Ahead of his 77th Birthday, King Charles has graced the cover of Country Life magazine, to celebrate the restoration of the Sandringham gardens.
This isn’t the first time Charles has engaged with Country Life to mark his birthday. Ten years ago, the then-Prince wrote an article in support of British farmers for the magazine.
On the new cover, The Monarch is pictured in a relaxed pose, leaning on a shepherd’s crook, dressed casually in a pale open-necked shirt, beige trousers, and brown suede shoes.
The portrait was taken in a formal section of the Estate’s gardens by photographer Millie Pilkington. Pilkington has also taken a number of photographs of The King in recent months, including a photograph to commemorate Burns Night.
The magazine notes how Charles, as Prince of Wales, began managing the running of the Sandringham estate in 2017, including ‘converting its agriculture to organic procedures and adopting the principles of integrated agroforestry, enhancing soil health, improving biodiversity, sequestering carbon and providing shelter from extreme weather’.
It also highlights Sandringham’s 60 acres of ‘pleasure gardens’ as a showcase of the finest designs, as a result of Charles turning his attention to this area in 2022, which is surrounded by woodlands and parkland that have been carefully nurtured under His Majesty’s stewardship.
One of the new features of Sandringham’s is the Topiary Garden, which draws its inspiration from a cherished memory of the King’s youth. In 2019, Charles recalled the magical impression left on him by Queen Alexandra’s original topiary garden near the old dairy building. Over 5,000 yew trees were carefully planted to form the intricate topiary structures and geometric layouts, interwoven with white gravel paths designed for tranquil exploration and quiet contemplation.
The King is particularly keen to let people enjoy the moments of calm that nature can provide in sharing the gardens with the public, as the magazine states. As such he has created new features, including the Magnolia Walk, a 400 yards long and planted with hundreds of different flowers, including many of The King’s personal favourites.
Since acceding to the throne, Charles has overseen what Country Life editor-in-chief Mark Hedges described as “remarkable” efforts to revive and reimagine the estate’s landscapes, noting: ‘Over the past three years, His Majesty The King has overseen a remarkable restoration of the gardens at Sandringham – reviving historic landscapes, reimagining formal parterres and creating new spaces of reflection and natural beauty for visitors to enjoy.’
This isn’t the first time Charles has engaged with Country Life to mark his birthday. Ten years ago, the then-Prince wrote an article in support of British farmers for the magazine.
