Lopping was the ancient practice of cutting or lopping the
boughs and branches of trees by commoners for use as fuel during the
winter months.
Our story here concerns one Thomas Willingale of Loughton, Essex who
jealously guarded this right. So much so that every year at midnight
on 11th November he went into the Forest, for he firmly believed
that if no one started lopping at the appointed hour, the rights
would be lost forever.
Around 1860 the lords of the manor were gradually enclosing the
Forest and keen to stop the commoners from practicing their lopping
rights. One story goes that William Whitaker Maitland, a local land
owner, in 1860, tried to bring this ancient custom to an end by
inviting the loppers to a supper at the Kings Head. He was hoping
that by midnight they would all be too drunk to go into the forest
and exercise their rights, which would thus be lost. However, the
story goes that Thomas Willingale realised treachery was afoot, he
left the Kings Head at 11:30, walked out on to Staples Hill and on
the stroke of midnight he lopped off a branch before returning
triumphantly to the Kings Head, with the aforementioned branch. |
The Thomas
Willingale pub in Chingford, Essex. Named after a local hero who fought to
preserve commoner rights in the 1860's. Unfortunately this pub has now
been renamed 'The Stationhouse' |
That same year, the Revd
John Whitaker Maitland enclosed 1,318 acres of forest land, with the
intention of selling this on for building or horticulture. Thomas
Willingale was incensed of this further erosion of commoner rights
in the forest and decided to fight the enclosure. Luckily a number
of well to do people came to Thomas aid, promising support and more
importantly financial help. These included Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton
of Warlies, a prominent landowner his brother Edward North Buxton of
Knighton, a leading member in the Commons Preservation Society and
John T. Bedford, a member of the Corporation of London.
Eventually the Corporation of London was persuaded to take on the
landowners and ‘secure for the People, for the purposes of public
health and recreation’ the remainder of the forest of Epping. Legal
proceedings by the Corporation, against the enclosures began August
1871 resulting, ultimately in 1878 in the Epping forest Act. This
put to an end the deforestation, the crown rights of vert and
venison, the Forest courts and practically all other restrictions
and ancient customs, and secured the Corporation of London as
Conservators of the forest. With the loss of their Lopping rights,
the commoners were compensated, with £1,000 being distributed to the
Loppers and £6,000 being allocated to the construction and upkeep of
Lopping Hall in Loughton.Despite Revd John Whitaker Maitland
being the catalyst for the legal wrangle surrounding the saving of
Epping Forest, with his illegal enclosures, he was actually one of
the guests at the laying of the foundation stone at Lopping Hall in
1870.
Unfortunately Thomas Willingale died about 1870, and thus was not
alive to see the preservation of the forest. |
The entrance to Lopping Hall, showing a carving of the
Loppers at work. |
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