Petworth Park until 4 September, Berrington Hall until 6 November, Croome Court until 30 October and Studley Royal until 31 August. Carole Fry, a director of AHC Consultants, freelance writer and architectural historian References 1 Tim Mowl in conversation with the author, February 2016 2 ibid 3 ‘Brown, Paxton andWise: how rich were they?’ lecture by Sir Roderick Floud, Barnard’s Inn Hall, London, 21 March 2016 4 ibid 5 After Floud, Turner 1985:60 St Mary Magdalene’s Church, Croome D’Abitot, built by Capability Brown after the medieval church was demolished
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