Website/Catalog  (29 Jan 2010)  Includes photo(s).
 
Peonia peregrina Mill.
A fully-hardy herbaceous perennial with erect stems, deeply cut leaves and single, bowl-shaped, glistening, deep red flowers in spring and summer. To 60cm.  [RHSE, Hortus].  

Horticultural & Botanical History
‘This is often taken for Paeonia humilis, but does not at all agree with Retzius’s description of that species, which has narrower and more divided leaves, and nearly naked germens and capsules; not at all tomentose.’  [BM t.1050/1807].  Originally introduced to Britain some time in the 18th century or earlier, re-introduced to Britain as Paeonia lobata in 1821.

History at Camden Park
Listed in the 1850 and 1857 catalogues [B.388/1850]. It is possible that this plant, and others first appearing in the catalogue in 1850, were obtained from Loddiges’ nursery as ‘Paeonia, any of the showy varieties except Whitleyi’, were included among desiderata in a letter dated 16th April 1846.  [MP A2933-1, p.147].

Notes
Another perhaps less likely possibility is Paeonia officinalis L. byzantina atrorubens.  This has remarkably large blossoms, measuring from six to nine inches across, ‘readily recognised by its dark-tinted stems and foliage, and by the still richer and deeper crimson of its magnificent blooms.’  [Gard. Chron. 1854].

Book  (2010)  Page(s) 215.  
 
The identity of Paeonia peregrina Mill. had been problematic for a century and a half since its description as new. Miller (1768) described this taxon rather clearly as "foliis difformiter lobatis, lobis incises", "with a deep red flower" and "growing naturally in the Levant (ca. 15 km N of Istanbul)". However, later authors failed to follow Miller's description. Sims (1807) followed the locality of P. peregrina, the Levant, but not the characters, and his "P. peregrina" is actually a new species, described as P. arietina by Anderson (1818). Anderson (1818) stated: "P. peregrina, de Candolle informs us, is a native of the mountains of Provence and Languedoc, chiefly near Montpellier..." and he also cited "Bot. Mag. 1050", which actually refers to P. arietina. Furthermore, he described the peony from Constantinople (Istanbul) as a new species, P. decora (Anderson, 1818). It is clear, therefore, that Anderson (1818) treated P. officinalis subsp. huthii from S France as P. peregrina, while describing the real P. peregrina as P. decora....It was Stapf (1918) who clarified the persisting confusion and correctly illustrated P. peregrina for the first time.

Book  (2010)  Page(s) 216.  
 
Paeonia tartarica Mill. (1768)...Miller's description is clear. "The seeds...from the Levant (N of Istanbul)", "The roots...oblong fleshy tubers or knobs...leaves composed of several lobes, which are irregular in shape and size, some of them having but six, and others have eight or ten spear-shaped lobes...". This description fits P. peregrina Mill. well and better than any other species.

Book  (2005)  Page(s) Vol. I, p. 554.  Includes photo(s).
 
Paeoniaceae (Şakayıkgiller), Paeonia peregrina (Yabancı şakayık). 5 petals. North-western and north-central Turkey. Grasslands, pastures, road-sides, fields, cultivated ground. 1000-2000 m. April-May. Perennial herb.

Book  (2005)  Page(s) 149.  Includes photo(s).
 
Aegean region. Spil Mountain. Manisa
Paeonia peregrina

Book  (Jan 1999)  Page(s) 633.  
 
Paeonia peregrina deep red flowers with golden anthers

Book  (Jan 1999)  Page(s) 42, 43, 324.  Includes photo(s).
 
Page 42: [Photo]
Page 43: Paeonia peregrina one of the first to be cultivated in Europe... in England it was called the Red Peony of Constantinople... an intense, pure red
Page 324: P. peregrina Herbaceous Peony... red

Book  (1999)  Page(s) 138.  
 
Paeonia peregrina, Portugal, Spain, 1961

Website/Catalog  (1936)  Page(s) 12.  
 
May-Flowering Pæonies.
Herbaceous species and varieties.
Single-flowered unless otherwise described.
Decora. Light purple to dark red. Tall stems....1/6

Magazine  (1918)  Page(s) tab 8742 (cont'd).  
 
Description. — Herb, perennial ; stem glabrous. Leaves : lower twice ternate, their divisions distinctly stalked, lateral segments sessile or nearly so, intermediate ones rather long stalked, the lobes more or less oblanceolate or oblong, or the intermediate ones cuneate-obovate and lobulate, the lobules coarsely or incised toothed, the teeth acute or almost acuminate ; upper cauline leaves with their divisions more or less reduced, the highest appressed to the calyx ; all glabrous, rather polished, pale beneath, occasionally with a few rather stiff hairs on the lower surface ; intermediate segments, excluding the stalk, 2 1/2-4 1/4 in. long; lateral lobes 1/3-1 1/4 in. wide. Flowers with the very concave petals aggregated in an open cup, 2 1/4-4 in. across, brilliant deep red. Sepals 4, very concave, oblong or wide elliptic, glabrous, 1-1 3/4 in. long, Petals 7-11, wide obovate or elliptic, slightly crenulate upwards. Stamens with red filaments, usually somewhat paler upwards ; anthers golden yellow, up to 1/5 in. long. Carpels usually 3, rarely 4, ovoid, very densely tomentose with white hairs; stigmas laterally compressed, recurved, red. Follicles when ripe stellately spreading, oblong, slightly recurved at the tip, up to 2 in. long, covered with a dense dirty white or yellowish tomentum. Seeds elliptic-globose, about 1/4 in. long, black, shining.

Tab. 8742.— Fig. 1, a carpel with stamens, showing insertion ; 2 and 3, anthers ; 4. ripe fruit ; 5, seed :— all enlarged except 4, which is of natural size.