Part of a cover story on art, design, and style in the age of William and Mary. The style of English landscape gardens was copied by all of Europe and much of the world from the late 1700s onward, but English gardens prior to this time derived many of their forms from the Continent. When William and Mary, who were passionate gardeners and botanists, succeeded to the British throne, Dutch gardens began to influence the gardens of Britain. Dutch gardens were valued for their modest proportions and for their democratic potential—they were not the province solely of aristocrats. They were inspired by the need for peace and refuge, as seen in the names of houses, and by a Calvinist striving for the well-managed soul, as seen in the tidy lines of orchards. Topography also played a role in Dutch gardens, which were often planned around drainage ditches and canals. Photographs of designs, engravings, and paintings of European gardens of the period are reproduced.