Sir John Vanbrugh (1664-1726) was one of the most important figures in English garden history although he is rarely recognised as such. An eclectic early career as a merchant, a soldier and a dramatist preceded Vanbrugh's acceptance of the role of architect to the Third Earl of Carlisle in 1699. His impact on architecture was paralleled by a revolution in landscape design as Vanbrugh shifted the place of the architect from the house to the grounds. He used the ancient rules of proportion combined with an empathetic approach to Nature to create innovative layouts that were geometric, but...