Hybrid Perpetual roses are a mix of many Old Garden roses including Bourbons, Noisettes, Teas and Portlands and they became very popular in the late 19th century due to their ability to re-bloom (remontancy).
This was a feature that surfaced due to the fact that all the direct parents carried attributes from the China roses that were so popular in the earlier part of that century.
Tea Roses also offered re-blooming but they were best suited to the warmer parts of southern Europe. Perpetuals therefore became very popular in England and Northern Europe, especially due to their large and fragrant pink or red double blooms that always did well at the newly burgeoning flower shows.
Hybrid Perpetuals are hardy and vigorous, producing flowers heavily in spring, sometimes again in summer and also generally once more in autumn, though they can be a bit variable.
Being large and vigorous they need a special place in larger gardens where they can be trained up against pillars or walls
Famous examples include ‘La Reine’, 'Ferdinand Pichard', 'Frau Karl Druschki' and ‘Baroness Rothschild’.