Behind this unassuming urban gem lies a love story worthy of a Shakespearean tale
Going down Fairfield Road, one might notice a little black gate adorned with the name ‘Abkhazi Garden.’
Nestled in the heart of Victoria’s Gonzales neighbourhood, this small plot of land is home to one of the capital city’s best-kept secrets.
With a few meandering gravel paths winding through the lush property, among glaciated rocks and Garry oaks, Abkhazi Garden offers an urban haven for locals and tourists seeking tranquility away from downtown’s hustle and bustle.
Nearing its 80th anniversary, the site opened to the all on Oct. 13 for Thanksgiving as the season turned to fall.
“The colours have started to change, it’s absolutely beautiful, and we’re having the final day of our art show and plant sale,” said site manager Cherie Miltimore.
Cherie Miltimore, is the garden’s site manager and volunteer coordinator. (Olivier Laurin/Victoria News)
In its third iteration, the event also doubles as a fundraiser ahead of winter, Miltimore explained. Showcasing the work of 18 local artists, from painters to wood carvers, part of the proceeds from sales will go towards funding the garden to keep it going.
‘A love story that spans the world’
While the garden offers a nice venue for a Sunday morning stroll, there is more than meets the eyes. Behind this unassuming urban gem lies a love story worthy of a Shakespearean tale with roots stretching back to the turn of the 20th century.
At the centre of this are Peggy and Nicolas.
Prince Nicolas Abkhazi came from the small country of Georgia, which shares its northern borders with Russia. He’s from a long line of nobility.
His father, Konstantin Abhkazi, was a founding member of the first Democratic Republic of Georgia, established in the wake of the 1917 Russian Revolution.
Short-lived, the country lasted just four years before collapsing when the Bolsheviks invaded the fledgling Caucasian state in February 1921.
“Nicholas went off with his mother to safety and they ended up in Paris,” Miltimore said.“His father, who stayed behind, was executed. Not only did he lose his father, he also lost his homeland and his wealth.”
Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, Marjorie (Peggy) Pemberton-Carter was born in Shanghai, to British parents.
Following her birth, amid a failing marriage, Peggy’s mother took her back to England. However, shortly after their arrival, her mother died due to fragile health. That same year, tragedy struck once more when Pegg’s father, an architect by trade, died of tuberculosis.
Orphaned, the young girl was adopted by childless family friends in Shanghai, who took her under their wings.
“The wealthy (couple) went to England and adopted her when she was four years of age,” she said. “And then, by the time she’s in her early 20s, she’s in Paris, studying to be a concert pianist.”
At the same time, in the same city, Nicolas was studying law and economics.
It’s there that the two young adults’ paths would first cross.
“One night, she was invited to the dinner table with Prince Nicolas,” Miltimore said. Immediately connecting, the two spend the following hour together, meandering throughout the City of Love.
Although Peggy went back to Shanghai, the two stayed in contact, entertaining a correspondence that stretched years.
Nicolas’ war identification tag, issued while he was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Germany during the Second World War. (Photo sourced from The Land Conservancy of BC)
Then the Second World War broke out in September of 1939.
Now a French citizen, Nicolas was fighting with the French resistance when he was captured by the Germans and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp in northwest Germany. Peggy met a similar fate, imprisoned after the Japanese took over Shanghai.
Following Japan’s capitulation in September 1945, Peggy was freed and, by December, had settled in Victoria. She used the money from the sale of her Shanghai property to buy the large, rocky lot that would eventually become Abkhazi Garden.
“Peggy was here first, visiting her friend she made during her time in Shanghai,” Miltimore said. “They hiked to the top of this property and watched the sun set over the Olympic Mountains.
“She knew gardening so she decided to buy this land. She loved all the glaciated rock because that gave her a sense of permanence after a life of upheaval.”
That same year, Peggy would receive a letter from Nicolas.
“After the war they didn’t know if each other survived, but the prince got an address for Peggy through the Red Cross, and he sent her a letter, and that letter ended up here in Victoria,” said Miltimore.
Although the two had lost contact for 13 years, Nicolas proposed a meeting in New York, as he was planning to immigrate there in the fall. Peggy agreed to meet him and their reunion turned into an engagement officiated at the top of the Empire State building’s observation deck on Sept. 7, 1946.
Nicolas and Peggy pose at their engagement atop the Empire State Building in 1946. (Olivier Laurin/Victoria News)
Days later, the newlywed couple returned to Peggy’s home, where they spent the next four decades creating a garden together, a symbol of their union.
“We call it a garden that love built, but it’s also a garden of peace and healing,” Miltimore said.
After spending countless hours crafting their dream garden among the Garry oaks, Peggy and Nicolas came to see their creation as their child.
“This garden was their passion and it’s a remarkable story,” Miltimore said. “After going through such hardships, they showed that beauty can be created because this garden truly really is a masterpiece.”
Nicolas and Peggy standing in their garden. (Olivier Laurin/Victoria News)
The one-acre property became home to countless species of plants, bushes and trees from around the world as well as native ones. Miltimore described the Abkhazis’ creation as a spring garden, reflecting Peggy’s love of rhododendrons.
Nearing the end of their lives, maintaining the garden had become too costly for the couple who began running out of money. Wanting to keep the garden alive, and with no family members to whom they could leave it, they approached the city, nearby churches, and the university to see if anyone was interested.
All said no, so they eventually sold it to their head gardener, Christopher Ball. For the next 10 years, Ball took care of the site before unknowingly selling it to a developer, in 1999, who had the intention to redevelop the lot into 12 town homes.
Infuriated by the news, the neighbourhood banded together, and in 2000, the Land Conservancy of British Columbia bought back the garden.
Obtained by the community, for the community, the garden is now operated and maintained by more than 70 volunteers, carrying on Peggy and Nicolas’ legacy of creating a peaceful, healing space now open to all.
“The Abkhazis were very thankful that they had this oasis of beauty to live in after all they’ve been through,” she said. “So it’s just a very beautiful place to come with the family on Thanksgiving Day, and any time of year of course.”
For more information about the Abkhazi Garden, visit conservancy.bc.ca.
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