Uncoloured postcard of the flower gardens at Finsbury Park, with gardeners working. Finsbury Park was originally proposed as Albert Park, the third of three new royal parks to be created in London (Battersea and Victoria were the other two); when the plans to make it a royal park were abandoned, it was developed as a municipal park under the name Finsbury Park. It was designed by Alexander McKenzie and opened in 1869; it was restored with aid from the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2003