Capability Brown
Preserved but no longer current.
Lancelot Brown (1715- 83) landscape gardener and architect, one of the founders of the modern or English style ot landscape gardening. He received this name because he habitually assured prospective employers that their land held great capa- bilities.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Capability Brown” mean?
Lancelot Brown (1715- 83) landscape gardener and architect, one of the founders of the modern or English style ot landscape gardening. He received this name because he habitually assured prospective employers that their land held great capa- bilities.
Is “Capability Brown” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.