Orangery Terrace in Gardens at Powis Castle

The Orangery Terrace, situated within the gardens at Powis Castle, is part of an outstanding late 17th-century terraced garden, considered a very rare British example of an Italianate garden design. The design of the gardens is attributed to William Winde, who worked on the Powis London residence between 1684 and 1688 and is thought to have been involved with work on the castle from around 1673. Adrian Duvall, a Frenchman, is also associated with the gardens from 1703, and is credited with blasting rock to create the terraces and managing the hydraulics of a lost water garden. While precise dating is uncertain, the gardens were likely developed after 1668 and largely completed by 1705. The lead figures that adorn the parapet are attributed to the workshop of John Van Nost.

The orangery is approached from the Aviary Terrace via an angled stone staircase with a brick parapet and stone piers. The building itself is constructed of brick with stone dressings, featuring a 7-window range, with the central three bays slightly advanced. Curved quadrant walls extend outwards on either side. The windows are 18-pane sashes with flat arched heads. Angle quoins define the central bays, and a finely moulded dentilled cornice runs across the central doorway, where Doric columns flank a round-arched entrance with rusticated voussoirs. The entrance features paired doors with wrought iron decoration above a fanlight. A balustraded parapet supports a series of lead statues on panelled plinths; these figures of shepherds and shepherdesses are attributed to Van Nost, although only three of the original four survive. Brick revetment walls with stone copings, and buttresses along the right-hand length, retain the Aviary Terrace on both sides.

The interior of the orangery features a series of brick arches supported on cast-iron beams. The orangery’s internal construction dates to the early 19th century. An additional flight of steps on the left-hand side has been blocked, likely in the early 20th century. The main entrance was installed by Bodley, between 1902 and 1904, and was previously the west portal of the main castle building. An illustration from 1742 shows additional windows in the quadrant walls, indicating alterations since construction.