OF THE 
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THE BIRDS 
OF 
SHERWOOD FOREST. 
CHAPTER I. 
INTRODUCTORY. 
HE ancient forest of Sherwood was, in days gone by, 
of far greater extent than it is at present, spreading 
northwards from Nottingham to beyond Worksop, a 
distance of from twenty-five to thirty miles, and ranging 
from seven to ten miles in breadth. Its capabilities for 
the chase were indeed so great as very early to attract 
the attention of royalty, and the estate surrounding the 
palace of Clipstone (which, indeed, having been a park 
before the Norman Conquest, is one of the oldest in 
England), was seized by William the Conqueror, and 
made a royal demesne. I am not aware whether he 
enlarged or rebuilt the residence of Clipstone, but he 
was partial to its seclusion when he relaxed from the 
cares of government, though now a few shapeless ruins 
alone stand to attest its former grandeur and importance. 
It was here, on his return from the Crusades, that 
Richard Coeur de Lion received the congratulations of 
the King of Scotland, and it was a favourite resort of 
both John and Edward I. Edward II. kept his Christ- 
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