Lotherton Hall, located near Aberford in West Yorkshire, England, is a historic country house renowned for its Edwardian-style gardens. The formal gardens, covering approximately 3 hectares, were designed between 1902 and 1920 by William Goldring and the estate's owner, Laura Gwendolen Gascoigne, with probable advice from horticulturist Ellen Willmott. These gardens are divided into several compartments, each with its own character, and include features such as woodland walks, a bird garden, and a stable courtyard. The gardens are situated on level ground south and east of Lotherton Hall. The boundary is formed by a stone wall on the west side of the approach drive, which runs from the south end of a stable courtyard and extends southwards to the point at which a ha-ha runs eastwards and then curves around to the north side of the gardens. A fence and a brick kitchen garden wall form the north boundary. The principal entrance to the site is via a drive leading south from the B1217, Collier Lane, where there is a lodge of 1906. The drive divides, with one branch leading east to the stable block and the other continuing south and then turning eastwards through gate piers and gates, designed in 1906 by William Goldring, to a turning circle in front of the west side of the Hall. The Hall originated as an 18th-century villa, probably on or close to the site of an earlier building. It was extended to the east during the 1890s by J. Osborne Smith for Colonel Frederick Trench-Gascoigne and to the south and west in the early 20th century. A late 12th-century chapel stands approximately 30 meters west of the west side of the Hall. The gardens are situated to the south and west of the Hall. On the west side, the drive leads up to the turning circle in front of the Hall through lawns planted with specimen trees and shrubs. Formal gardens are situated on the south and east sides of the Hall. Attached to the south-west corner of the Hall is a rectangular paved area called the Terrace, laid out by William Goldring in 1902-3, which is enclosed by stone balustrading between stone piers that support urns. Shaped beds are set into the paving. On the east side of this area, stone steps lead down to formal gardens designed by Mrs. Laura Gascoigne, probably with advice from her friend Ellen Willmott. A gravel circle with a central circular bed and fountain is linked by a path running east to a rectangular gravelled area bordered by yew hedges and containing shaped beds. The path is lined with clipped yew bushes. This continues eastwards and is bordered by clipped yew hedges that shelter a herbaceous border on each side and terminates with a summerhouse formed from a pre-1903 entrance to the Hall, which stands approximately 100 meters south-east of the Hall. At the south-east end of the garden, approximately 100 meters from the Hall, paths lead east to a shrubbery with winding paths in an area shown as a shrubbery on the 1893 OS map. At the south-east corner of this area, there is a rock garden called the Dell, which has a system of curving paths leading through rockwork; this includes the remains of a water feature and is planted with shrubs. This garden, which originally included a fernery and Japanese garden, is shown on a plan dated October 1906, which is signed by the Gascoignes' agent, T. H. Prater. It was built in two stages, the first probably not until 1912 and the second around 1924 when the water system was installed and rebuilt with limestone rocks. To the north and immediately east of the Hall is an enclosed area divided from the gardens to the south by a clipped yew hedge. The north side is formed by the brick walls of a former kitchen garden, which are curved in a D shape, with a central recess. This was the site of a heated conservatory, shown on the 1893 OS map, which was replaced by Mrs. Gascoigne with a summerhouse, which was itself demolished in the 1950s. A stone seat is situated against the wall at its central point, and a path runs around a D-shaped flower bed. A gate in the east side of this area leads to a garden called the William and Mary Garden, which consists of a paved rectangle with a central sunken rectangular pond surrounded by low box hedges. The garden is divided into compartments by low box hedges and contains beds and spiral-cut box topiary. The west and north sides of the area are formed by a continuation of the brick kitchen garden wall. On the east side, a low stone wall has a central gate leading to a late 20th-century lime avenue, which is aligned with a stone garden temple situated approximately 100 meters east of the Hall. The temple was originally a portico from Parlington Hall, a former Gascoigne family home. The east side of this garden is enclosed by the mature trees and reinstated coppice of Captain Wood, which is a strip of woodland running north along the line of the ha-ha. North of this area and divided from it by a late 20th-century hedge, there is a grassed area with clipped yew bushes around a central circular bed. Hedges form the boundary of this enclosure on the north and east sides, and the restored brick kitchen garden wall forms the west side. There is an area of grassland between the formal garden south of the Hall and the ha-ha. This was designed by Mrs. Gascoigne as an informal layout and planted with bulbs. It has been allowed to revert (1990s) to a wildflower meadow and is bounded on the west side by a flagged path, which runs south from the main drive and is lined with trees. West of this are lawns planted with shrubs and specimen trees, dating largely from the late 20th century. The path runs to a gate at the southernmost corner of the site, from which point it continues as a footpath. Extensive kitchen gardens were situated immediately north and north-east of the Hall and laid out after 1906. The garden and the glasshouses within it were largely demolished in the 1960s. The area is now an aviary and is outside the registered area. The gardens at Lotherton Hall are registered at Grade II on the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.