Chelsea’s royal roots

As he co-hosts a virtual Chelsea Flower Show on TV, Monty Don gives a potted history – and a very personal view – of his horticultural heaven

early shows were displays by great landowners who would present their private plant passions, nurtured by teams of gardeners and at the very pinnacle of greenhouse cultivation. There is a sense they did not want to be sullied by exhibiting in a marketplace, and even 25 years ago there was still an undercurrent of a wealthy horticultural elite, and everyone else – the nurserymen, gardeners, Press and much of the visiting public – was allowed to share the show as long as they behaved and didn’t lower the tone or frighten the horses.

In May 1914 the show was better than the first, but that August Europe descended into the hell of the First World War. However, it was assumed the conflict would end by Christmas and the May 1915 show went ahead more or less as normal. By 1916 many gardeners were disappearing to the Front, and the show was cancelled until 1919. It then ran for the next 20 years until the Second World War intervened.

But by 1919 the old Victorian order had been blown apart.

Ever since Queen Alexandra opened the Chelsea Flower Show in 1913, it has been a favourite with royalty and celebrities alike. Here, we look at some of the starstudded highlights...

In 2013, the Royal Horticultural Society lifted

Many gardeners never returned from the Front, and those who did wanted new lives. More great estates were sold immediately after the First World War than at any other time for centuries. Suburbia was spreading and Chelsea was becoming the realm of middle England. its ban on garden gnomes and 100 were decorated by celebrities and put on parade for inspection by the Queen. Sir Elton John gave his a pair of his trademark colourful glasses (left).

In 2001, Prince Charles became the first