20 FORESTRY IN EARLY TIMES 



by exacting the death penalty. William Rufus 

 extended the " Royal Forests," and this extension 

 was carried on by Henry I., Stephen, and Henry II. 

 It was the extensive new afforestations of the latter 

 King which finally brought the people relief, as he 

 was eventually forced to relax the severity of the 

 forest law. By a statute enacted in 1184, and 

 known as the " Assize of Woodstock," the old forest 

 laws were modified and made independent of the 

 common law of the country. Special forest courts 

 were appointed to be held regularly, termed the 

 " Woodmote," meeting every forty days ; the 

 " Swainmote," held three times a year ; and the 

 " Court of Eyre," or High Court, meeting once in 

 every three years. This was a great improvement, 

 even though gross abuses and bribery quickly crept 

 in. The Magna Charta, 1215, was the next step in 

 further modifying the forest laws, and in the following 

 reign, that of Henry III. (1216-72), large areas 

 were disafforested and many of the forest burdens 

 removed by the King. 



In nearly all the Royal forests, the Dean for 

 example, places called The Purlieu are to be found. 

 This word was given to the areas afforested by 

 Henry II. and disafforested or made "pure' 1 by 

 Henry III. 



It was during the Regency, whilst Henry III. 

 was a boy, that the famous Forest Charter of 1217 

 was obtained by the people, and it was subsequently 

 revised and modified in 1225. A clause in this, one 

 of our most famous charters of those times, ran as 

 follows : "No Man from henceforth shall lose 



