It is one of the jewels in England’s crown, but how much do you know about the New Forest?
It was William the Conqueror who created his ‘New Forest’ as a hunting preserve in 1079. Near Cadnam is the Rufus Stone which commemorates the death of his son and successor, William II ( called William Rufus because of his red hair ) whilst out hunting in 1100, allegedly killed by an arrow fired by Sir Walter Tyrell which glanced off either a tree or the back of a stag before striking him down.
The Royal Forests of the Norman and medieval period had their own harsh laws, as though they were separate kingdoms. Under Forest Law, it was an offence for people living in the area to hunt, wound or kill the king’s deer, and any dog over a certain size living within the forests had to be ‘lawed’ which involved having three claws cut from within the pad of each forefoot, to lame the dog and prevent it from being used for unlawful hunting.
The New Forest is now a National Park. The famous New Forest ponies that roam freely throughout the region are all owned by someone, although they may stay out in the Forest all year – the true New Forest pony can survive outdoors through all seasons, eating holly and furze tops during the winter. The Verderers are the officials who keep law and order in the forest and their officers, the Agisters watch over the welfare of the animals that live there. The ponies can often been seen sauntering down a high street of just chilling in the middle of a road causing cars to have to wait patiently until they decide to move on!
The largest and possibly oldest oak tree in the New Forest is the Knightwood Oak near Lyndhurst which has a girth of over 24 feet! There is also a famous oak tree at Copythorne near Cadnam which defies nature by budding with leaves in midwinter around Christmas Day.
There are simply too many much loved pubs in the New Forest to list, however there are interesting stories behind two of them. The strange creature depicted on ‘The Trusy Servant’s Inn sign at Minstead is modelled on a picture from Winchester College. It is a composite of several animals symbolising the virtues embodied in the perfect servant: a pig for unfussiness in diet ( with its snout locked for secrecy ), an ass for patience, a stag for swiftness and a laden hand for hard work. The Chequers pub in Ridgeway Lane on the edge of Lymington’s salt marshes gets its name from the saltmaking trade that was once so important to the area. The ‘chequers’ was the name for the local Salt Exchange Offices, or exchequer, which were at Lower Woodside Green in the days when salt was the key industry here.
Having a long cool drink in the pretty beer garden at The Chequers is the perfect way to end a day of exploring the many lovely shops and cafes of Lymington or a day on Highcliffe beach!
To find out all that this beautiful part of Hampshire has to offer, click here