284 THE ROYAL FORESTS OF ENGLAND 



and by John. The perambulations of Essex forests, a neces- 

 sary sequel of the Forest Charter of 1217, were completed in 

 1225, and the result was that about three-fourths of the county 

 were ruled to be outside forest jurisdiction, because it had been 

 formally afforested after the coronation of Henry II. in 1154. 

 The part that remained forest was in the south-west corner, 

 round Waltham and Romford, with the adjacent Crown 

 demesne of Havering. However, Henry III. audaciously 

 upset this disafforesting in 1228, alleging that the perambulat- 

 ing knights had blundered, the disafforested parts being old 

 forest of the time of Henry I., which had lost its rights in the 

 disturbances of Stephen's days, and had been only restored 

 as forest by Henry II. The group of Essex venison inquisi- 

 tions for 1238-40 (the earliest extant of any county), cited by 

 Mr. Turner in Forest Pleas, show that forest law was then in 

 active operation even in extreme parts of the county north of 

 Colchester, on the borders of Suffolk. 



Various perambulations were made in the time of Edward I. 

 confirming the extended area ; but in 1300, when he was sore 

 pressed for money, the commons made a fresh and definite 

 perambulation of the forests a condition of their grant. The 

 result of the 1301 examination of forest boundaries and their 

 authorities was on broad lines the same as that of 1225. The 

 forest area was restricted to the Waltham and Havering corner 

 of the county, with the addition of the vills, or small districts 

 immediately round the towns of Colchester, Writtle, Hatfield 

 Regis, and Felsted, as they were all ancient royal demesne. 



In 1630 boundaries were again laid down which practically 

 agreed with those of 1301. Four years later much indignation 

 was aroused by the Crown officials attempting to raise money 

 by extending the area of Waltham forest. Failing in this, an 

 attempt, also futile, was made to secure its disafforestation 

 and sale. This resulted in an Act being passed, during the 

 first session of the Long Parliament, to fix the boundaries, 

 and a perambulation showed that Waltham forest comprised 

 about 60,000 acres. 



The chief duty of the reeves of the forest parishes was to 

 mark the cattle of their respective parishes which were entitled 

 to forest agistment with a special brand. The mark consisted 

 of a letter surmounted by a crown, the letters running con- 



