SNIPPET: Mount Stewart Gardens in County Down are renowned for their great beauty, variety, superb layout and unrivalled collection of rare and exotic plants. They are a tribute not only to their original creators but to the present gardening staff. The Gardens have an interesting history. While the smoke and battle of the Great War seems a far cry from peaceful subtropical gardens, yet those at Mount Stewart owe their existence to the work of men who endured the trauma of trench warfare and to a remarkable society hostess whose skill and imagination places her in the front rank of landscape gardeners. By 1915 Londonderry House in London had been turned into a convalescent hospital for soldiers, which Edith, Lady Londonderry (nee CHAPLIN) supervised. As well, it remained headquarters for the Ark Club, whose members each adopted the name of a creature, real or mythical. At the end of the war, the Londonderrys made the 18th century Mount Stewart House on the Ards Peninsula their main home. Edith, who had developed a a great interest in gardening, quickly realised the potential of the run-down estate, and prepared a plan for a grand garden design, recruiting 20 ex-soldiers for its execution. Now, many years after the completion of the gardens, the joy of men who swapped the din and destruction of the battlefield for the peace of orderly creation is evident. The stonework, statuary and buildings are as fine as any in the British Isles, and the opiary and preserved layout of the humid micro-climate promotes luxuriant growth and allows many greenhouse plants to be grown in the open. One of Edith's gardening mentors was Sir John ROSS of Bladensburg with gardens in Rostrevor, Co. Down, who told her -- 'My dear Lady Londonderry, I can grow plants here the Kew (Gardens) has never heard of." In addition to the plants and seeds collected by Lady Londonderry from every continent, she was given rare specimens by other plant enthusiasts. While seeking the advice of celebrated landscape gardeners such as Gertrude JEKYLL, the gardens primarily bear witness to the innate genius of a woman who had no formal training in horticulture or landscaping. Mount Stewart has had many important visitors, including the Duke and Duchess of York (later to become King George VI and Queen Elizbeth) who stayed there shortly after their marriage. Among the gardens are fantastic stone animals playfully 'depicting' distinguished members of the Ark Club as well as a gargoyle reminiscent of Sir Winston CHURCHILL. Some background -- Edith, Lady LONDONDERRY (nee CHAPLIN) was the granddaughter of the Duke of Sutherland, Britain's largest landowner. She was brought up in Dunrobin Castle in Scotland. In 1899, at age 20, she married Viscount Castlereagh, a descendant of the Foreign Secretary who held the British delegation at the Congress of Vienna when a peace settlement for Europe was mapped out, following the fall of Napoleon. Edith's husband was heir to Lord Londonderry, and, when he succeeded to the title in 1915, he became the owner of Londonderry House in London's Park Lane and of Mount Stewart on the Ards Peninsula. The vast London residence was a mecca for the rich and powerful as well as for writers, artists and musicians, especially between the wars when up to 2,500 guests attended eve of State Opening of Parliament receptions. In 1915, Edith hosted Wednesday evening dinner parties for those who were engaged in war work and so the Ark Club was born. She founded the Women's Legion, which carried out vital work during the First World War, and, in 1916, Edith became the first woman to be awarded the Military DBE. Her husband served in France during WWI. Edith LONDONDERRY, who died at the age of 80, was a fighter for women's rights and, helped by the demands of war and her skill with the pen - she could apparently pilot a plane, as well -demonstrated that women were perfectly capable of carrying out work that had formerly been the preserve of men. -- Excerpts, Leslie GILMORE's article (w/photos) in the Nov-Dec 2001 issue of Dublin's "Ireland of the Welcomes" magazine.