In 1654 John Evelyn invented the term ‘avenue’ to describe ‘the principal walk to the front of the house’. He was passionately interested in the cultivation of trees and his studies on the subject were set out in this book. Evelyn recommended tree planting to support the economy and the result was the massed planting of new woodlands and of long tree-lined avenues. Many of these were engraved in Knyff and Kip’s Britannia Illustrata, which is on display in the red gallery.