Information AboutNew Forest |
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The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, Heathland and old-growth Forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. The contiguous New Forest habitat covers south west Hampshire and some of south Wiltshire and east Dorset . As a National Park the New Forest is mainly in Hampshire, but also covering some of Wiltshire. Additionally the New Forest Local Government District is a subdivision of Hampshire which covers most of the forest, and some nearby areas. HISTORY Like much of England, the New Forest was originally forested, but parts were cleared for cultivation from the Stone Age and into the Bronze Age . However, the poor quality of the soil in the new forest meant that the cleared areas turned into heathland "waste". The New Forest was created as a Royal Forest in 1079 by William The Conqueror for the hunting of (mainly) Deer . It was first recorded as "Nova Foresta" in the Domesday Book in 1086. The inhabitants of thirty-six parishes were evicted. William's successor, William Rufus was killed in a suspicious accident while hunting in the New Forest in 1100. The reputed spot of the king's death is marked with a stone known as the Rufus Stone . As Of 2005 , roughly 90% of the New Forest is still owned by The Crown . The Crown lands have been managed by the Forestry Commission since 1923. Around 50% of the Crown lands fall inside the new National Park. Over time, the New Forest became an important source of wood for the Royal Navy , and plantations were begun to replace the felled trees. In the Great Storm Of 1703 , about 4,000 Oak trees were lost in the New Forest. The naval plantations encroached on the rights of the Commoners, but the Forest gained new protection under an Act Of Parliament in 1877. The New Forest Act 1877 confirmed the historic rights of the Commoners and prohibited the enclosure or more than 16,000 Acre s (65 km²) at any time. It also reconstituted the Court of Verderers as representatives of the Commoners (rather than the Crown). Felling of broadleaf trees, and replacement by conifers, began during the First World War to meet the wartime demand for wood. Further encroachments were made in the Second World War . This process is today being reversed in places, with some plantations being returned to heathland or broadleaf woodland. Further New Forest Acts followed in 1949, 1964 and 1970. The New Forest became a Site Of Special Scientific Interest in 1971, and was granted special status as the "New Forest Heritage Area" in 1992. It became a National Park in 2005. COMMON RIGHTS Forest Laws were enacted to preserve the New Forest as a location for royal "), to gather Bracken after 29 September as litter for animals ("fern"), to cut peat for fuel (" Turbary "), to dig clay (" Marl "), and to turn out pigs between September and November to eat fallen acorns and beechnuts (" Pannage " or "mast"). Along with grazing, pannage is still an important part of the forest ecology. Pigs can eat Acorn s without a problem, whereas to ponies the acorns are poisonous. Pannage always lasts 60 days but the start date varies according to the weather - and when the acorns fall. The Court Of Verderers decides when Pannage will start each year. At other times the pigs must be taken in and kept on the owner's land, with the exception that pregnant sows, known as "privileged sows" are always allowed out providing they return to the Commoner's holding at night, and are not a nuisance. This is not a true Right, it is an established practice. GEOGRAPHY The New Forest SSSI covers almost 300 Square Kilometre s and is the largest contiguous area of un-sown vegetation in lowland Britain. It includes roughly:
It is drained to the south by two rivers, the Lymington and Beaulieu . Wildlife As well as providing a visually remarkable and historic landscape, the ecological value of the New Forest is particularly great because of the relatively large areas of lowland habitats, lost elsewhere, which have survived. The area contains several kinds of important lowland habitat including valley bogs, wet heaths and deciduous Woodland . The area contains a profusion of other rare wildlife, including the New Forest Cicada , the only Cicada native to Great Britain . The wet heaths are important for rare plants, such as Marsh Gentian ''Gentiana pneumonanthe'' and marsh clubmoss ''Lycopodiella inundata''. Several species of Sundew may be found in the Forest, and the area is also the habitat of many unusual Insect Species , including the Southern Damselfly . Three species of snake inhabit the Forest. The Adder is the most common being found on open heath and grassland. The Grass Snake prefers the damper invironment of the valley mires. The rare Smooth Snake can be found on sandy hillsides with Heather and Gorse . A program to reintroduce the Sand Lizard started in 1989. Numerous deer live in the Forest but are usually rather shy and tend to stay out of sight when people are around. Fallow Deer are the most common followed by Red Deer . There are also smaller populations of Sika Deer and Muntjac . Settlements Among the towns and villages lying in or adjacent to the Forest are Lyndhurst (which claims to be the 'capital' of the New Forest), Brockenhurst , Fordingbridge , Ringwood , Beaulieu and Lymington . It is bounded to the west by Bournemouth and to the east by the city of Southampton . The forest gives its name to the New Forest district of Hampshire . See also List Of Locations In The New Forest NEW FOREST NATIONAL PARK for comparison]] Consultations on the possible designation of a National Park in the New Forest were commenced by the Countryside Agency in 1999 . A Order to create the park was made by the Agency on 24 January 2002 and in submitted to the Secretary Of State for confirmation in February 2002 . Following objections from seven local authorities and others, a Public Inquiry was held from 8 October 2002 to 10 April 2003 , concluding with that the proposal should be endorsed with some detailed changes to the boundary of the area to be designated. On The Forestry Commission retain their powers to manage the Crown land within the Park, and the Verderers under the New Forest Acts also retain their responsibilities, and the Park Authority is expected to co-operate with these bodies, the local authorities, English Nature and other interested parties. The designated area of the National Park covers 571km&2 and includes many existing SSSI s. It has a population of approximately 38,000 (excluding most of the 170,256 people who live in the New Forest local government district). As well as most of the New Forest District of Hampshire , it takes in a small corner of Test Valley district around the village of Canada , and part of the Salisbury district in Wiltshire south-east of Redlynch . However, the area covered by the park does not include all the areas which were initially proposed; excluding most of the valley of the EXTERNAL LINKS
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