MALVERN HILLS. 171 



Malverne." The Forest was on the same footing as 

 that of Epping, in the sense that the waste or common 

 lands were claimed by the Lords of the thirteen Manors 

 of the district, the Crown enjoying only forestal rights 

 over them, and over the inclosed lands adjoining. 



The earliest reference to the Forest in extant docu- 

 ments is a grant by Henry III., a.d. 1228, to the Monks 

 of St. Mary of Malvern, of inclosures in the Forest. 

 Edward I. granted the Forest to Gilbert de Clare, Earl of 

 Gloucester, on marriage with his daughter Joan, where- 

 upon the Forest became, technically speaking, a chase- 

 The chase passed subsequently through the hands of 

 the Despencer family and that of the Earl of "Warwick. 

 It afterwards reverted to the Crown, and so remained 

 till the reign of Charles I. 



Charles sold his interest in it to the Dutch engineer, 

 Cornelius Vermuyden, with the understanding that it 

 should be disafforested. The attempt to effect this 

 gave rise to fierce disputes between the Grantee, the 

 Commoners, and the Lords of Manors. For long the 

 " countrie remained verie untractable," to use the 

 language of one of the proceedings of the time. The 

 outcome was that one-third of the waste lands was 

 given to Vermuyden, in lieu of the forestal rights 

 of the Crown, the other two-thirds being left to 

 the Lords of the Manors and their Commoners, and to 

 form the open Hills of the present day. It appears that 

 the small holders of land, at the time of the disafforest- 

 ing, attached great value to their rights over the 

 Commons. In one of the many suits between the 



