History Sub-menu

Use the sub-menu below for selecting the periods in history

This section summarises the historical landmarks in the development of the New Forest. The pages are illustrated with monochrome photographs.

Links to the five arbitrary historical periods are in the sub-menu in the left column.

Pre-Norman - 1189

• King William I (the Conqueror) requisitions a barren waste for his deer; the sparse local population are oppressed by Forest Law - a Norman practice to benefit the deer at the expense of the rights of the locals. They are granted some concessions to gather fuel and keep stock.
• His son William II (Rufus) introduces mutilation for flouting the Laws; he is eventually killed in the New Forest.
• The boundaries of the Forest are extended; the sovereign benefits from fines for infringements of the Law.
• His son William II (Rufus) introduces mutilation for flouting the Laws; he is eventually killed in the New Forest.

1189 - 1681

• Excesses of the Officers of the Forest are controlled; the Rights of the locals are formalised;
• Formal practices are introduced to preserve underwood for fuel and other domestic uses; there are rising demands for timber by the Sovereign's Navy;
• The Forest is looted by Sovereigns - literally, and by the excessive use of fines; it declines by neglect.

1685 - 1875

• The timber requirements of the Navy dominate the Forest; a rolling programme of plantation is introduced by the Crown which compromises the requirements of the Commoners;
• Reflecting the dominance of timber production, steps are taken to remove all deer from the Forest;
• The demands of the Navy then decline; the Commoners demand a curbing of the scale of the plantations (Inclosures).

1877 - 1963

• The Rights of the Commoners are re-affirmed; the Verderers now have allegiance to the Commoners, not the Crown;
• The picturesque nature and ecological value of the New Forest is recognised; considerable damage is done to the Forest in support of the war effort;
• The Forestry Commission is formed; the respective duties of the Commission and the Verderers are clarified.

1964 - Present

• The motor vehicle takes its toll of Commoners' animals; some roads are fenced; the border of the Forest is bounded by fences and cattle grids;
• Some of the open private land bordering the Forest in which stock grazes is brought within the Verderers' responsibility;
• The formal end of Forest Law!
• Tourism threatens the Forest; positive steps are taken to preserve the environment and character of the New Forest; the Forest becomes a National Park.