864 High Weald Landscape Trail Guide

ALONG & AROUND THE

HIGH WEALD LANDSCAPE TRAIL

GUIDEBOOKINCLUDES DETACHABLE ROUTE GUIDE AND ORDNANCE SURVEY MAPS

HORSHAM • EAST GRINSTEAD • GROOMBRIDGE • CRANBROOK • RYE

High W

eald Landscape T

railH

igh Weald L

andscape Trail

Produced by the High Weald Forum.

Designed by Beacon Creative Partnership,Brambleside, Bellbrook Park, Uckfield,

East Sussex, TN22 1PL.

Authors - Lorna Jenner, Eila Lawton.Illustrator - Sandra Fernandez.

Photographers - Tristan Lavender,Martin Jones and Gerry Sherwin.

Maps produced by Beacon CreativePartnership following a style developed

by County Print and Design,Kent County Council.

Reproduced from the Ordnance SurveyExplorer maps with the permission of

the Controller of Her Majesty’sStationery Office © Crown Copyright.Unauthorised reproduction infringes

Crown Copyright and may lead to prosecutionor civil proceedings.LA 076600/99/01.

Ordnance Survey and Explorer are registeredtrade marks and the OS symbol a trademark of

Ordnance Survey, the National MappingAgency of Great Britain.

Printed in Great Britain by Beacon Print,Brambleside, Bellbrook Park, Uckfield,

East Sussex, TN22 1PL.

Published by the High Weald Forum TN5 7PR.

First published May 1999.

Copyright © High Weald Forum.

All rights reserved. No part of this publicationmay be reproduced in any way withoutthe written permission of the publisher.

ISBN 0 9538013 0 7

Cover photograph: View towards Horsmonden church David Sellman

ALONG & AROUND THE

HIGH WEALD LANDSCAPE TRAIL

The High Weald was

designated an Area of

Outstanding Natural Beauty

(AONB) in 1983.

AONBs are designated by

government to assist with the

protection and management of

some of the most beautiful areas

of countryside within England

and Wales.

The High Weald is the fourth

largest AONB and covers

1450 square kilometres (560

square miles).

High WealdArea of Outstanding

Natural Beauty

Using the guidebook

This book is designed to be a practicalguide to walking the High WealdLandscape Trail which crosses the HighWeald AONB from east to west.

It is made up of two sections: aGuidebook which gives an introductionto the High Weald, a flavour of eachsection of the Trail and guidance onplanning the walk; and a self containedRoute Guide, with maps and informationabout features passed en route.

The weather resistant route guide canbe used independently of the guidebook, ifrequired, by carefully removing it from thecentre of the book. The guidebook and/orroute guide will fit into a map case, thusproviding protection against damage, dirtand damp.

Proceeds from the sale of this guidebook will gotowards improving facilities for access andrecreation in the High Weald countryside.

N

TenterdenCranbrook

HaywardsHeath

BurgessHill

Rye

Hig hWeald Landsc ape

TrailHighWeald Landscape

Trail

Margate

Ramsgate

Pegwell Bay

Deal

Dover

Folkestone

Canterbury

Isle ofSheppey

Hastings

Tunbridge Wells

Maidstone

Ashford

Gravesend

Sevenoaks

EastbourneSeaford

BrightonWorthing

Amberley

Horsham

EastGrinstead

Crawley

Littlehampton

Bognor Regis

Chichester

Haslemere

Guildford

Lewes

GREATERLONDON

Crowborough

Groombridge

Matfield

Sussex DownsAONB

High WealdAONB

Surrey HillsAONB

Kent DownsAONB

Cuckfield

Kent DownsAONB

0 10 20 30Kilometres

0 5 10 15 20Miles


0 5 10 15 20Miles

The High Weald

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

and Landscape Trail

The High Weald Landscape Trail has been initiated, developed and interpreted by theHigh Weald Forum. The Forum is a partnership of local authorities, the CountrysideAgency, national and regional bodies and local amenity groups. It was set up on 1989 toassist with the promotion and conservation of the High Weald AONB.

The development of the Trail has beenachieved through the collaboration of thecountryside management projectsoperating within the High Weald area:

East Sussex Rights of Way andCountryside Management Serviceincluding the Rye Bay CountrysideManagement Project

Kent High Weald Project

West Sussex High WealdCountryside Management Service

The identification of the Trail andproduction of the guidebook has been co-ordinated by the High Weald Unit.

The Forum is grateful to the followingbodies for their assistance with the routedevelopment and preparation of theguidebook.

Landowners and farmersParish councilsVolunteers

The development and interpretation ofthe High Weald Landscape Trail andguidebook has been achieved withfinancial assistance from theCountryside Agency, East SussexCounty Council, Kent CountyCouncil, Mid Sussex DistrictCouncil, Tunbridge Wells BoroughCouncil, Wealden District Council,West Sussex County Council andHorsham Borough Council.

Acknowledgements

Introduction

High Weald Area of OutstandingNatural BeautyThe Foundations of the High Weald The Human FactorBuildings in the LandscapeTravelling ThroughWorking the LandA Place for WildlifeA New Industry

Walk planning & preparation

High Weald Landscape Trail Walking the Trail Route planningGetting to, from and alongthe Trail Accommodation Other servicesVisitor attractions

Contents

8

9

11

12

14

15

16

18

20

20

21

22

22

23

23

The High Weald ...

A story of its landscape

Chapter 1 Western High Weald

Horsham to CuckfieldA Forest Landscape

Chapter 2 Western High Weald

Cuckfield to East GrinsteadA Landscape for Leisure

Chapter 3 Upper Medway

East Grinstead to GroombridgeMan’s Mark on the Landscape

Chapter 4 Central High Weald

Groombridge to MatfieldA Lordly Landscape

Chapter 5 Kentish High Weald

Matfield to RolvendenA Productive Landscape

Chapter 6 Lower Rother

Rolvenden to Flackley Ash A Changing Landscape

Chapter 7 Brede

Flackley Ash to RyeA Landscape of Rivers and Marsh

Exploring the area

Other walking opportunitiesVisitor attractions

Bibliography

Biographies

24

30

34

38

42

48

52

56

57

58

59

The High Weald is a colourful landscape with trees in every view

The High Weald offers a wealth

of unspoilt landscape.

The rolling countryside is a

fascinating mixture of tree-covered

ridges, dramatic sandstone

outcrops, steep-sided wooded

valleys carpeted with wildflowers,

glistening expanses of open water

and beautiful gardens.


Natural Beauty

GUIDE BOOK 8 INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

The atmosphere is rural and peaceful.The sunken lanes edged with tall

trees and the streams flowing throughwooded ghylls have an intimate secretivefeel. However, this peaceful countryside isactually highly managed and results froma long partnership between man andnature. It is peppered with pretty villagesand historic towns, and farms are strungout along the twisting network of narrowlanes that link the settlements.

Stunning views unfold from every hilltopacross the patchwork landscape. Smallirregularly shaped fields are sheltered bythick hedgerows and shaws. Church spiresand white cowled oasts dot the skylines.There are trees in every view - densewoodlands and plantations, huge specimentrees in elegant parkland, pockets ofwoodland edging fields, old yews inchurchyards. In the west the North andSouth Downs dominate the distant horizons

Hon

eysu

ckle

MJ


The Foundations of theHigh Weald

The story of the Weald begins with the rocksthat lie beneath, that both give it its formand dictate its land use. Today’s landform isthe result of climatic changes and earthmovements that took place long ago.

Some 140 million years ago you wouldhave seen a very different landscape.Dinosaurs roamed the margins of a hugeswamp-edged lake. Giant ferns and tallconifer and palm-like trees flourished inthe warm, humid climate. Great rivers raninto the lake. Where the water was fastflowing and shallow, coarse sands weredeposited; finer grained muds settled indeeper slow moving water. Gradually, overmillions of years, layers of sandstones andclays accumulated.

Earth movements later caused the landto subside and sea covered the whole area.More muds and sands were slowlydeposited and the chemical conditions inthe warm seas resulted in iron nodules

forming in some of the clays. As the seadeepened, layers of chalk, from the shellsand skeletons of tiny sea creatures, slowlybuilt up above the sands and clays.

Twenty million years ago the massiveearth movements that formed the Alpsheaved these layers above the sea creatinga chalk-covered dome. Ice, wind andwater slowly eroded the chalk revealingthe Wealden sands and clays beneath.Gradually the pattern of today’slandscape evolved. The rocks at the coreof the dome, which were particularlysharply buckled and folded, have formedthe steep-sided ridges of the central HighWeald. Tunbridge Wells and Ashdownsands, which are tough and resistant,have given rise to the highest ridges and,in places, dramatic sandstone outcrops.Sands and clays which weather easilyhave formed the gentler slopes and widervalleys. The chalk at the edges of thedome has remained as the North andSouth Downs.

North KENT/SURREY EAST SUSSEX South

Thames BasinRiver Thames

NorthDowns

GreensandRidge

CentralWeald

SouthDowns

Overlying rocks removed by erosion following folding and uplift

Older underlying rocks

Outline geological section across the Downs and Weald

Clay, Sand & Gravel Chalk Gault Clay Lower Greensand Weald Clay and Sand

whereas in the east long views open outacross the flat river levels near Rye.

This is a colourful landscape, dominatedby the darker greens of woodland and thepaler shades of pasture. These are brokenup by the yellows and browns of arablefields, all merging into endless blue horizons.Local building materials complementnature’s palette: warm reds of tiles andbrick, golden grey of sandstone churchesand bold splashes of white weatherboard.


HORNDEAN

PETERSFIELD

PORTSMOUTH

CHICHESTER

BOGNORREGIS

HAVANT

HASLEMERE

FARNHAM

BASINGSTOKE

Alton

READING

MAIDENHEAD

BRACKNELLWINDSOR

CAMBERLEY

FRIMLEY

FARNBOROUGH

WOKINGHAM

EGHAM

SLOUGH

ALDERSHOT

WOKING

GODALMING

FLEET

GREATERLONDONHOUNDSLOW

WEYBRIDGEESHER SUTTON

EPSOM

LEATHERHEAD

DORKINGGUILDFOR

HORSHAMHAYWARDSHEATH

LITTLEHAMPTONWORTHING

SHOREHAM HOVE

NEWHAVEN

SEAFORD

BRIGHTON

EASTBOURNE

LEWES

HAILSHAM

BEXHILL

BURGESSHILL

REIGATEREDHILL

HORLEY

CROWBOROUGHEASTGRINSTEAD

ROYALTUNBRIDGEWELLS

TONBRIDGE

SEVENOAKS

ROCHESTER

GRAVESENDDARTFORD

ORPINGTON

SIDCUP

BROMLEY

CROYDON

PURLEY

CATERHAM

MAIDSTONE

CHATHAM

CRAWLEY

HASTINGS

RYE

TENTERDEN

GILLINGHAM

SITTINGBOURNEFAVERSHAM

WHITSTABLE

HERNEBAY

MARGATE

BROADSTAIRS

RAMSGATE

DEAL

DOVER

CANTERBURY

ASHFORD FOLKESTONE

HYTHE

NEWROMNEY

SHEERNESSTILBURYBEXLEY

COULSDONWARLINGHAM

SUNBURY

Hook

Addlestone

ByfleetCobham

Fetcham

EastHorsley

Wonersh

Milford

HindheadCranleigh

Chiddingfold

SouthNutfield

Salfords LingfieldEdenbridge

OxtedLimpsfield

Woldingham

Liphook

Midhurst

Billingshurst

Pulborough

SteyningHassocks

Barnham

SouthHayling

Selsey

Peacehaven

Cuckfield

Uckfield

Heathfield

Battle

Wadhurst

CranbrookHamstreet

Lydd

Wye

Charing

Sandwich

Minster

Headcorn

NewHythe

PaddockWood

Hartley

BoroughGreen

Swanley

BigginHill

Dormansland

Grays

Geological map of South East England

Leonard’s Forest with its coniferous forestsand heathland plants, whereas the Wadhurstclay on the lower slopes, to the east ofTunbridge Wells and on the Rother levels,gives rise to much heavier, more fertile soilsused for arable crops and pasture.

Early morning mist highlights the ridge and valley landform TL

The variety of bedrock produces avariety of soils and these in turn allow awide range of plants to grow, resulting inthe distinctive patchwork landscape of theHigh Weald. For example, Tunbridge Wellssand gives rise to the poor sandy soils of St

Val

erie

Alfor

d

ESC

C L

ands

cape

Gro

up

The Weald was once adense blanket of trees withsmall-scale woodlandclearings providing summerpastures for coastallandowners


The Human Factor

Ten thousand years ago lowland Englandwas blanketed with trees. Perhaps thedensest area of wildwood was that whichcovered the Weald, continuing right downto the coast at Fairlight and Pett. Thisdense oak forest was a barrier todevelopment for centuries. Nomadic earlyStone Age settlers preferred the betterdrained higher ground and avoided theheavy clay and dense forest in the valley.

Its position between the south coast portsand London meant the Weald did notremain uncharted for long. Although theiron-working Celts settled on thesurrounding chalk they appreciated theWealds’ rich iron deposits and cut tracks intothe forest to work the iron ore and transportthe finished goods. The Romans continuedto mine the iron and built their straightroads across the Weald, connecting to thesouth coast ports and Londinium, theiradministrative centre. They too chose not tosettle - the forest was still impenetrable anduninviting. The Weald remained one of theleast settled and most densely wooded areasof Britain into the 11th century.

The Saxons were the first to settle inthe High Weald and the plethora of Saxonnames bears witness to this - ‘hurst’,meaning hilltop spinney, as in Goudhurst;‘-ham’ meaning land in a river bend as inHorsham; ‘stede’ meaning place, as in EastGrinstead.

Coastal Saxon settlements wereallocated grazing rights over sections ofthe Weald known as ‘dens’. Swineherdsdrove their herds into the forest to fatten

their swine on the rich harvest of acorns.Their temporary shelters and smallclearings in the woodland graduallyevolved into a scatter of small permanentsettlements located mostly on the ridges.

In contrast the coastal areas weredeveloping more rapidly. By the 12th and13th centuries Rye and Winchelsea werethriving ports, and Tenterden, with itsport at Small Hythe, was a prosperousmarket town.

The introduction of the French blastfurnace in the 15th century changed theHigh Weald forever. Its iron industrydeveloped to make it the industrial centreof Tudor England. The many iron-relatednames such as Furnace Wood, Forge Farm,Cinder Hill, Colliers Wood reflect this.Huge areas of forest were cleared to makecharcoal to fuel the furnaces and more wasused for naval ship building and housingfor the rapidly growing population. Thegreat forest was no longer impregnable.

By the 17th century the iron and clothtrades were in decline, resulting in increased

The plethora of Saxon names bears witness to the first settlers

unemployment and unrest. Manyaugmented their income with smugglingfollowing the introduction of excise dutyand stories of highwaymen aboundthroughout the High Weald. Farming onceagain became the main occupation, aidedby the improved drainage and cultivationtechniques generated by the AgriculturalRevolution. By the 19th century parts of theHigh Weald could well lay claim to the titleof ‘Garden of England’ as orchards coveredthe slopes, hop gardens were widespreadand a wealth of magnificent gardens werebeing created around the grand houses.

Today the Weald remains predominantlyrural although agricultural patterns changeas crop subsidies constantly alter in a periodof over production. Traditional land-basedcommunities are now bolstered bycommuters drawn by the peaceful rurallandscape that is so easily accessible toLondon and the large southern towns. Thepretty medieval cottages, characterful oastsand weatherboardeded barns are rapidlysnapped up by wealthy commuters, eager toescape from city life.

Characterful oasts are now homes for wealthy commuters

GS

TL


Stone, wood,

bricks and tiles

are the building

materials of the

High Weald

Buildings in the Landscape

The Weald boasts a remarkablevariety of buildings reflecting theinfluence of successive waves ofsettlers and the technology andmaterials available in each era.Roads were poor and transport slowuntil well into the 19th century soonly local sandstones, clays andforest timber were available to all butthe extremely rich.

Sandstone was widely used in thebuilding of the parish churches, differentdeposits giving rise to rocks of differenthues, some grey, others yellow and brown.Occasionally, for a particularly grandbuilding, stone was brought from furtherafield, such as the Bethersden marble towerof Tenterden church and Caen stone forWykehurst Place. Stone was costly anddifficult to transport and so less often usedfor more mundane buildings unless close toa quarry. It was often used in conjunctionwith other materials; lower storeys of stonewith brick above, stone window frames setin brick, or large slabs of grey Horshamsandstone used for roofing.

Timber was the most readily availablematerial until the 17th century when itbecame less plentiful due to clearance of theforest to fuel the iron furnaces and the use ofthe finest timbers for naval ship building.Timber-framed buildings often have alopsided or irregular appearance as Tudorbuilders worked with green, fresh woodwhich twisted and bent as it dried out.

High quality bricks and tiles have longbeen made from the High Weald clays. As

technology improved, making the largescale production and transport possible,bricks gradually took over as the mostpopular building material. Tiles, in avariety of decorative shapes, were oftenhung on the gable ends or upper storeys ofwooden buildings to give additionalprotection against the elements. By the17th and 18th centuries, tiles and brickswere highly desirable, and many olderbuildings were faced with brick to give amore fashionable appearance. Rooftileswere of a particularly high quality which iswhy thatch was so rarely used. Theundulating roofs with tall brick chimneys,often with a ‘catslide’, where the roof iscarried down low on one side of the house,are a pleasing sight in the rural villages.

TL

GS

Stone, wood,

bricks and tiles

are the building

materials of the

High Weald


The PriestHouse at West

Hoathly is awell preserved

example of thetimber framed

buildings whichstill dot the

landscape

oast houses, square or round kilns for hopdrying, old barns and occasionalweatherboarded windmills.

There is also an unusual number ofgrand houses and mansions, built bywealthy iron and cloth families, aristocracygiven land by royal benefactors, or ‘newgentry’, attracted by the beauty of thelandscape and its closeness to London.These sumptuous dwellings give us thebest opportunity to see the favoured stylesof each era. Built with no expense spared,they reflect the fashions of the times, bothin building terms and in the landscaping oftheir grounds. There are Tudor andJacobean mansions, Queen Anne houses,Georgian white stucco or brick houses.

Wooden weatherboards remained analternative to tilehanging in areas wheretimber was still plentiful. The weatherboardon houses was usually painted white, as inCranbrook and Hartfield, but farm buildingswere often just tarred for cheaper protection.

The buildings of the High Weald alsoreflect its history. The prosperity of manyof the towns and villages in medieval andTudor times, due to the iron and clothindustries, is reflected in the large numberof timber-framed houses that remaintoday - rows of tightly crowded workers’cottages in many of the villages and largerWealden hall houses in the surroundingcountryside. Agricultural developmentover the centuries has left a rich legacy of

Romanesque 1066 - 1190Early English 1190 - 1280Decorated 1280 - 1380Perpendicular 1380 - 1550Classical 1550 - 1810Gothic &Classical Revivals 1810 - 1914Modern 1914 - Present day

Got

hic

Table of Architectural Periods

Table of Historical Periods

Mesolithic 10000 - 3500BCNeolithic 3500 - 2000BCBronze Age 2000 - 800BCIron Age 800BC - AD43

Roman 43 - 410Anglo-Saxon 410 - 1066Norman 1066 - 1154Plantagenets 1154 - 1399Lancastrians 1399 - 1461Yorkists 1461 - 1485

Tudors 1485 - 1603Elizabethan 1558 - 1603

Stuarts 1603 - 1714Jacobean 1603 - 1649Commonwealth 1649 - 1660Restoration 1660 - 1702Anne 1702 - 1714

Hanoverian 1714 - 1901Georgian 1714 - 1837Regency 1810 - 1820Victorian 1837 - 1901

Edwardian 1901 - 1910Windsor 1910 - Present day

Preh

istor

icM

edie

val

The 19th century was a period ofromantic revivalism when it wasfashionable to build in the styles of earliereras. The Gothic extravagances ofNymans, and the ‘grand chateau’ atWykehurst are just two examples.

MJ

Ren

aiss

ance

and cloth industries were flourishing, moreroads were needed to carry the finishedgoods to London or the ports. Heavycannons and other iron goods weretransported on great waggons pulled bysturdy oxen. These churned up and deeplyrutted the roads and were often boggeddown in the winter when the roads andtracks became impassable. The many sunkenlanes that remain in the Weald today are theresult of years of wear on the narrow tracks.

Where possible the rivers were used as analternative method of transport for heavygoods. Barges transported coal, timber andbricks to and from Rye to Tenterden alongthe River Rother and bricks for the railwayviaduct near Balcombe were transported upthe River Ouse.


INTRODUCTION

Travelling Through

The High Weald separates the southcoast ports from London, the centreof commerce, and for centuriesthere has always been a steadytraffic of traders and settlerstravelling through.

The heavy clay of the lower ground wasa problem for the early travellers, who madetheir tracks along the drier ridgetops. Thefirst settlements developed along these earlytransport routes and many of the villagestoday, including Goudhurst, Brenchley, WestHoathly and Cuckfield, developed fromthese early hilltop settlements.

It was only the Romans who conqueredthe clay by building their straight roads oniron slag - the Lewes/London road is a fineexample. By medieval times, when the iron

The sunken

lanes of the

Weald are the

result of wear

on narrow,

clayey tracks

Trade and traffic continued to increaseand the poor state of the roads was aserious hindrance. This led to theestablishment of the Turnpike Trusts inthe 18th century. A Trust was set up tomaintain and upgrade a key road and itgenerated the necessary funds bycharging road users a fee. Towns andvillages on these upgraded routes thrived,such as Tenterden, Cuckfield and Bolney,servicing the stagecoaches andcommercial traffic. Several fine coachinginns from this era remain.

The coming of the railways in the mid19th century expanded trade opportunitiesfurther. The construction of lines throughthe hilly High Weald was a demandingtask requiring deep cuttings, tallembankments and lofty viaducts but manyrailway companies were keen to build,eager to exploit the trade link with thesouth coast. The London to Brighton lineopened first, followed by the Ashford toHastings line in 1851. Railways graduallylost trade to the improved roads in the20th century. Many branch lines wereclosed but the remaining lines are still wellused by commuters.

Railway lines built in the 19th century between Londonand the coast still criss-cross the High Weald

MJ

Old meadows and pasture,which have not been fertilised,contain a wealth of wildflowers


The gentle wide valley of the LowerRother and the reclaimed river flatsaround Rye provide particularly richgrazing and sheep rearing has been amainstay of the local economy here forcenturies. The hardy Romney Marshbreed is particularly well suited to the wetmarshland. Cattle were always moreimportant in the Western High Weald.You will rarely see the traditional small redSussex breed nowadays. The black andwhite Holstein Friesian is the commondairy animal and there are a wide varietyof beef cattle crosses.

It was not until the 19th century, whenimproved field drainage techniques madecultivation easier, that larger scale arablefarming became possible, supported by theimproved roads and new railways,particularly in the north of the HighWeald. Nowadays the choice of crops isoften dictated by European Communitysubsidies and surpluses and only limitedamounts of cereals and fodder crops aregrown. Oil seed rape provides anoccasional splash of yellow to the hillsidesand valley bottoms and the soft blue hazeof flax is becoming a more frequent sight.

Working the Land

The High Weald is not renowned forits productivity. The thin sandy soilsand heavy clays have always madegrowing crops difficult.

The rearing of livestock was and still isthe most productive land use and pasture,grazed grassland, covers much of the area.Other areas of grassland are managed asmeadows, cut in June or July as a hay orsilage crop to provide winter feeding forlivestock. Old meadows and pasture, whichhave not been fertilised, may contain awealth of colourful wildflowers which inturn attract butterflies, bees, grasshoppersand a host of other creatures.

Hop growing was widespread in theWeald during the 18th and 19th centuriesbut, due to competition from Europeanimports, it has now dwindled to a small areacentred around Goudhurst. Fruit growingstill flourishes in parts of the Kentish HighWeald but again, acreages are reducing asheavily cropping dwarf varieties areplanted, consumer tastes change and cheapimports flood the market.

Field drainage made larger scalearable farming possible in the19th century

TL

MJ


INTRODUCTION

The gyhlls, steep-sided narrow streamvalleys, have also remained denselywooded, and a wealth of damp-lovingplants often thrive in the leafy shade castby the trees.

Fields were originally cut straight out ofthe forest and many of the densehedgerows that separate them are relics ofthe original forest. Wider strips ofwoodland were often left alongside thefields for additional shelter and to providea useful source of wood. Hedges andshaws form wooded threads that knit thelandscape pattern together.

There are ponds aplenty, some dug byman, others natural depressions, but allholding water because of the underlyingwater-resistant clay. Many of the largerones were created as hammer ponds forthe iron industry. Others were left after the

Hedges and shaws -

narrow strips of

deciduous woodland, knit

the landscape together

A Place for Wildlife

Pockets of land too steep or infertilefor farming still harbour naturalplant communities, adding a specialdimension to the High Weald’spatchwork character.

The dense forest is long gone but theWeald remains one of the most woodedparts of England, due in part to the valueof the timber in former times. Almost allareas of deciduous woodland have beencoppiced as the demand for coppiced woodfor fuel, tools and building materials wasonce so high. The High Weald is one of thefew areas in England where commercialcoppicing still continues, although on amuch reduced scale. Conifers thrive in thepoorer sandy soils of the Western HighWeald although they are increasingly beingreplaced with broadleaf species.

extraction of iron ore, stone, marl forfulling cloth or spreading on farmland, orbrick earth and clay for tiles, bricks andpottery. Some were dug to water livestockor keep a supply of fish. More recentlylarge reservoirs have been created to storedrinking water. All add to theattractiveness of the Weald and providehomes and feeding grounds for many birdsand aquatic animals.

TL

MJ


Many thousands of

ponds are scattered

across the High Weald

Nymans is one of a number of famous

gardens located in the High Weald

Areas of open heathland contrast withthe woodland in the western High Weald.The mixture of heather, gorse andbracken that thrive on these poor sandysoils support an unusual range of creaturesincluding rare insects, snakes, lizards andthe hobby, a dark and slender bird of prey.Heathland is under threat now thatchanged farming practices have made thegrazing of heathland uneconomic.

Another complementary thread of theHigh Weald patchwork are the beautifulparks and gardens surrounding the grandmansions. Some are set in rollingparkland, so popular with the wealthy inGeorgian England, complete with folliesand grand specimen trees. Many exoticspecies including rhododendrons andazaleas were brought back from theexpanding British Empire in Victoriantimes. This triggered the planting of manyof the famous gardens in the High Wealdsuch as Wakehurst Place, Nymans andLeonardslee.

MJ

A New Industry?

The unspoilt countryside with its richcultural heritage now attracts visitorsfrom home and abroad. Many of thebeautiful gardens, once restricted to theprivate pleasure of their wealthy owners,are now open to the public. The springdisplays of rhododendrons in the gardensfounded by the wealthy Victorianplantsmen are especially popular. The


INTRODUCTION

Nature has provided the foundations of a distinctive landscape

in the High Weald. Centuries of human endeavours have

embellished and developed that special character.

historic towns and villages abound withtearooms and gift shops; families flock forrides on the old steam trains and thefarms attract visitors to blossom trails,pick-your-own fruit and farm walks. Theold network of lanes and paths are usedby walkers, cyclists and horseriders; thesandstone outcrops by rockclimbers; thereservoirs for sailing.

Building on the Past

To many people the High Wealdis perhaps best known for its

distinctive topography; hills, ridgesand valleys, together with extensivewoodland, hedgerows and clustersof mature trees. In fact the hill topvillage or valley hamlet is as mucha part of the distinctive Wealdenscene and further strengthens itscharacter.

New buildings and settlements in thisstunning setting may be an anathema tosome, but with careful thought andplanning they can enhance the landscapeand indeed add to its interest andcharacter. In addition, the countrysidemust accept some change in order tomeet current housing needs which canhelp support the viability of localcommunities.

Tonbridge based Millwood DesignerHomes has a key objective - to providequality new homes in rural areas that notonly respect the character of the area, butalso enhance the landscape quality.

MJ

The network oflanes and paths areused by walkersand cyclists

The network oflanes and paths areused by walkersand cyclists

GUIDE BOOK 19 SPONSOR

The company has a keen commitment torecycling previously developed or ‘brownfield’land that is no longer of value to the localcommunity and which detracts from thevisual quality and amenities of the area. It is amyth that such sites only exist in large townsand inner cities. Indeed the impact of, say, acoalyard or industrial works is far greaterwhen seen against a backdrop of fields andwoods. Often such sites leave a costly legacy ofcontamination, but it is important that theseare brought back to beneficial use before‘greenfield’ sites are contemplated.

The inspiration for the design of thesehomes comes from traditional 15th and16th century timber framed houses withMillwood using, wherever possible,reclaimed and recycled materials whichhave a mellowness and pleasing irregularitythat mass produced modern materialscannot match.

Attention to detail ensures these housesblend in with their surroundings from theearliest stage, with steep roofs clad in claytiles, interesting window lines and door

It is from this beautiful 15th century home at the Wealdand Downland Open Air Museum that Millwood DesignerHomes gained inspiration for its Yeoman range of luxuryhomes. Examples of 15th and 16th century YeomanWealden Farmhouses can be found throughout the HighWeald of Kent and Sussex.

An example of Millwood Designer Homes’ regeneration of a‘brownfield’ site.

styles and substantial chimney stacks.Inherent in such developments is the

careful retention of existing trees andhedgerows together with extensive andsympathetic tree planting. One ofMillwood’s latest projects included theplanting of 1,400 new trees and saplings.The same project featured a drainage ditch,reflecting those often found alongsidecountry lanes, which has been stocked withreeds and grasses deliberately to attractwildlife and aquatic specimens.

Whilst offering quality homes withmodern innovations, the aim when planninga new site is to leave behind something thehousebuilder will be proud of. Jeff Elliott,Deputy Managing Director comments:“When we finish a project we want to beable to re-visit it after a year and see we havecreated something which makes a positivecontribution to the local community,complements and enhances its surroundingsand adds to the diversity and rich landscapeof the area - not just see a cluster of newhouses at odds with their backdrop”.

Claydon Hall is typical of Millwood Designer Homes attention to detail. It featuresreclaimed and recycled materials to ensure that it blends in with its rural surroundings.

MILLWOOD DESIGNER HOMES

Bordyke End

East Street

Tonbridge

Kent

TN9 1HA

01732 770991

The High Weald is a stunning area

to walk as the constantly changing

height and terrain gives ever changing

views and variety of walking. Enjoy the

wide vistas as you stride along the

ridgetops then pass into the seclusion of

the wooded ghylls with their cool

dappled shade.

High WealdLandscape Trail

GUIDE BOOK 20 WALK PLANNING & PREPARATION

WALK PLANNING & PREPARATION

by the walkers code. If you are notfamiliar with the guidelines please taketime to read the code which appears onthe back of the route guide.

Route finding should not be a problemgiven the large scale route maps and theextensive waymarking and signing on theground. The Trail is clearly waymarkedwith the Trail logo which shows a churchtower against a tree.

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

Crawley

EastGrinstead

WesternHigh Weald Ash

Slaugham

Fores

Cuckfield

The walk can be enjoyed at all times ofyear - each season adds its own

special character. Early spring when theorchards are blossoming and lambs arenewborn or May when woodlands arecarpeted with bluebells. Summer when thehedgerows are scented with honeysuckleand dog rose and the farmers are busy haycutting and harvesting. September whenthe aroma of freshly cut hops is all-pervading in the hop gardens and, in theorchards, the trees are heavy with fruit.The changing autumnal colours and thehedgerow harvest of berries and nuts, or acrisp winter’s morning with glistening frostand the smell of woodsmoke.

The walk leads through tranquilcountryside, quiet save for the suddenwing beats of a startled duck, watercascading down from an old dam, atractor turning the soil or the intermittenthoot of a steam train running along one ofthe reopened lines.

Walking the Trail The High Weald Landscape Trail hasbeen created to enable you to explore theheritage of the High Weald AONB. TheTrail does noes not always follow theshortest route between two villages butmeanders through the landscape to take inthe wonderful views and the distinctivebuilt and natural features of the area.

The Trail follows public rights of waywhich largely cross private land. Mostlandowners along the route welcomewalkers on their land provided that theydo not stray from the footpath and abide

The logo symbolises

the built and natural

features of the High

Weald which together

produce a nationally

important landscape

If you have any queries or commentsabout the Trail or would like furtherinformation on guided walks along theTrail contact:

West SussexWest Sussex High Weald CountrysideManagement Service 01243 777620East SussexRights of Way and CountrysideManagement Service01273 481654Kent Kent High Weald Project01580 715918

Route maps

Villages and Towns on

the Landscape Trail Acc

umula

tive d

istan

ce

Distan

ce fr

om th

e prev

ious l

ocati

on

Distan

ce fr

om th

e prev

ious l

ocati

on

Accum

ulativ

e dist

ance

(km) (km) (miles) (miles)

Section 1 WESTERN HIGH WEALD

Horsham to Slaugham 10 10 6 6Trail at Slaugham to Handcross 1.6 1

Slaugham to Bolney 5 15 3 9Bolney to Cuckfield 6.5 21.5 4 13Cuckfield to Whitemans Green 1 22.5 0.5 13.5

Section 2 WESTERN HIGH WEALD

Whitemans Green to Ardingly 9 31.5 5.5 19Trail at Copyhold to Haywards Heath 2.5 1.5

Ardingly to West Hoathley 6 37.5 3.5 22.5West Hoathley to East Grinstead 10 47.5 6 28.5

Section 3 UPPER MEDWAY

East Grinstead to Forest Row 4.5 52 2.75 31.25Forest Row to Hartfield 6.5 58.5 4 35.25Hartfield to Withyham 2.5 61 1.5 36.75Withyham to Groombridge 7.5 68.5 4.75 41.5Trail at Groombridge to Tunbridge Wells 3.5 2.25

Section 4 CENTRAL HIGH WEALD

Groombridge to Eridge Green 5.5 74 3.5 45Eridge Green to Frant 4 78 2.5 47.5Trail at High Wood to Tunbridge Wells 2 1.2

Frant to Matfield 12 90 7.5 55Section 5 KENTISH HIGH WEALD

Matfield to Brenchley 3 93 1.75 56.75Trail at Lewes Heath to Horsmonden 1 0.5

Brenchley to Goudhurst 7.5 100.5 4.75 61.5Goudhurst to Cranbrook 7 107.5 4.5 66Cranbrook to Benenden 7 114.5 4.5 70.5Benenden to Rolvenden 5 119.5 3 73.5

Section 6 LOWER ROTHER

Rolvenden to Rolvenden Layne 1.5 121 1 74.5Rolvenden Layne to Tenterden 4.5 125.5 2.75 77.25Tenterden to Small Hythe 4.5 130 2.75 80Small Hythe to Wittersham 3.5 133.5 2.25 82.25Wittersham to Flackley Ash 5 138.5 3 85.25

Section 7 BREDE

Flackley Ash to Peasmarsh 1.5 140 1 86.25Peasmarsh to Rye 4.5 144.5 2.75 89

Total 144.5 89


The landscape character areas of the AONB

The table below will assist you with calculating distancesbetween stops on the Trail, working out how longit will take to walk each section and planningaccommodation and refreshment stops.

Route planningThe High Weald Landscape Trail isapproximately 90 miles/145km long andcan be undertaken as a long distance walkin approximately 7-10 days. Allow plentyof time to complete your chosen walk.Reckon on walking 2 or 2.5 miles (3.2 or4km) an hour plus stops. Allow more timeif it has been wet as the clays of the HighWeald become sticky and heavy with rain!

The Trail has been divided into sevensections with each section traversing one ofthe landscape character areas of theAONB. The character areas are localitieswithin the AONB which have their ownspecial distinctiveness whether it be thepredominance of certain buildingmaterials or particular landscape patternor a combination of these an other factors.

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Cranbrook

Tenterden

RyeUckfield

Crowborough

Groombridge

UpperMedway

hdown

SouthernSlopes

Brede

LowerRother

KentishHigh Weald

CentralHigh Weald

UpperRother

Tonbridge

st Row

FlackleyAsh

Rolvenden

Matfield

Heathfield

Hastings

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Cranbrook

Tenterden

Rye

Bexhill

Hastings

Groombridge

Brenchley

To London

To Ashford& Europe

To East Croydon& London To RedhillTo Redhill, East Croydon

& London

ThreeBridges

Crawley

EastGrinstead

To Dorking,Redhill & London

To Arundel & theSouth coast

To BrightonEastbourne, Hastings &

the South coast

To Brighton &the South coast

BluebellRailway

SheffieldPark

To Maidstone

To Ashford,Canterbury& Europe

To Ashford,London

& Europe

Kent &East Sussex

Railway

To Hastings, Eastbourne& the South coast

To HawkhurstHeathfield

To Eastbourne& the South coast

Gatwick

Crowborough

To East Croydon& London

Ashurst

SmallHythe

Wittersham

Winchelsea

Benenden

Goudhurst

Handcross

BalcombeArdingly

Cuckfield

Bolney


0 5 10 15 20Miles


0 5 10 15 20Miles

Forest RowEridge

FrantBells YewGreen

WestHoathly

Bus routes

Train routes

Steam railways

High Weald Landscape Trail

Trail access point

N

Matfield

Hartfield

Uckfield

UckfieldLewes

Tonbridge

Staplehurst

To Lydd, New Romney& Folkestone

Spa ValleyRailway

Heathfield

Public transport links to the High Weald Landscape Trail

WALK PLANNING & PREPARATION

Regional public transport information:Kent Traveline 0345 696996 East Sussex 01273 474747West Sussex 0345 959099

National travel information:National Rail enquiries 0345 484950National Express (coach) 0990 808080Journeycall (rail & coach) 0906 5500000

If you would like to combine walkinglinear sections of the Trail with walkingcircular walks in the region please seethe section on Other Walking Opportunities

for details.

Getting to, from and along the Trail The beginning and end of the Trail isaccessible by train and there are a numberof other rail links to the Trail.

Wherever possible the route has beenplanned to link with public transport butsome services are infrequent, particularlyat weekends. If you do choose to travel bycar please use the car parks indicated on


MJ

the maps. If car parking spaces are notavailable please park in a sensible locationwhich will not damage road verges orcause obstruction. Leave your car securelylocked with valuables out of sight.

If you wish to undertake the HighWeald Landscape Trail in sections you needto plan the return to your starting point.Possible solutions might be as follows:a) Using public transport or one car and

public transport.b) Using two cars, one at the starting

point and the other at the proposedfinishing point.

c) Retracing your steps - the scenery canlook surprisingly different whenwalking in the opposite direction.


Visitor attractionsThere are a number of visitorattractions located on or close to theHigh Weald Landscape Trail. Most areopen between April and October. Someof the smaller attractions have irregularopening hours and it would be sensibleto check these hours before planning a

Other servicesThere is a shop located in almost all of thevillages along the route. However pleaseremember that in rural areas village shopsare often closed on Wednesday afternoons,Sundays and at lunch time, normally 1-2pm. Please take this into account whenplanning purchases.

MJ

South East England Tourist BoardTelephone 01892 540766, email [email protected] or visit the websiteat www.southeastengland.uk.com or writeto The Old Brew House, Warwick Park,Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN2 5TU.

Alternatively contact the touristinformation centres located on or close tothe Trail:

Horsham TIC 01403 211661

East Grinstead TIC 01342 410121

Tunbridge Wells TIC 01892 515675

Cranbrook TIC 01580 712538

Tenterden TIC 01580 763572

Rye TIC 01797 226696

By purchasing goods from village shops along the Trail youare helping support an important, but increasinglythreatened, rural service

AccommodationA range of accommodation is available inmost villages and towns en route. It isadvisable to book accommodation inadvance especially in the summer.

A basic list of accommodation on or closeto the route is available from:

High Weald UnitTelephone 01580 879500, email [email protected] or visit the websiteat www.highweald.org

For further information onaccommodation in the region or assistancewith booking accommodation in the area:

visit. Contact numbers are listed in theVisitor Attractions section.

Be preparedAlways wear suitable clothing for theseason and waterproof boots. Be preparedfor changeable weather by carryingwaterproofs in your rucksack at all times ofyear. Consider taking overtrousers ortrousers as protection from any discomfortcaused by walking through high or pricklyvegetation or rain drenched or dewy crops.

Pubs along the route are normally openbetween 11-3pm and 5-11pm. Occasionallythey may be open all day. Almost all providefood both at lunch time and in the evening.

Only the main towns along the routehave banks, so it is important to plan howyou will pay for purchases in advance.Most accommodation providers will acceptcredit cards. Village shops will not acceptcredit cards for low value purchases.

For an up-to-date weather forecastcontact Weathercall 0891 772 272

Flora and fauna Most British wildlife is harmless but do notpick berries or fungi unless you are certainof the identification as some are poisonous.

It is against the law to uproot any plant

without the landowner’s permission.

The adder is the only poisonous Britishsnake. You may spot one, distinctive withits ‘v’ shaped markings, basking in the sunin a heathland clearing, but it is unlikely tobite unless threatened.

Whilst walking in the countryside youwill occasionally come across livestock oranimals of various types. Generally fewanimals will cause a problem if they areleft undisturbed although they may reactbadly to the presence of a dog,particularly if there are young in thefield. It is usually best to keep a dog on alead in a field containing stock but beready to release it if the animals dobecome aggressive.

The first permanent settlements were on the ridgetops

Western High Weald

Horsham to Cuckfield

The High Weald ... A story of its landscape

A Forest Landscape

GUIDE BOOK 24 CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER ONE

Outposts in the interior

Summer swineherds from the coastalsettlements drove their pigs into the

forests via the dry ridgetops.Even today the majority of roads follow

these lines and it was here that the earlychurches were built and villages graduallyevolved. The early seasonal settlementshowever were in the valleys where the pigsfed on acorns and beech nuts or ‘mast’.

The development of heathlandGradually the trampling and snouting

cleared glades; tree seedlings gave way tothe plant community we call heathland,dominated by gorse, bracken and heather.Butterflies and other insects flourished inthe sunshine, nourished by the plants.Lizards and snakes basked in the clearings,birds perched in the gorse, feeding on theabundant smaller creatures.

The heathland was valued by ourancestors. Their animals grazed there.Gorse was an excellent fuel, as washeather, which also provided thatching forsimple dwellings. Bracken made beddingfor man and beast and a rich compost forthe land.

Nowadays the traditional uses ofheathland are outmoded. Ungrazed landsoon reverts to woodland. If we want the

GS

Gre

enw

inge

d O

rchi

d

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

Cuckfield

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Matfield

Both history and landscape of the westernmost section of the High Weald aredominated by St Leonard’s Forest. The name, first recorded in 1213, defined

some 12 square miles (31 square kilometres) of ancient wildwood east ofHorsham. Legend holds that St Leonard slew a local dragon within it.

open spaces of heathland, and its delicateweb of plants and creatures, we must workfor it. Clear the trees, control the bracken.

Human endeavour continued tochange the face of the Forest. It becamea royal deer park in Norman times, withseasonal cattle grazing. This createdwood pastures, grassy clearings studdedwith trees pollarded (their branchesharvested) above the reach of hungrymouths. Now we treasure the fewremaining pollards at sites like Mick’sCross for their gnarled beauty and theunique community of insects and plantsassociated with them.

Rabbits, a 12th-century introduction,were raised for food and fur in ‘warrens’.Their grazing helped maintain openheathland, even as their wild descendantsdo today. Stone and clay for building weretaken from forest sites. Lime, oak, beech,hornbeam, hazel - different trees werecoppiced for different uses. Standard treesprovided timber, perhaps 300 small treesfor one sizeable dwelling. Woodland wasgenerally managed sustainably but the treecover gradually decreased.

The rate of change increasesThe iron industry spelt further destruction ofthe Forest, as well as damming streams andwrecking roads. By Elizabethan times onlyone third of the Forest was tree-covered.

Agriculturists in the 17th and 18thcenturies experimented with ways toimprove the sandy soils and heavy clays,with little success. Sir Thomas Seymoureven wanted to create a ‘new town’ in it -

in the 17th century, 300 years before plansfor Crawley New Town were drawn!

Developers in the 18th century were thefirst to plant larch and pine; exotic softwoodsnow grow throughout the area. Theinvention of tile drains in 1840 did help toconquer the clay soils and farming improved.

The pattern of small fields andhedgerows or shaws (the local name for ashelterbelt of woodland) spread. Nowmodern machinery and methods can growcrops and conifers on almost any soil.

Over the centuries many chose to live inthe Forest for its peace and beauty ratherthan for profit. That appeal is just as strong

today, bringing more houses, more cars,more visitors, so that its very popularityimperils this beautiful countryside.

A forest of gardensLeonardslee, Nymans, High Beeches,

Wakehurst Place, Borde Hill ... It is notsurprising to find so many famous gardenshere. The climate is mild, especially in thevalleys; the sandy silty soils are easy to workbut not so fertile that they are coveted byagriculturists. If the heavy clays of thevalley bottoms grow one thing to perfectionit is trees, the perfect foil for gaudier plants.And all conveniently close to London.

Heathland once covered St Leonard’s Forest. Now the area is dominated by coniferous plantations but steps are beingtaken to regenerate the internationally rare habitat

MJ


Leonardslee is in many ways typical ofthe 19th-century Sussex gardens. SirEdmund Loder found the forest site, withsome judicious thinning, a perfect settingfor the rhododendrons, azaleas andmagnolias that were his passion. Heenhanced the setting with Californianredwoods and other exotic trees. Thechain of hammer ponds provided a near-perfect water feature.


The Trail leads through shady groves of coniferous woodlandTL

Rhododendronponticum was

introduced into thecountry by the

Victorians. In manyareas it has escaped

from its garden settinginto surrounding

woodland where itout-competes native

plants

In the spring of 1940 military mindsalso looked to use the Wealdencountryside to advantage. Germaninvasion seemed imminent, thecoastal defences might fail. How bestto halt a German advance on London?

Pillboxes, pimples and dragon’s teethform part of the answer. You will see theseas you walk the Trail - octagonal brick orconcrete gun emplacements (the pillboxes)and variously shaped lumps of concretedesigned to stop tanks. They were part ofone of the lines of defence based onnatural obstacles such as rivers and ponds.The concrete blocks were placed toprevent detours around natural obstaclesand road blocks. Camouflaged pillboxeswould catch the invaders in a deadlycrossfire - or so it was hoped!

Victory in the Battle of Britain foughthigh above the Weald meant the defencelines were never tested though it has beensaid that high altitude photographs of theconstruction activity convinced Germanintelligence Britain was well preparedagainst invasion. Pillboxes and tanktraps arepart of archaeology now, reminders notonly of what was but what might have been.

Pimples and pillboxes

Tanktraps are a visible reminder of the Second World War

TL

Mar

sh M

arig

old

Eila

Law

son


A walk around St Leonard’s Forestwith David Codd, Sussex WildlifeTrust’s voluntary reserve manager,is the ideal introduction to itssecrets.

David knows where to find theelusive lily of the valley when its delicateperfume fills the warm evening airbeneath the trees. He treasures the raremosses, ferns and small creatures insteep-sided Sheepwash Ghyll where thehumid conditions provide a refuge for acommunity of species that once

Guardianof the Foresttreasures

Rare ferns can be found in Sheepwash Ghyll and themany other ghylls which dissect the ridges of the Weald

TL

‘It is a privilege to have so

rare a bird nesting within a

few miles of Gatwick and

Horsham. I hope it stays but

it nests on the ground and so,

like most of the wildlife here,

it’s at risk from the

increasing number of visitors,

especially those who wander

from the paths.’

Nightjar on ground among heather

flourished across the country. That wassome 7000 years ago, when all of Britainenjoyed the mild, damp ‘Atlantic’ climatenow mostly restricted to the westernseaboard.

David enjoys introducing others to theForest. A session investigating pond life orthe Forest trees stimulates his work withpeople with learning disabilities. And storiesof the local dragon have enlivened many ascout night hike - not everyone knows itslair was (is?) in Dabson Gill, close by thescout campsite in the north of the Forest.

Perhaps his greatest pleasure though isto hear the ‘churring’ of a nightjar on asummer’s night -

Pho

to b

y M

ike

W R

icha

rds

Iron was produced on a small scalein the Weald well before Romantimes. The ore, mainly from theWadhurst Clay, was roasted withcharcoal in a small temporaryfurnace. The lump of white-hot‘plastic’ iron, known as a bloom, washammered hard to squeeze out theslag and then to shape it into tools,nails, horseshoes, etc.

The scale changed dramatically in the15th and 16th centuries. French ironworkers introduced the blast furnace andthe hammer forge, both worked by waterpower. A blast furnace, running for as longas supplies of ore, charcoal and waterlasted, produced 20 or 30 times as muchas a bloomery.

The new furnaces were brick structureswith great chimneys and a series ofbellows, 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.5 metres)long, powered by a water wheel. To get asufficient head of water, the ghylls weredammed, often into a chain of ponds. The


The range of

activity on an

iron making

site – in the

foreground iron

ore is being

dug from a pit,

in the

background

wood is being

burnt to

produce

charcoal

The Iron IndustryTHE WEALD AT WORK

“there be furnaces on every side ... to which

purpose divers brooks in many places are

brought to run in one channel, and sundry

meadows turned into pools and waters, that they

might be of power sufficient to drive hammer

mills, which beating upon the iron, resound all

over the places adjoining.”

Camden 1586

Mik

e C

odd

Wes

t Su

ssex

Cou

nty

Cou

ncil


increased heat produced fully molten iron.This could be cast directly into moulds toproduce guns, fire backs, gravestones andthe like or into ‘pig’ moulds. The pig ironwas reheated to burn off the excess carbonthat made the cast iron brittle and shapedby pounding in the new hammer forges atspeeds of up to 150 blows per minute.

The iron industry had anoverwhelming and lasting impact on theWeald. Many hammer ponds remain, likeHawkins and Hammer Ponds in theForest. The maps are sprinkled withnames referring to the iron industry -hammer, forge, furnace, pit, mine, col(charcoal) ... as well as the bead-likestrings of ponds. The annual charcoalconsumption of a Wealden furnace and

The importance of the iron

industry in shaping the early

landscape of the High Weald is

reflected in the Area of

Outstanding Natural Beauty’s

logo. The logo depicts an anvil,

a tool used by blacksmiths to

shape iron into a variety of

tools and other products

MJ

forge has been estimated at 4,000 acres(1,620 hectares) of coppice woodland -that’s slightly more than the area ofHorsham town today. Coppice wasrenewable but much standing timber wascleared, particularly in St Leonards andAshdown Forests, leaving heath orwasteland. Carts with heavy loads of ironso churned up the roads that ‘Sussexiate’became a term for impassable roads.

The industry brought prosperity to theregion for some 300 years until the 18thcentury, when the coal-producing Midlandstook over the role of industrial heartland.Perhaps the stories of dragons and headlessphantoms in St Leonard’s Forest were putabout by a generation of unemployed menturned smugglers and highwaymen.

Hawkins pond is one of many hammer ponds which still remain

Has

tings

Mus

eum

Ardingly Reservoir, as well as supplying water to the heavily populated South East, is important for recreation and wildlife TL

Western High Weald

Cuckfield to East Grinstead

A Landscape for Leisure

GUIDE BOOK 30 CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER TWO

Kew in the country

The garden theme continues withBorde Hill and Kew’s country cousin,

Wakehurst Place. The Royal BotanicGardens leased Wakehurst from theNational Trust in 1967 to extend theirwork in plant research and conservation,at the same time enhancing one of thebest landscape gardens of the Weald withcollections of plants from around theworld. One section, the Loder Valley,named after Wakehurst’s main creator, is a

nature reserve dedicated to the plants andanimals of the Sussex Weald. The latestinitiative is the £80 million MillenniumSeed Bank which, by the year 2001, aimsto have collected 80% of the seed bearingflora of the UK and by 2010, 10% of theworld’s higher plant life, principally fromthe tropical drylands.

The attraction of waterThe Loder Reserve extends into ArdinglyReservoir. This sparsely populatedcountryside, well supplied with streams insteep-sided valleys bottomed withimpermeable clay, is a sensible place to sitewater storage facilities. The prime purposeof both Ardingly and Weirwood Reservoirsis obviously to help meet the increasing

Dev

ils-

Bit-S

cabi

ous

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield

The landscape of woodland and farmland continues but with two changes ofscale. Two large water reservoirs add unexpected lakes to the landscape and

you encounter the first of the bold outcrops of Ardingly sandstone. Soprominent are these outcrops that early geologists assumed they were lines

of ancient seacliffs.

Steam trains and bluebellsYou now begin to find yourself crossing a network of railways, usedand disused. The sparser settlements of the heavy clay land to thewest had to make do with roads, but here 19th-century railwayentrepreneurs raced each other to capture lucrative routes, firstbetween London and the population centres of the coast, then linkroutes between main lines and with smaller towns. Some, such asthe Ouse Valley link from Uckfield to the Brighton line nearBalcombe, never opened; others closed in the mid-20th centuryrationalisation of the railways. Stations are often a little distancefrom the communities they originally served; railways run inpredominantly straight lines.

Several of the closed lines have been rescued by steamenthusiasts. The Bluebell Railway now runs regular services onpart of the old Lewes to East Grinstead line.

demand for water in the South East, butsuch sheets of water have other values.

Birds and other wildlife soon move in;inland waters for anglers and sailors arerare in the south-east; and stretches ofopen water just seem to attract people! Azoning policy operates on both reservoirs,providing space for recreation but keepingdisturbance of wildlife to a minimum.


Swans are a frequent sight at Weirwood Reservoir

Exotic trees and shrubs grow well on the clay soils of the High WealdGS

Steam from the trains running on

the Bluebell Railway can often be

seen from the Trail

TL

Dav

id M

ark

Walkers and gardeners may haveharsh things to say of clay but thatstrong sticky stuff has its uses.

Brick and tiles were uncommon in theHigh Weald until the 16th century,although the Romans had used them.Most buildings, even early churches, werebuilt of timber. Some bricks wereimported from the Netherlands andFlanders and as they became fashionable,local production began. Chimneys becamea possibility; bricklined furnaces becameessential for the burgeoning iron industry;tiled roofs less of a fire risk than thatch.

Early brickmakers were itinerant, forbricks are heavy. Where bricks wereneeded, a nearby source of ‘brickearth’ orclay was identified and a kiln set up. Asdemand grew in the 16th century, brickand tile makers settled, often on commonland near a village, where clay and fuel forthe kiln were accessible. The clay was dugin the autumn and left exposed to betempered by winter frosts while theworkers gathered fuel - the ‘lop and top’from timber trees, furze from thewasteland and, later, from plantedcoppices of hornbeam.


WilliamRobinsonof Gravetye Manor,gardener and horticulturaljournalist, 1838-1935

The wild garden is currently theheight of style but as long ago as the1870s, William Robinson was alreadypromoting planting drifts andclumps of hardy plants, native andexotic, in grass and woodland.

Robinson scorned many of the fashionsof his time. He described geometric plotsof brightly coloured flowers as ‘pastrycookgardening’, abhorred the ‘immoderate andartificial squirting of water’. It was betterto plant in imitation of nature. During the50 years Robinson lived at GravetyeManor he produced a number of booksand articles propounding his theories. Wildgardens, herbaceous borders and alpinerock gardens - the English style owes muchto his advocacy. He was wrong on onepoint though; he sang the praises ofJapanese knotweed, a plant which hasescaped from gardens to become a majorpest in the countryside.

Robinson bequeathed the woodlandaround his home to the ForestryCommission, for the purposes of research.The house and gardens are now privateproperty but occasional access is permittedthrough the National Gardens Scheme.

THE WEALD AT WORK

Digging clay for brick makingOnce the frosts were over, the workerschanged to moulding the bricks or tilesand then setting up and firing the kilns. Atypical kiln held perhaps 24,000 bricks andas many tiles. Getting this up to 1,000degrees for the required 48 hours tookabout six days.

The Brick and Tile Industry

“Sussex clay be good and strong to

serve ‘ee long and well be it

bricks, pots or pipes or strong

tankards for good ale”Trad.

Many Wealden ponds were created by digging for clay –particularly those close to houses

Pet

er C

urre

llW

est

Hoa

thly

His

tori

cal

Soci

ety

Clay being pushed into a brick mould


Along the Trail, you will notice bricksin a variety of colours, often used indecorative patterns. Some of these colourswere produced by variations in the firing.The potassium in woodsmoke could reactwith iron oxides in the clay, producing agrey/blue colour; furze smoke could turnthe glaze greenish.

The clay itself also affected the finalshade. Iron compounds produced deepbrowns and reds, sometimes even blotchedor streaked with black. Calcium fromchalk, either naturally present or added,resulted in pale buff or cream bricks.

The clay workers had a goodappreciation of their raw material andfound a use for nearly every geologicaldeposit in the High Weald. Ashdown Sandwas just the right mix of clay and sand forgood bricks, Wadhurst Clay made excellenttiles, others were fine enough for pottery orso coarse they were reserved for makingfield drainage pipes. Clays of differentqualities were often found on the same siteand so it is not surprising to find that earlybrickworks often produced pottery as well.Bread crocks, chimney and flower pots,roof finials and other architecturaldecorations were common products.

In early times, clayworking was what wenow call a cottage industry. Brickmakingcertainly grew beyond this. Bigger workswere situated first by rivers and then byrailways to facilitate the transport of bricksand later coal to fuel the kilns.

Sharpthorne brickworks, near WestHoathly, was set up beside the EastGrinstead line in 1880 and is still a major

producer. A small number ofhandmade tiles and bricks arestill produced locally, even atbig mechanised works likeSharpthorne. Look closely atthe materials being used if youpass any old buildings beingrestored or extended. Thehandmade products with theirslight irregularities of shape andcolour marry better with theoriginal work of the oldbuildings that add so much tothe Wealden landscape.

Chimney pots demonstrate the versatility of brick

As for cottage potteries ...

ask the next one you pass

where they get their clay.Stacked bricks at Sharpthorne brickworks

Wes

t H

oath

ly H

isto

rica

l So

ciet

y

TL

Clay was also used for architectural decorationsTL

Upper Medway

East Grinstead to Groombridge

Man’s Mark on the Landscape

CHAPTER THREE

Tracks and trails

Your way back into the countrysidefrom East Grinstead is made easy by

the flat track of the disused TunbridgeWells railway line, now known as the ForestWay Country Park. How different frombygone days, when access was so difficultthat settlements could be quite isolated inthe winter. Then most journeys were madeon foot or horseback. The footpath andbridleway network set up over the centuries

by daily and weekly trips to work andchurch is ours to use for pleasure now.

The Romans were the first to build roadsin the Weald; you will cross the line of theold Lewes to London road west of Hartfield.They are the only track builders, beforemodern times, who mastered the land.

Their pavement of iron slag ignoredridge and valley and cut straight through.You can admire a short length of Romanroad surface near Holtye (OS gridreference TQ 462388).

Even the 19th century railwayengineers chose their route with care. Steelwheels lose their grip on steel rails if thegradient is too steep. Hence the laborious

The tributaries of the River Medway have shaped a gently undulating landscapeMJ

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield

GUIDE BOOK 34 CHAPTER THREE

Ox-

eye

Dai

sy

The ridge and valley pattern changes now from north/south to east/west sothat you are mostly walking with the lie of the land. The tributaries of the

infant River Medway have shaped a landscape that is gentler and moreundulating than the steep ghylls of sandier areas.

story of the community can beunravelled from the monuments,the bequests, the headstones, thealterations and additions to thebuilding itself. Even the fabric ofthe building usually reflects therock that is the foundation of theland. Hartfield has one of themany churchyards nowrecognised as the nature reserve ithas long been, with amanagement plan to protect thewild flowers and lichens andsmall creatures that live there.

The memorial chapel in Withyhamchurch forms a focus for the Sackvillefamily, which under its varying titles ofDukes of Dorset, Earls de la Warr,Viscounts Cantelupe, has a strongpresence in the area. Their patronage isreflected in the admirable architecture ofthe almshouses and other 16th centurybuildings in East Grinstead, the manicuredgrounds of Buckhurst Park, countless innsand a number of lesser buildings.

cuttings and embankments that smoothyour way. The nostalgic sight of a steamtrain puffing through the landscape isrestricted to the ‘preservation’ lines now.But bridges of brick and stone add theirmark to the countryside. Each railwaycompany had its own style of stationarchitecture too. ‘Important’ buildingsimpressed people, including investors, withthe standing of the company

Buildings in the landscapeVictorian water works buildings like thoseat Forest Row and Groombridge areequally worthy brick edifices, with typicalattention to decorative detail. The modernconcrete towers, where water is pumpedup to improve pressure in the taps, are, incontrast, purely functional.

Other services stud the countryside.Some people deplore the huge steelelectricity pylons swaggering across theland (cost and technical problems


Buckhurst Park is just one example of the patronage ofthe Sackville family in the area

The Forest Way has been developed along the route of adisused railway line and is scheduled to be integrated withthe national cycle network

The story of a community can be unravelled from theheadstones found in church yards

GS

discourage the use of underground cables).Others see a certain elegance of formallied to function. There has been asudden rash of radio beacons andtransmission towers in the 90s - thepopularity of mobile phones makes itsmark even in rural Sussex. Will thesebecome treasured landmarks in the future?

Each successive generation adds itspennyworth to the landscape. ‘Traditional’farm buildings add a value to our viewsthat we are not always ready to grant tonewer asbestos barns and corrugated ironsheds. These must often be decrepit andtumble-down before they can be regardedas picturesque!

Churches play an important role in therural landscape, to believer and non-believer. It is not just that elegant verticalaccent of a spire in our photograph or theopportunity to admire the changingarchitecture of the centuries. Much of the

Eila

Law

son

Dav

id S

ellm

an

A farmer is tied to his soil. He canimprove it, with fertilisers or bydrainage or irrigation, but it doesunderlie all his endeavour.

The sandier soils of the central andwestern High Weald are light and poor -‘hungry’ is the farmer’s term; the heavierclays are richer, but sticky, hard to work,slow to warm. Farming has never been aneasy option here.

The early swineherds probably enlargednatural clearings in the valleys, retreatingto their coastal homes when summerpassed. Gradually people settled morepermanently, though still linked with thecoastal fringe. A pattern of augmentingnear-subsistence farming with a secondary

occupation developed, with the productionof iron, charcoal, leather, timber and othergoods for the ‘home’ market. All of theserequired, in one way or another, the fellingof trees; grazing animals helped to preventforest regeneration.

By the 18th century, the greatwoodland had given way to a pattern ofsmall irregular fields, mostly grazed bycattle producing milk and cheese for agrowing local population. Land on theridge tops, light enough to plough, wouldhave grown some essential cereals. Cattledung was the only fertiliser; the farmersalso spread ‘marl’, chalky or sandy clay, inthe hope of improving soil texture. Manyof the small ponds and depressions you


Even with modern agricultural equipment farmers struggle to plough the sticky soils of the High Weald in winterTL

This is one headline that nevermade the front page while Dr

Richard Beeching was Chairman ofthe British Railways Board. Beeching’s1963 plan for the re-organisation of therailways made his name a householdword. Destroyer or saviour? Itdepended on your point of view.

Built piecemeal to serve the needs ofthe Britain of a hundred years earlier,worn out by the demands of the SecondWorld War and hostage to conflicting post-war political ideologies - nationalise!privatise! subsidise! market forces! - by1962 the railways were losing nearly £90million a year. A major rethink was longoverdue and Beeching, incisive captain ofindustry, was called in. His solution was toconcentrate on freight, inter-city servicesand commuters. Who but road haulierscould object? Axe 5,000 route miles, close2,363 stations? It seemed nearly every onecould object!

Whole lines closed. The A22 road nowruns through a railway cutting of the oldEast Grinstead to Tunbridge Wells line.The new road is called Beeching Way, afterthis famous local resident. Some wanted itto be the Beeching Cut. Many lines arenow used as walkways and cycleways, onceagain getting traffic off the roads.

FarmingTHE WEALD AT WORK

Beeching axeto create newfootpaths!


will see half-cloaked in woodland are marlpits. Others resulted from the quarrying ofstone or brick clay for farm buildings.

Wealthier landowners tried to introducethe crop rotations and new techniques ofcultivation that were revolutionisingagriculture in much of the rest ofEngland. But they reckoned without theWealden soils. It was the advent of cheapearthenware field drains in the 1840s thatallowed a major advance for the heavysoils. Drained of their excess water, theycould be ploughed; ploughed, they couldbe sown with corn.

Now there could be more produce thanwas needed locally. Turnpiked roads meantthis excess could be exported to hungry

London. Clear more trees! Enclose landinto fields, bigger fields now! Lime could bebrought in to improve soil fertility. Alderneyand Guernsey cattle were introduced toimprove dairy production.

The High Weald now followed thepattern of alternating prosperity anddecline that was dictated to Britishfarming by the demands of wartimescarcity, cheap imports and subsidies.

In this present time of agriculturalsurpluses, the nature of the Wealden soilshas won. Technology and artificialfertilisers play their part but most of theland has been returned to growing grass,for grazing or for hay and silage. The cattlethat eat it are mostly either black and whiteHolstein/Friesian dairy cows, or anincreasingly variegated mix of beef cattle.The browns and blacks of English beefbreeds are now crossed with the creams,buffs and blues of continental breeds.

Some cereals are still grown, again onthe better drained high land. You will seewheat, oats and barley, with maize andfield beans grown as silage crops.

Farm buildings also record the story ofthe land’s development. You will not seemany of the great barns needed elsewherefor storing and threshing grain. Hay wasstored as a stack or rick in the yard.

Cattle over-wintered in smalleropen sheds. Thewhite-cowled oastswere erected in the18th and 19thcenturies to dry hops,grown mostly forlocally made ale.

Grazing animals helped to keep forest regeneration at bay

The soils of the Medway Valley have always been more

suitable for growing crops than the rest of the High Weald

Black and white Holstein/Friesian

dairy cows or variegated mixes of

beef cattle are a more common sight

than the small red Sussex cattle

TL

GS

Has

tings

Mus

eum

George Woods

KC

C T

ouri

sm

Veteran trees are a distinctive feature of Eridge Park

Central High Weald

Groombridge to Matfield

A Lordly Landscape

GUIDE BOOK 38 CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FOUR

A great estate

Ais for Abergavenny and the letterlooms large over Eridge and

environs. The Nevill family, later Earls ofAbergavenny, inherited the huge Eridgeestate in 1456. Their influence on the landthey have owned for some 900 years istypical of many great estates, not justemblazoning walls with their familyemblems but permeating nearly all aspectsof life.

The inheritance included the huge deerpark, recorded as emparked, presumablywith the usual ‘pale’ of close-set woodenstakes, by 1420. The deer were probablythe imported fallow rather than native redor roe, as they seem to have been easier tocontain. The park produced timber andunderwood as well as venison, and grazedcattle except when the deer had young atfoot. High wire fencing now surroundspart of the Old Park as deer are beingreintroduced.

Parkland took on a different dimensionin the 17th and 18th centuries; a primaryfunction was now to provide a fitting settingfor the great house. In 1792 the Nevills builta new house in the Gothic style (this was

A thread of contrast runs through this section. Harrison’s Rocks are throngedwith climbers, Eridge Rocks deserted. You pass from the wide ranges of

Eridge Park and the open farmland above the Teise to close-hedged valleysand the rectangles of suburban recreation grounds. You taste petrol fumes as

you cross main roads then relish the clean untainted breeze.

GS

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield

Hov

erfli

es

pulled down in 1938 to build a morecomfortable ‘castle’). They improved theview from the house by pulling down theworkers’ cottages and building new ones ina more appropriate style. These include thecottages you pass in Eridge Green. Theworkers were probably well pleased; estatecottages were usually better built than most,for estate owners had responsibilities to theirworkers as well as rights. The other side ofthe coin was a degree of control that wouldbe unacceptable today. An early copyhold,the document under which a tenant held hisfarm, states that the farmer will pay the lordtwo quarters of oats ‘if by some chance [thefarmer’s] daughter be immoral’.


The Nevill and Abergavenny plaques are a frequent siteon cottages, inns, churches and schools

MJ

MJ

MJExposed sandrock supports internationally rare bryophtes

In 1792 the estate employed 104outside workers, including four men tosweep the leaves from the woodland rides.In 1955 there were still nearly 50employed to run 12,000 acres (4,850hectares). Estate owners had capital. Theywere the men who could experiment withways of improving farming methods andinvest in new machinery like the 19thcentury steam-driven sawmill at Eridge.Their patronage spread to inns andalmshouses, churches and schools.

New developmentsThey could also set the pace. LordAbergavenny followed advice given to himin the late 19th century and kept land nearthe expanding town of Royal TunbridgeWells under grass, ready for quick sale ordevelopment. Redundant estate buildingscan be converted to light industrial ordomestic use.

Unproductive woodland can be leasedfor four wheel drive courses or paintballwars. Other landowners can do the samebut the big estates, now often owned bypension funds and insurance companies,still operate on a grander scale.

MJ

Fuel, building material, carts,fencing, furniture, utensils, bark fortanning leather ... wood was a basicnecessity. As the wildwood wastamed, the men of the Wealddeveloped the skills of woodlandmanagement. The raw materialmight still be there in plenty buttheir tools were few and primitive.How much less work if trees couldbe made to grow in ways that madethem easier to use.

Fuel in the form of wood or charcoal,for cooking and heating, for furnaces andkilns, was a priority. Fallen branches werenot enough. Small trees cut down soon sent

up new shoots from the base or ‘stool’.Where there was plenty of light, these grewstraight and tall, providing a regular harvestof usefully sized stems. A system of‘coppicing’ (from the French word couper, tocut) was set up; blocks or ‘coups’ ofunderwood, protected from grazing animalsby boundary banks and ditches, wereharvested when they had grown to a suitablesize. The trees could then go on producingwood for many centuries.

Underwood could be used as it was orsplit. At up to two inches diameter - five tonine years growth - it was perfect forsplitting into thin lathes or wattles tosupport the daub of earth, straw and dung


THE WEALD AT WORK

All sizes, shapes and types of wood were once used by woodland workers

This is only Justine Lambert’s third time outclimbing at Harrison’s Rocks but she’s sold onthem. Her teacher brought her out once andthen she started to come out with a friend.‘You need two of you, one to belay while youclimb.’ She has a minimum of gear - webbingharness, the essential rope, karabiners to runit through, a bottle of silicone gel so that herhands don’t slip, despite the sweaty palms.

Why does she do it? ‘It’s the adrenalin rush,I suppose. And you aren’t competing againstanyone, it’s just the challenge of how far youcan get.’ She clipped herself to the rope, Samtook up her position and Justine began toclimb. Soon she was spread-eagled across therock, searching for holds, Sam offering advicefrom her viewpoint. You could see the musclesbeginning to quiver with effort.

Justine is a local lass, out from RoyalTunbridge Wells for the morning. Perhaps oneday she will be the 12th Everest climber tohave begun on Harrison’s Rocks.

An Essential Commodity‘There’s something aboutbeing out here, not justthe rocks but the woodsall around.’

On the RocksMJ

Has

tings

Mus

eum

Geo

rge

Woo

ds

‘There’s something aboutbeing out here, not justthe rocks but the woodsall around.’

that filled in the spaces between largertimbers in a house. Or for weaving intohurdles for temporary fencing or animalpens. At four inches, it made wheel spokesor was split for weatherboarding. Woodworkers knew the qualities of differenttrees. Ash is springy and absorbs shock; itmakes superb tool handles. Willow is lightand strong, just right for shovels to turnthe heavy clay tempering for bricks underthe winter frost. Oak heartwood lasts long;use it for buildings and fence posts.

Larger timber came from the trunksand branches of the standard trees thatgrew up above the underwood. Small treeswere easiest to handle. One large medievalfarmhouse is known to have used 330 oaktrees. Half were less than nine inches in

diameter, a tenth less than six inches. Thetimbers had to be split or pit sawn, slowlaborious work. Builders sized up theirtrees, fitted shapes to function.

Much timber came from trees grown inhedgerows or in shaws, the small belts ofwoodland kept to shelter fields. Bigger treeswere mostly grown in parkland. Many parkscontained wood pasture, where trees weremanaged like coppice but cut above thereach of the deer and cattle grazing beneaththem. This is known as pollarding.

Native wood and timber is nowsuperseded by new materials and imports,though sweet chestnut coppice for fencingmaterial is still marginally economic.Initiatives such as Weald Woodnet aredeveloping new products and new marketsthat will help to restore traditionalwoodland management and maintain thiselement of the Wealden landscape.


Chestnut paling and post and rail fencing, made from splitcoppice, is still used throughout the High Weald

Large timber came from the trunks and branches of largeor ‘standard’ trees

Coppiced trees provide a regular harvest of usefulsized stems

Look out for locally made charcoal in shopsacross the Weald. By using local charcoalyou are helping conserve woodland wildlifeand traditional rural skills

GS

GS

GS

GS

Wood Mouse

Look out for locally made charcoal in shopsacross the Weald. By using local charcoalyou are helping conserve woodland wildlifeand traditional rural skills

Orchards and hop gardens give the Kentish High Weald its special distinctiveness. MJ

Kentish High Weald

Matfield to Rolvenden

A Productive Landscape

CHAPTER FIVE

Early settlement

Fruit growing is a relatively recent landuse and the history of the area is far

more varied. As in other parts of theWeald, the grazing of swine began theslow penetration into the dense forest -

Benenden, Horsmonden and Rolvendenare just three examples of local settlementswhich began as Saxon swine pasture or‘dens’. Gradually these small clearingsdeveloped into agricultural settlementsbut, until the early 14th century, the arearemained sparsely populated.

A centre of industry Flemish weavers, encouraged to come toEngland by the king to strengthen Englishcloth manufacture, settled aroundCranbrook in the 14th century and athriving cloth industry developed. By the

This area can well lay claim to the title of ‘Garden of England’ as it hassome of the largest remaining orchards and hop gardens in England. Thewestern slopes are clothed with lines of fruit trees, edged by tall rows of

poplars, and hop poles still cover the lower slopes around Goudhurst. Oasthouses can be seen on almost every skyline, evidence that hop growing was

once far more widespread.

GUIDE BOOK 42 CHAPTER FIVE

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield


16th century, as in other parts of theWeald, French blast furnaces hadrevolutionised iron smelting andHorsmonden became a thriving industrialcentre. One huge forge was owned byJohn Brown, the gunsmith to whom JamesI granted exclusive rights to themanufacture of naval guns and shotduring the Anglo Dutch wars. Otherfurnaces were situated at Brenchley,Lamberhurst and Tenterden.

The wealth generated by the iron andcloth industries is reflected both in thesize and adornment of some of theparish churches and the large number ofgrand houses. The population grewrapidly and many of the smaller Tudordwellings may have been weavers’ or ironworkers’ cottages’.

Weatherboarded buildings are a lasting remnant of the thriving cloth industryMJ

New farming techniquesFarming had always continued alongsidethe industries but after their decline itbecame the primary occupation oncemore. The steady stream of Europeanimmigrants during the 15th and 16thcenturies brought many new crops andimproved husbandry with them and

gradually their novel ideas were absorbedinto mainstream farming. From the 19thcentury, larger scale cultivation developed,following the introduction of improvedfield drainage and cultivation techniquesand perhaps benefiting, in terms ofavailability of workers, from the demise ofthe iron and cloth industries.

Sally

Mar

sh

TL

Lines of fruit trees

give the landscape a

distinctive look, rather

like thick corduroy


Hops and aleHops and brewing expertise were one of the European introductions. Prior to this, ale wasa sweet, sticky drink very different from modern beer. The hoppy brews were unpopular atfirst, but hops inhibited bacterial growth, improving the keeping properties, and so weregradually accepted. Initially cultivation was on a small scale, but steadily increased as thetaste for the drier, hoppy bitter grew and its extended life gave it a wider market.

The picking of the long shoots or ‘bines’ and the stripping of the cones begins inSeptember. Freshly picked hops contain 80% moisture which must be reduced to 6%before being compressed, packed and sent to the brewery.

Drying is a skilled process as the best brewing hops are those which have not dried outcompletely and have the moisture evenly distributed. At first existing barns were modifiedbut, as demand for hops increased in late 18th century, purpose built buildings, oasts, weredeveloped. Most are now converted to unusual dwellings as electrical drying techniqueshave taken over and hop production has reduced due to competition from cheaperEuropean imports. Until the 1950s hop picking was done by hand by gypsies and familiesfrom the East End of London who came for working holidays in the Kentish countryside.Most hop picking and processing is now mechanised.

Dried hops in sacks – it is the female flower cone that gives the familiar bitter flavour to beers

Hop poles are a

distinctive feature in

Summer and WinterKC

C T

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sm

Hop poles are a

distinctive feature in

Summer and Winter


Siegfried Sassoon, the First World Warpoet and writer, was born in Brenchleyand the surrounding countryside was thebackdrop to much of his autobiographicalwriting. ‘The Old Century’ describes hisearly childhood and ‘Weald of Youth’ hisearly adulthood. His deep love for thelandscape pervades all his writing and hisdescriptions still evoke the Weald.

Convalescing after childhoodpneumonia he writes, “aware and yet unaware

of the blue evening distance of the Weald beyond

the tree tops ...” Or describing an excitingskating trip to Furnace Pond, nearHorsmonden, in a red painted sledgepulled by ponies “... my mother drove the sledge

across the pond in great style and we felt that we

had done something splendid ...”

As a young man returning home fromRoyal Tunbridge Wells he wrote fondly“to the left of the higher ground ... the Weald lay

in all it’s green contentedness”, or of his“... favourite glimpse of Kentish distance above the

foreground apple orchards ...”

‘the Weald layin all its greencontentedness’

Siegfried Sassoon

Siegfried Sassoon

Fruit and hops

were never

described as

growing in fields,

always ‘gardens’

or ‘orchards’. One

explanation is

that tithes, taxes

paid to the church,

were claimed on

fields but not

gardens

GS

The apple harvest has long been animportant part of the localeconomy and has earned its placein folklore.

Apple wassailing was an annual event,usually carried out around Twelth Night.After dark, farmworkers and theirfamilies would gather around the largesttree in the orchard. Toast or cake soakedin cider was placed in a fork of the tree,cider poured around its roots and the treetoasted with a chant such as that above.The trunk was then beaten with sticksand a great noise made with shotguns,cow horns, beating of sticks and shouts todrive away evil spirits and arouse thesleeping trees. The ceremony wasbelieved to have a magical significance,protecting the trees and encouraging aplentiful fruit crop.

Orchards

Traditional orchards arecharacterised by well spaced treesin sheep grazed meadows

THE WEALD AT WORK

“Here’s to thee old apple tree,

Stand fast root, bear well top,

Pray God send us a howling

crop, Every twig, apples big,

Every bough, apples enow.

Hats full, caps full, full

quarter sacks full, Holla,

boys, holla!”

Traditional wassail chant.

GS

The tradition is still carried on todayby some Morris dancing groups in Kentand Sussex, although nowadays it ismore a cheerful frolic than the magicalceremony it was once held to be.

The Romans introduced orchardfruits to England and Europeanimmigrants brought new varieties inTudor times. Henry VIII had large appleand cherry orchards planted nearFaversham but it was not until the 19thcentury that commercial orchardsbecame widespread. The High Weald isparticularly suited to growing orchardfruits, especially apples, as the slowgrowing conditions of the cool climateproduces fruit with an excellent flavourand the well drained soil on the higherland remains free from late frosts whichcan settle in the valley.

Has

ting

s R

efer

ence

Lib

rary

George Woods

‘Cider Making’‘Cider Making’

46GUIDE BOOK CHAPTER FIVE


In recent years, however, fruit growinghas steadily declined - since 1961 orchardsin the High Weald have been reduced by athird. The mild damp climate that growssuch flavoursome fruit also makes Britishorchards more vulnerable to pests anddiseases and bad weather can makeharvests unpredictable. Imported fruitfrom southern Europe can be grown morecheaply and has a more even appearancethan British fruit. This appeals to the fickleBritish customer who now demands cheap,regular shaped, unblemished fruit.

The methods of fruit growing have alsochanged. The traditional orchard with tall,gnarled, well-spaced trees in a sheep-grazed meadow has largely been replacedby rows of densely planted small bushes.These are usually heavy cropping modernvarieties grafted onto dwarf rootstock.Some of the traditional varieties such asCox are much more difficult to grow andproduce a less reliable crop. The dwarftrees are easier to harvest and manage andup to three times as many trees per acrecan be planted. Hence, a smaller area oforchard yields considerably more fruit.

However there is a resurgence ofconsumer interest in older flavoursomevarieties such as Russets and Worcester.Grants are available to encourage farmersto restore old orchards and plant new oneswith traditional varieties to help conservethis traditional part of the landscape.

Sally

Mar

sh

Look out for local apples in village and farm

shops along the Trail. By purchasing local apples

you are helping keep orchards as a feature of the

High Weald and supporting rural employment

Look out for local apples in village and farm

shops along the Trail. By purchasing local apples

you are helping keep orchards as a feature of the

High Weald and supporting rural employment

The Rother and Brede levels have always been important grazing marsh

Lower Rother

Rolvenden to Flackley Ash

GUIDE BOOK 48 CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SIX

An Elegant market town

Historic Tenterden remains the mostimportant settlement in the area

and has retained a prosperous air. Itsname is derived from the Saxon, ‘Tenet-ware-den’, meaning pig-pasture for thepeople of Thanet.

Gradually forest was cleared and theflat marshland below reclaimed. This gaveplenty of rich grazing and sheep farming

grew in importance. Sheep wereoverwintered on the fertile lower marshesand then driven along drove roads to thehigher land for summer grazing.Tenterden developed as a market townfrom the 13th century, trading locally andexporting wool. The expanding clothindustry brought further prosperity.

Medieval Tenterden was of greatmaritime importance - difficult to visualisenowadays when it is ten miles (16kilometres) from the sea - but, before theRother silted up, the sea came to SmallHythe, only two miles (3.2 kilometres)away. A licence granted to ArchbishopWarnham for the establishment of a

A Changing Landscape TL

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield

The hills in this easterly section of the High Weald are gentler as they slopedown towards the coast. The views are wider and more open across to the

marshy river levels and the Isle of Oxney. Pasture dominates the slopes andthe flat grazing marsh below. Sheep were the mainstay of the medieval

economy and remain important today.

Yellow

Fla

g

A man-made landscapeThe levels feel open and wild but thislandscape is actually man-made.Gradually the sea retreated and theRother silted up during the 16th and 17thcenturies. It became harder and harder tokeep the channels navigable. Elaboratedrainage schemes were developed -earthen seawalls, ditches and channels -both to prevent devastating flooding andto reclaim the fertile ground for grazing.The Isle of Oxney gradually becamelandlocked, surrounded by the flat greenlevels on all sides.

Farming and conservation The ditches or ‘sewers’, as many areknown locally, form a network which slowlydrains water out to sea. The flow of waterin the ditches is carefully controlled. Inpasture areas, the ditches are kept full andact as ‘fences’, stopping sheep escapingfrom the fields. In arable fields, care mustbe taken to ensure that, in winter, waterlevels do not rise and flood the crops.

Much wetland wildlife also relies on thecareful management of the ditches.Aquatic plants thrive in the shallow water,which in turn provide homes for insects

chapel in the parish in the 16th century isevidence for this - it had a permit for theburial of ‘the bodies of such who should be cast

by shipwreck on the shore’.Small Hythe developed as a port and

important shipbuilding centre, using theplentiful local supply of forest timber.Henry V had war ships built there in the15th century. When the Cinque Port of Ryewas unable to provide its quota of ships forthe king, it turned to prosperous Tenterdenfor assistance. Tenterden was made aCinque Port member in 1449, as a ‘limb’ ofRye, to supply the remaining ships.

Tenterden continued to prosper andremained the centre of commerce, despitethe demise of the woollen industry andsilting up of the port. It was certainly stillthriving in the 19th century when historianand writer William Cobbett described it as‘a market town and a singularly bright spot.It consists of one street which, in someplaces, is more than 200 feet (60 metres)wide’. (He also commented on the largenumber of ‘very, very pretty girls’ which mayhave coloured his judgement!).

The maritimeimportance ofTenterden is

indicated by thetown sign

The Isle of Oxney is now surrounded by grazing marsh


TL

MJ

TL

Well managed ditches are an

important habitat for wildlife

Well managed ditches are an

important habitat for wildlife

and other tiny water creatures. Heronsfeed in the ditches and reed warblers buildtheir hanging nests in the reeds.

If left alone the ditches would slowlysilt up and dry out. Dredging to removesilt damages bankside vegetation anddisturbs wildlife. Ideally for conservationonly a short stretch or one bank should bedredged at a time, but this may be costlyand time consuming. A balance is neededthat meets both the economic needs ofmodern farming and the conservation ofthis special landscape.

To achieve this balance, several farmerson the levels have entered into conservationmanagement schemes in which they receivepayments for managing the marshlandusing traditional methods. The ditches aresensitively managed, old willows arerepollarded, hedgerows maintained orreplanted, and wetland complexes createdby reflooding certain areas.

At the beginning of the 14th century,enormous quantities of wool wereproduced in the area. Much wasexported, providing the raw materialfor the well established Flemishweaving industries. In 1310 over35,000 sacks were exported, eachsack containing 364 lb (165 kg) -equivalent to the weight of twosturdy men. Export duty of 40shillings per sack was levied whichprovided the main treasury income.

Edward III wanted to break the Dutchmonopoly on the cloth trade to increaseemployment and improve the economy.He gave incentives to Flemish weavers toencourage them to immigrate, bringingtheir superior weaving methods and looms.Much of their skill lay in the attentiongiven to the fulling, or cleaning process,which removed the grease and gave asmooth surface and firm texture to thefinished cloth.

THE WEALD AT WORK

“It’s great to get out in the countryside and you see a

lot of wildlife from the banks,” says BrianChristopher of Clive Vale Angling Club, whoregularly fishes on the banks of the Rother.

Brian’s favourite time to fish is the quietlate afternoon and evening but he alsoenjoys the challenge of match fishing.Matches are held at least once a week andfishermen flock to compete on these popularwaters where fish such as bream, tench,perch, roach and pike thrive. “Weighing in the

catch from your keepnet is a tense and exciting

moment”, says Brian. “A good match bag would be

30lbs (13.5kg), an average one 10lbs (4.5kg)”.Watching, as a large fish takes the bait,

makes you realise the skill involved. Briancarefully plays the fish in, letting it run, thenbringing it back several times to tire it out.He gradually reels it in, judging the momentwhen it is ready to be netted and placed inthe keep net. “If you try and lift it out straight

away, its struggling may break your line or it may

become unhooked and escape,” Brian points out.With the catch safely netted, Brian

rebaits his line and settles back at thewater’s edge to enjoy the rest of thispeaceful summer afternoon.

The Woollen Industry

Fishermen on the River Rother


The plentiful small streams of

the High Weald were ideal

for damming to create the

power for the fulling mills

The Weald was an ideal place to settle.The plentiful streams and steep valleyswere ideal for damming to drive the fullingmills (mills with giant wooden hammers tobeat the cloth instead of millstones). Therewas easy access to the ports and London,plentiful building timber from the forest,fuller’s earth from the clay and marl soilsand, of course, a steady supply of highquality fleeces.

A fisherman’s taleMJ

GS

Fishermen on the River Rother


A new merchant class of clothiersdeveloped to manage and co-ordinate thewhole process of cloth production andsale. They became very influential andowned much of the Weald. The clothierswere often philanthropic men, foundingschools and giving substantial gifts for theupkeep of the parish churches.

Many people were employed in thecloth industry - it took over 40 people toproduce one 30 yard (27 metres) longbroadcloth. The fleeces were carded andspun by women in the cottages, collectedand passed to weavers, fullers and dyersand despatched to port. Many newbuildings were also needed. Several grandhouses built for the clothiers, some large‘cloth halls’ and many picturesque clothworkers cottages remain.

The cottages in Bell Walk,Tenterden may once have beenweavers cottages

An Act of Parliment in 1566, restrictingthe export of unfinished cloth, led to thedemise of the local cloth industry. It wasintended to increase domestic employmentbut, as Wealden clothiers specialised inexporting cloth for final finishing to

Flanders, it was disastrous and the slowdecline began. By the 18th century northernweaving centres were also developing, takingadvantage of new mechanised techniquesthat Wealden clothiers were slow to acceptand this competition dealt the final blow.

A steady supply of fleeces from Romney Marsh and the Pevensey Levels ensured the success of the woollen industry

The industry has also left its mark on our

language - the large iron hooks used for drying the

cloth has led to the phrase ‘being on tenterhooks’

TL

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Rye was built on a hill top to gain protection from the ravages of the sea

Brede

Flackley Ash to Rye

A Landscape of Rivers and Marsh

GUIDE BOOK 52 CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER SEVEN

Hilltop Towns

Both Rye and Winchelsea were rebuilton hill tops in the 13th century to

protect them from the ravages of the seaand invaders. The former ports are nowsome distance from the sea as the estuarieshave silted up and the marshland has beenreclaimed for pasture. The area is stillprone to flooding as it is low lying anddrains the water from three rivers. TheAnglo Saxons were the first to buildearthen seawalls to control flooding and

to reclaim the fertile marshes. In the14th century a special land reclamationbody was set up to oversee the work. Itcontinued to be managed by the Jury’sGut Catchment Board until 1932. TheEnvironment Agency took overresponsibility in 1996. The route ends inRye itself, with its narrow cobbled streetsleading to the hill top church. There arefew aristocratic houses because Rye was atown of merchants, sailors, boat builders,fishermen and smugglers. Its charm lies inthe wonderful mixture of small dwellings,large inns and old warehouses - allbeautifully preserved.

Rye retains a maritime feel althoughthe sea receded long ago. Fishing boats stillcome up the Rother to unload beside the

This final section feels quite different from the hills and wooded valleys ofthe true High Weald. Here the rivers are wide and slow and their valleys are

flat, open and windswept. The sea has had dramatic effects, washing awaythe old town of Winchelsea and damaging Rye when both were situated on

lower ground.

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

HaywardsHeath

EastGrinstead

Tonbridge

Rye

Tenterden

Rolvenden

Cranbrook

FlackleyAsh

Crawley

Groombridge

Cuckfield

Matfield

Lorna Jenner

Toa

d


walls and a few boatyards remain. Lookingout from the town to the estuary, tall mastsof fishing and sailing boats still dominatethe skyline.

Rye’s strategic position on the southcoast has given it a turbulent history.Romans, Saxons, Jutes, Danes andNormans all landed here. The mostserious attacks, however, were the frequentFrench raids during the Anglo-Frenchwars in the 13th and 14th centuries. Themost devastating raid was in 1377 whenevery wooden house was burned to theground. After this, stone walls were erectedfor fortification.

The Cinque Port ConfederationSince Saxon times ships from south-eastEngland’s ports gathered in Yarmouth toland the herring catch. This commoninterest led to a loose associationbetween the ports which was formalisedas the Cinque Ports Confederation,initially with Dover, Hythe, Romney,Sandwich and Hastings as members.The fortunes of the ports constantlychanged as the sea currents altered ordisasters occurred. During the 12thcentury Rye and Winchelsea weregrowing in importance and, in 1156,were invited to join.

During the Anglo-French wars,Cinque Ports’ ships were the mainvessels available for battle as the Kingdid not yet have a Royal Navy. Inreturn for supplying a fixed number ofmanned ships the ports enjoyed manyprivileges. These included freedom

from trading dues and taxation, landingrights for the Yarmouth herring catchand honours at court (these still exist ina limited way with the Ports’representatives attending the coronationservice in Westminster Abbey).

By the beginning of the 15th centuryRye was declining due to the continuingFrench raids and relentless sea erosion. Itstill provided a ship to fight against theSpanish Armada but the harbour wassilting up and was soon too shallow to holdlarge warships.

A trading centreRye was still an ideal commercial port andthe shipbuilders turned to making smallermerchant ships. The arrival of Europeanrefugees fleeing religious persecutionassisted trade, bringing improved craftskills and trade links.

It was not just legal trading thatthrived - the area was equally appealingto smugglers. There were many willingto risk their lives for a share in the greatprofits available. The flat expanse ofRomney marsh with its network ofditches and channels was the sight ofmany illicit landings under cover ofdarkness.

Artists’ hauntThe charm of the old town and themystique of the surroundings levels, haveattracted artists and writers for centuries.Antony Van Dyck, the 17th-centuryDutch painter, made four drawings ofRye. Turner, Millais, Thackeray and

Ruskin were drawn to the beauty andcalm of Winchelsea. The writer HenryJames lived in Rye and, more recently,EF Benson set his ‘Mapp and Lucia’stories in the town. An active group ofpresent day artists and writers continuesthe tradition.

The narrow cobbled streets

of Rye would once have

been trod by bands of

merchants, sailors, boat

builders, fishermen and

smugglers

Dav

id S

ellm

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Rye was the inspiration for the setting of some of the Captain Pugwash stories

The author, John Ryan, whose CaptainPugwash cartoons have entertained

both adults and children for almost fiftyyears, lives with his artist wife, Priscilla, inthe heart of Rye.

Originally Pugwash was not directlylinked with Rye. As John puts it “... Pugwash

was primarily a pirate who spent much of his time

in the Carribean, where all the best pirates

hangout!” It was after he moved to Ryein1987 that John began to set his books inthe town. He drew from its rich smugglinghistory to write ‘Captain Pugwash and the

Huge Reward’ which gives a lively account of

town life, complete with corrupt Mayorand officials, a secret passage, bawdy innsand a ferocious smuggling gang. Rye iscalled ‘Sinkport’, and many of the placeshave a familiar ring - Mermaid Street isreferred to as ‘Barmaid Street’, WatchbellStreet as ‘Witchball Street’ and Lamb Houseas ‘Mutton House’. John’s illustrations are allset in the town and many of the historicbuildings and street scenes are easilyrecognised.

‘Murder in the Churchyard’ uses the samelighthearted style to tell the story of theinfamous local murder of Alan Grebell byBreeds, the butcher. John was inspired towrite this as the events took place within afew yards of his house, where he walks hisdog every night.

Tales of seafaringand murder

Prior to the 13th century trade wasfree and so smuggling did not exist.Edward I introduced a customs levyon the export of wool, Britain’sprimary export, to generate moreincome for the crown. At first therates were not high but were steadilyincreased, making smuggling ahighly profitable occupation.

Initially wool was the main contrabandbut gradually imports such as wine andspirits, and exports such as cloth andleather, were included. The chance ofdetection was slight as the limited numberof customs officers collected duty at portsand did not patrol the coast.

Cinque Port sailors had always had aformidable reputation not only forseamanship but also for ferocity andlawlessness. When income from piracydried up in the Middle Ages, smugglingwas an obvious alternative. As customsofficers roles extended the risk of detectiongrew. Special ships known as luggers weredesigned which were fast, had greatmanoeuvrability, and could run in and outto land on the same wind. Wholecommunities became involved in thebusiness of buying, selling, storing ortransporting the contraband. Ryeboatbuilders became expert at devisingsecret compartments to outwit customssearches. Many houses had large cellarsand secret passages for storing contraband.

SmugglersTHE WEALD AT WORK


Strand Quay at Rye where

boatbuilders would have

plotted with smugglers to

hide contraband

For many years the smugglers hadpublic sympathy, looked on as RobinHood figures, robbing the exchequer tosell goods more cheaply to honest citizens.Public opinion gradually changed as gangsbecame more organised, ruthless andviolent. Corruption and bribing of theCustom’s staff was frequent. By the mid18th century, intimidation reignedsupreme - smugglers were often acquitteddespite overwhelming evidence againstthem, informers were beaten or murdered,and ordinary people were too frightenedof reprisals not to co-operate. Farmerswould leave their stable doors unlocked if

George Woods

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smugglers needed their horses. They mightbe left a keg for their services but the barncould be burned down if they did not co-operate. Gangs had become above the law,defying authority and often re-seizingproperty from the excisemen.

The Hawkhurst gang were the mostfeared of all. It was only after the people ofGoudhurst stood up to the gang in 1747that the tide began to turn. Two years later,gang members far overstepped the mark byviciously torturing and murdering twoelderly informers. This caused publichorror and revulsion and several smugglerswere brought to trial and hung.

The incentive for smuggling wasremoved during the 19th century aspolicing improved, the coastguard servicewas established and, more importantly,most duties were reduced as part of FreeTrade policies.

TenterdenCranbrook

HaywardsHeath

BurgessHill

Rye


TrailHighWeald Landscape

Trail

Wey

SouthPath

South Downs Way

North Do wnsWay

North DownsWay

Greensand Way

Gre

en

sand

W

ay

Saxon ShoreWay

SaxonShore

WayWealdWay

Stour ValleyWay

Margate

Ramsgate

Pegwell Bay

Deal

Dover

Folkestone

Canterbury

Isle ofSheppey

Hastings

Tunbridge Wells

Maidstone

Ashford

Gravesend

Sevenoaks

EastbourneSeaford

BrightonWorthing

Amberley

Horsham

EastGrinstead

Crawley

Littlehampton

Bognor Regis

Chichester

Haslemere

Guildford

Lewes

GREATERLONDON

Crowborough

Groombridge

Matfield

Sussex DownsAONB

High WealdAONB

WealdWay

Cuckfield


0 5 10 15 20Miles


0 5 10 15 20Miles

1066 CountryWalk

N

Surrey HillsAONB

Kent DownsAONB

Kent DownsAONB

North Downs Way 155 milesA delightful walk of contrasts beneath theshade of Surrey’s beech, oak, juniper andyew woodland and across the springy turf ofKent to the white cliffs of Dover.

South Downs Way 100 milesThe South Downs Way follows the line ofancient tracks across the ridges and rivervalleys of the chalk downland.

Greensand Way 107 milesFollowing the greensand ridge the route crossessome of Southern England’s highest ground.

56

Wealdway 82 milesThe Wealdway cuts across England’s south-eastern corner traversing the distinctivelandscapes of the South East; the Low Weald,High Weald and North and South Downs.

1066 Country Walk 31 milesThe 1066 Country Walk commemorates theyear that William of Normandy invadedEngland and took on the Saxon King, Harold.

The Wey South Path 36 milesThe Path follows the line of “London’s LostRoute to the Sea” alongside the Rivers Wey andArun and the former canal that linked them.

The Saxon Shore Way 163 milesThe Saxon Shore Way follows the ancientcoastline of Kent before entering Sussex andcontinuing to Hastings.

There are a number of long distancewalking opportunities within the south-eastof England.

The Stour Valley Walk 51 milesThe Walk follows the path of the RiverStour as it meanders through the stunningcountryside of East Kent.

Copies of the route guidebooks can beobtained from book shops, touristinformation centres and libraries or post freefrom the relevant county councils. Countycouncils are happy to supply details of otherlong distance paths and circular walks withinthe region if required.

Other walking opportunitiesEXPLORING THE AREA

Kent County Council01622 221527email: [email protected] Sussex County Council01273 481654West Sussex County Council01243 777610

South-east strategic walks network

GUIDE BOOK 57 EXPLORING THE AREA

Interesting places to visit on or around theHigh Weald Landscape Trail are listedbelow. The attractions close to the Trailare indicated on the route maps by thefollowing symbol –

EXPLORING THE AREA Visitor attractions

HOUSES AND GARDENSBedgebury Pinetum

Goudhurst 01580 211044

Borde HillHaywards Heath 01444 450326

Finchcocks GardenGoudhurst 01580 211702

Groombridge Place GardensTunbridge Wells 01892 863999

High Beeches GardensHandcross 01444 400589

Lamb House (NT)Rye 01892 890651

Leonardslee GardensLower Beeding 01403 891212

Nymans Gardens (NT)Handcross 01444 400321

The Priest HouseWest Hoathly 01342 810479

Sackville CollegeEast Grinstead 01342 321930

Saint Hill ManorEast Grinstead 01342 326711

Scotney Castle Garden (NT)Lamberhurst 01892 891081

Sissinghurst Garden (NT)Nr Cranbrook 01580 712850

Sheffield Park Garden (NT)Danehill 01825 790231

Small Hythe Place (NT)Small Hythe 01580 762334

Sprivers (NT)Horsmonden 01892 890651

Standen House (NT)East Grinstead 01342 323029

Wakehurst Place Gardens (NT)Haywards Heath 01444 894066

RECREATIONDeers Leap Park

East Grinstead 01342 325858

Ardingly Reservoir WatersportsArdingly 01892 890661

MUSEUMSCuckfield Museum

Cuckfield 01444 881945

Cranbrook MuseumCranbrook 01580 712069

Cranbrook Union MillCranbrook 01580 712256

East Grinstead MuseumEast Grinstead 01342 323636

Horsham MuseumHorsham 01403 254959

Motor MuseumRolvenden 01580 241234

North American Indian MuseumHorsted Keynes 01825 790314

Rye Heritage CentreRye 01797 226696

Tenterden MuseumTenterden 01580 764310

Ypres Tower and Rye MuseumRye 01797 226728

VINEYARDSTenterden Vineyard Park

Small Hythe 01580 763033

Bookers VineyardBolney 01444 881575

RAILWAYSBluebell Railway

Sheffield Park 01825 723777

Kent & East Sussex RailwayTenterden 01580 765155

Spa Valley RailwayTunbridge Wells 01892 537715

RESERVOIRSBewl Water

Lamberhurst 01892 890661

South East WaterBerwick 01323 870810

NT = National Trust properties

To maximise your enjoyment

of the walk allow time to

stop at the visitor attractions,

such as Groombridge Place

en route

GS

GUIDE BOOK 58 BIBLIOGRAPHY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Adams’ Rye GuideAdams of Rye

Brickmaking in Sussex Beswick M Middleton Press 1993

British Regional Geology - The Wealden District DSIR 1965 HMSO

Hops and Hop PickingRichard Filmer Shire Books

Iron Industry of the Weald (The) H Cleere and D Crossley Leicester University Press 1985

Journey Through The WealdBen Darby R Hale London

KentRoger Higham Batsford

KentRichard Church R Hale London

Kent Village Book (The)Alan Bignall

Oasts in Kent- Their Construction and EquipmentRobin Walton Christine Swift Bookshop

Old Century (The)Siefried Sassoon Faber

Saunter Through Kent (A)Charles Igglesden

Smuggling in Rye DistrictKenneth Clark Adams of Rye

South East from AD 1000 (The)Brandon P & Short B Longman 1990

Sussex Industrial ArchaeologyA Field Guide ed Austen B, Cox D, Upton J Philimore & Co Ltd

Sussex Landscape (The) Brandon P Hodder & Stoughton 1974

Sussex Place NamesJ Glover Countryside Books 1997

Sussex Railways RememberedL Oppitz Countryside Books 1987

Weald of Youth (The)Siegried Sassoon Faber

West Kent and the WealdJohn Newman

Timber and Brick Building in KentKenneth Gravett Phillimore & Co Ltd 1971

Weald (The)SW Woolridge & Frederick GoldringNew Naturalists series

Weald (The)Wes GibbonsUnwin Paperbacks 1987

Sissinghurst GardenGS

BIOGRAPHIES

GUIDE BOOK 59 BIOGRAPHIES

Lorna JennerLorna is a keen walker with a deep love ofthe countryside. She knows the HighWeald well, having lived in Kent for over15 years and widely explored thecountryside of south-east England.

A biologist by training, she worked as acountryside ranger in North Wales andEngland and then as a lecturer trainingcountryside staff. She hopes thatencouraging others to enjoy the countrysidemay stimulate a greater awareness of, andinterest in, environmental issues.

Lorna now works freelance as a trainerand countryside interpreter.

Eila LawtonEila is a New Zealander whose love of theBritish countryside has helped to turn afleeting visit to the United Kingdom into astay of some twenty years.

She has been able to share that interestwith many others in her work asEducation Officer for Surrey WildlifeTrust and as a lecturer in countrysiderecreation at Merrist Wood College.

Eila is now working from her home inSurrey as a freelance countryside interpreterand trainer. She also leads guided walks inthe United Kingdom and abroad.

Tristan LavenderTristan has always had a strong interest inwildlife and the environment, a factreflected in his previous work for theCouncil For the Protection of RuralEngland (CPRE), Farming and WildlifeAdvisory Group (FWAG), and the HighWeald Unit. He has used his experience andknowledge to write the Sussex action planfor the protection of wildflower grasslands,a bench mark for the conservation of thisrare and vulnerable habitat.

Tristan has lived, on and off, at theedge of the High Weald for over twentyyears and has found the landscape andcultural heritage of the area a naturalinspiration for his photographs.

Sandra FernandezSandra studied Illustration at the HarrowCollege of Art followed by a postgraduatecourse in Natural History at the RoyalCollege of Art. She has worked for theNational Trust, Courtier, London Zoo,Dorling Kindersley and Kent CountyCouncil. Her commissions vary from 3dimensional greeting cards and bookillustrations to large murals. Sandra worksas a freelance illustrator from her home inMarden, Kent.

Martin Jones Martin has been a full-time photographersince 1990 having previously been withlandscape practice Brian Clouston &Partners in Hong Kong. His work hasillustrated several CountrysideCommission Landscape Assessmentsincluding ‘The High Weald - Exploringthe Landscape of the Area of OutstandingNatural Beauty’. He has been London’sRoyal Park’s photographer since 1996 andon the Millennium Commission’s panel ofphotographers since 1996. He was thewinner of the Architects’ Journal 100thanniversary/Arup Photographic Award in1995. Martin is based in London andDerbyshire.


Trail

RoyalTunbridge

Wells

Horsham

EastGrinstead

Crawley

Crowborough

Groombridge

Matfield

High WealdAONB

Cuckfield

HaywardsHeath

Rye

Hastings

TenterdenCranbrook

The High Weald Landscape Trailcrosses the counties of West Sussex,

East Sussex and Kent providing anopportunity to explore the heart of south-east England.

Meandering through the intimaterolling landscape of small fields, hopgardens, orchards, flower rich meadows,and ancient woodland, studded with pondsand sandstone outcrops, the 90-mile/145kilometre Trail links the ridge top villagesand the historic gardens for which the areais famous.

Discover the pleasures of walking in

a nationally important landscape

The Trail is suitable for beginners andseasoned walkers and can be completed inseven to ten days or undertaken insections. It is accessible by public transportat a number of points, allowing you toreturn to your starting point withoutretracing your steps.

The route is well signposted andwaymarked. Follow the High WealdLandscape Trail logo.

ISBN 0 9538013 0 7


Natural Beauty

Documents

864 High Weald Landscape Trail Guide