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The Tree Hunters
How the Cult of the Arboretum Transformed Our Landscape
Brief Description
For centuries, English country gentlemen had collected exotic pictures for their saloons and rare books for their libraries. By the end of the seventeenth century, they had begun to collect trees. Within the space of a few years, hundreds of new specimen trees enriched the British...
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See moreThe thrilling adventures of the plant-hunters who created the modern British landscape
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Description
For centuries, English country gentlemen had collected exotic pictures for their saloons and rare books for their libraries. By the end of the seventeenth century, they had begun to collect trees. Within the space of a few years, hundreds of new specimen trees enriched the British landscape, and demand was high for the most splendid imports: maples and tulip trees from the American colonies, cypresses and cedars from Europe and Lebanon, and oriental plane from Greece and Turkey, with its romantic associations with Plato's Academy.
How did these extraordinary trees make their way to the gardens of Britain and Ireland? Who were the scholars and daredevils who combed the new and old worlds in search of green treasure? What crimes did they commit, and what price did they pay to bring the world's charismatic megaflora to the gardens of home?
In this exuberant history, Thomas Pakenham reveals the marvellous tales of adventure, discovery, rivalry, and passion that created the modern British landscape.
The Tree Hunters by Thomas Pakenham is an invitation to delve into these stories and explore the leafy legacy that shapes our natural surroundings today.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781474611916
Publisher: Orion Publishing Co
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 23 October 2025
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 34.0mm
Width: 128.0mm
Height: 192.0mm
Weight: 349g
Pages: 384
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About the Author
Thomas Pakenham is the author of the critically acclaimed The Scramble for Africa which won the W.H. Smith Award and the Alan Paton Award. He is also the author of The Boer War, The Mountains of Rasselas and The Company of Trees.
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The Tree Hunters
For centuries, English country gentlemen had collected exotic pictures for their saloons and rare books for their libraries. By the end of the seventeenth century, they had begun to collect trees. Within the space of a few years, hundreds of new specimen trees enriched the British landscape, and demand was high for the most splendid imports: maples and tulip trees...Hardback$7500Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Boer War
The war declared by the Boers on 11 October 1899 gave the British, as Kipling said, 'no end of a lesson'. The public expected it to be over by Christmas, but it proved to be the longest (two and three-quarter years), the costliest (over £200 million), the bloodiest (at least 22,000 British, 25,000 Boer and 12,000 African lives), and the...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Scramble for Africa
The Scramble for Africa astonished everyone. In 1880, most of the continent was ruled by Africans and barely explored. By 1902, five European Powers (and one extraordinary individual) had seized almost the entire continent, creating 30 new colonies and protectorates. This land grab added 10 million square miles of new territory and 110 million bewildered new subjects. Thomas Pakenham's account...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Scramble For Africa
The Scramble for Africa by Thomas Pakenham delves into one of the most shocking and rapid colonisation events in world history. Set between 1876 and 1912, the book recounts the dramatic story of how European powers raced to carve up the African continent, transforming it from a land largely ruled by indigenous people into a patchwork of European colonies and...PaperbackSold Out
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