252 FOREST OF DEAN. 
of the disorders of the Civil War to throw down the 
fences, which the grantee had already begun to make. 
Sir John Winter was a prominent and devoted Royalist 
during this period. He endeavoured to rouse the 
population of the district in favour of the king ; but his 
inclosures under the Royal grant had made him un- 
popular, and the people sided in the main with the 
Parliament. The supply of iron from the Forest for the 
founding of cannon was an important consideration. 
Finally Winter, after many conflicts, was forced to fly, 
and his stronghold, Lydney House, was captured. His 
property was assigned to his victor, General Massy, 
together with his iron mills and woods, but with the 
reservation of timber trees which were not to be felled. 
During the Commonwealth, frequent orders were 
made by Parliament with the object of preventing 
the destruction of timber in the Forest by unauthorised 
persons, and directing that any trees which had been 
cut down should be reserved for the use of the 
Navy. 
In 1650, orders were given for the suppression 
and destruction of the iron works,—partly with the 
view of saving the timber of the Forest, which was 
heavily drawn upon for fuel for the smelting. In 
1656, an Act was passed for mitigating the rigour 
of the forest laws, and for preserving the timber 
in the Forest. An effort was consequently made to 
carry out the arrangement of a few years previous, 
under which 16,000 acres were to be inclosed and 
planted. This was again resisted by the population of 
