8 OUR FORESTS AND WOODLANDS 



had the right of the chase upon his own land, 

 though forbidden to follow it into or upon the 

 king's woods. Both the actual customs and 

 the reputed laws of Canute, as well as the cus- 

 toms in the time of Edward the Confessor, give 

 evidence that such was the case, and in all prob- 

 ability these ancient customs were based upon 

 older Scandinavian practices and laws. 



From the original folk-land held in common 

 the royal demesnes and forests of England seem 

 to have gradually sprung up as the king became 

 more fully representative of his nation. The 

 process of formation of 'King's Land* and 'King's 

 Wood' before Domesday is somewhat obscure. 

 All that seems clear is that the forests were 

 considered to be a special royal possession, and 

 that the higher chase was reserved for the king, 

 while the lower could be enjoyed by the holder 

 of the land. 



Thus, in England, the royal appropriation of 

 large tracts of land, and especially of woodlands, 

 practically as Forests, seems to have taken place 

 as early as the period of the Heptarchy. The 

 commencement was made when each petty local 

 chief or princeling formed his demesne ; and 



