View source for Box Hill, Surrey

{{Short description|Hill and beauty spot in Surrey, England}}
{{Other uses|Box Hill (disambiguation)}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox protected area
| name = Box Hill
| alt_name = Part of the [[Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment]] SSSI
| iucn_category = IV
| iucn_ref =
| photo = Towards Box Hill - geograph.org.uk - 1805314.jpg
| photo_width = 290
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| photo_caption = Box Hill viewed from the south. <br>Photograph taken from Betchworth Park Golf Course.
| map = United Kingdom Surrey
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| relief = 1
| label = Box Hill
| label_position = top
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| nearest_town = [[Dorking]], [[Surrey]], England
| coordinates = {{coord|51|15|18|N|0|18|31|W|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
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{{Infobox mountain
| name              = Box Hill
| photo             = 
| photo_size        = 
| photo_alt         = 
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| elevation_m       = 224
| elevation_ref     =<ref name=Wooldridge_1957_79>{{harvnb|Wooldridge|Hutchings|1957|p= 79}}</ref>
| prominence_m      = 49
| listing           =
| location          = 
| parent            = [[North Downs]]
| map_image         = Box hill map.png
| map_alt           =
| map_caption       = Map of Box Hill, showing the areas managed by the National Trust (purple), Surrey Wildlife Trust (turquoise) and Surrey County Council (green). The urban area of Box Hill village is shown in grey.
| grid_ref_UK       = TQ 178 514
| topo_map          = [[Ordnance Survey|OS]] ''Landranger'' 187
| mountain_type     = [[Cuesta]]
| geology           = {{hlist|[[Chalk]]|[[Clay-with-Flints]]}}
| age               = Cretaceous and Eocene
| last_eruption     =
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'''Box Hill''' is a summit of the [[North Downs]] in [[Surrey]], approximately {{convert|31|km|mi|abbr=on}} south-west of [[London]]. It is named after the ancient [[Buxus sempervirens|box woodland]] found on the steepest west-facing chalk slopes overlooking the [[River Mole]]. The western part of the hill is owned and managed by the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]], whilst the village of Box Hill lies on higher ground to the east. The highest point is Betchworth Clump at {{convert|224|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[Ordnance Datum|above OD]],<ref name=Wooldridge_1957_79/> although the Salomons Memorial (at 172 metres) overlooking the town of [[Dorking]] is the most popular viewpoint.<ref name=MVDC_planning>{{cite web |url= http://www.mole-valley.gov.uk/cwi/getDocument?docId=188328&account=planning&ref=MO/2009/0647&filename=Design%20Statement |title= Box Hill Visitor Facilities and Car Park: Planning Application for Proposed Improvements |publisher= Mole Valley District Council |access-date= 3 April 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120415064201/http://www.mole-valley.gov.uk/cwi/getDocument?docId=188328&account=planning&ref=MO%2F2009%2F0647&filename=Design%20Statement |archive-date= 15 April 2012 |url-status= live }}</ref>

Box Hill is part of the [[Surrey Hills National Landscape]] and forms part of the [[Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment]] Site of Special Scientific Interest.  The north- and south-facing slopes support an area of chalk downland, noted for its orchids and other rare plant species.<ref name=NT_wildlife>{{cite web |url= http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-great_days_out/w-nature-places_to_visit/w-nature-places_to_visit-boxhill.htm |title= Box Hill |author= Oates M |year= 2008 |work= Places to Visit for Wildlife |publisher= National Trust |access-date= 3 April 2011 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110517040554/http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-great_days_out/w-nature-places_to_visit/w-nature-places_to_visit-boxhill.htm |archive-date= 17 May 2011 |df= dmy-all }}</ref> The hill provides a habitat for 38 species of butterfly,<ref name=Surrey_Skipper>{{cite web |url= https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/56-autumn-2013.pdf |title= News from Box Hill |last= Jeffcoate |first= Gail |year= 2013 |website= Surrey Skipper |publisher= Butterfly Conservation |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191025152923/https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/56-autumn-2013.pdf |archive-date= 25 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> and has given its name to a species of [[Coreidae|squash bug]], now found throughout south-east England.<ref name=british_bugs>{{cite web |url= http://www.britishbugs.org.uk/heteroptera/Coreidae/gonocerus_acuteangulatus.html |title= ''Gonocerus acuteangulatus'' Box Bug |author= Bantock T and Botting J |year= 2010 |work= British Bugs: An online identification guide to UK Hemiptera |publisher= britishbugs.org.uk |access-date= 29 March 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090615042004/http://www.britishbugs.org.uk/heteroptera/Coreidae/gonocerus_acuteangulatus.html |archive-date= 15 June 2009 |url-status= live }}</ref>

An estimated 850,000 people visit Box Hill each year.<ref name=MVDC_planning/> The National Trust visitors' centre provides both a cafeteria and gift shop, and [[panorama|panoramic]] views of the western Weald may be enjoyed from the [[North Downs Way]], a long-distance footpath that runs along the south-facing [[escarpment|scarp slope]].  Box Hill featured prominently on the route of the [[Cycling at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Summer Olympics cycling]] road race events.<ref name="guardian1">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/interactive/2011/feb/10/olympics-2012-cycling-road-race-route |title=Olympics 2012: cycling road race route |work=Guardian |date=11 February 2011 |format=Adobe Flash |access-date=18 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307225132/http://www.theguardian.com/sport/interactive/2011/feb/10/olympics-2012-cycling-road-race-route |archive-date=7 March 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{TOC limit|3}}

==Geography==

Box Hill, approximately {{convert|31|km|mi|abbr=on}} south-west of central London, stands at the south-eastern corner of the Mole Gap, the valley carved by the River Mole through the North Downs.<ref name=Bannister_p2>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=2}}</ref> Its summit, {{convert|224|m|ft}} above [[Ordnance Datum]], is the 12th highest in Surrey.<ref>[http://www.hills-database.co.uk/downloads.html Database of British and Irish Hills] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180805042151/http://www.hills-database.co.uk/downloads.html |date=5 August 2018 }} Retrieved 6 March 2015</ref> The western boundary of the hill is defined by the River Mole, which has cut a steep [[cliff]], exposing the chalk bedrock.<ref>{{harvnb|Hutchings|Bridges|Sankey|1969|p=9}}</ref> The [[Vale of Holmesdale]] lies immediately to the south, below the scarp slope. The northern and eastern boundaries are defined by [[dry valley|dry river valleys]], which were created during the [[last glacial period|last Ice Age]]. The total area of the hill is approximately {{convert|11|km2|sqmi}}, of which half is owned by the National Trust.

==The village==
{{Infobox UK place
|static_image_name=File:St Andrew's Church, Box Hill (Geograph Image 2266120 e41e2a89).jpg
|static_image_caption=St Andrew's Church, Box Hill village
|country = England
|coordinates = 
|official_name= Box Hill
|map_type= 
|label_position=
|population =1,320
|population_ref=(2019 estimate)<ref name=citypop>{{cite web |url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/uk/southeastengland/surrey/E34004309__box_hill/ |title=City Population Estimate 2019-06-30 |last= |first= |date=30 October 2020 |website=City Population.de |publisher= |access-date=24 January 2021 |archive-date=12 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190712040625/http://citypopulation.de/en/uk/southeastengland/surrey/E34004309__box_hill/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|civil_parish=n/a
|shire_district= [[Mole Valley]]
|shire_county = [[Surrey]]
|region= South East England
|constituency_westminster= [[Dorking and Horley (UK Parliament constituency)|Dorking and Horley]]
|post_town= Tadworth
|postcode_district = KT20
|postcode_area= KT
|dial_code= 01306 / 01737
}}

The village of Box Hill is to the east of the summit and to the west of the Country Park owned by the National Trust. The earliest flint cottages date from the 1800s, although much of the village was constructed in the first half of the 20th century.<ref>{{harvnb|Mountford|1974|pp=3–4}}</ref> By 2005 there were more than 800 dwellings, of which over five hundred were mobile homes.  An estimated 41% of the community is aged 60 or over.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.connectedsurrey.com/stylesheet.asp?file=17032006112104 |title= Box Hill Project |author= Fry R |year= 2006 |work= Community Case Studies |publisher= The Connected Surrey Partnership |access-date= 13 April 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120425090813/http://www.connectedsurrey.com/stylesheet.asp?file=17032006112104 |archive-date= 25 April 2012 |url-status= live }}</ref> St Andrew's Church, part of the [[ecclesiastical parish]] of Headley, was consecrated in 1969 and the village hall opened in 1974.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/friendsofstandrewsbh/history_part_1.htm |title=History |author=Langley D |year=2000 |work=The Church on the Hill |publisher=Friends of St Andrews Box Hill |access-date=24 July 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213848/http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/friendsofstandrewsbh/history_part_1.htm |archive-date=4 October 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Mountford|1974|p=3}}</ref> The village is not part of a civil parish.

==History==

===Early history===
[[File:Beech pollard - Box Hill, Surrey.jpg|thumb|upright|Ancient [[pollarding|pollarded]] [[beech]] tree between the Viewpoint and the Donkey Green.{{refn|The tree marks the boundary between two parishes: [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham]] (to the north) and [[Dorking]] (to the south).<ref name=Bannister6-7>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|pp=6–7}}</ref>|group=note}}]]
Two Bronze Age [[round barrow]]s, located close to the Salomons Memorial, provide the earliest archaeological evidence of human activity on Box Hill.<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1007888}}</ref><ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1007889}}</ref> The larger barrow is {{convert|20|m|abbr=on}} in diameter and {{convert|2.2|m|abbr=on}} high and, in medieval times, was used as a [[boundary marker]] or ''mere'' for the parish of [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham]].<ref name=Bannister12>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=12}}</ref> Traces of prehistoric [[field system|field boundaries]] are visible on Burford Spur and the low [[flint]] banks on the steeper and more wooded White Hill may be contemporaneous.<ref name=Bannister12/>

An [[Harrow Way|ancient trackway]] along the [[North Downs]] escarpment can be dated to around 600–450&nbsp;BC, but has probably been in existence since the [[Stone Age]]<ref>{{harvnb|Brayley|Britton|1841|p=218}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Fagg|first=C. C.|author2=Hutchings, G. E.  |others=Tansley, A. G|title=Great Britain: essays in regional geography |editor=Ogilvie, Alan Grant|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge, England|year=1928|page=29|chapter=Prehistory|oclc=59447377}}</ref> and may have crossed the [[River Mole]] at a ford close to the location of the present day stepping stones.<ref name=Margary_52>{{cite journal |last1= Margary |first1= ID |author-link1= Ivan Margary |year= 1952 |title= The North Downs' Main Trackways |url= https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-379-1/dissemination/pdf/vol_52/surreyac052_029-031_margary.pdf |journal= Surrey Archaeological Collections |volume= 52 |pages= 29–31 |doi= 10.5284/1068872 |access-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103207/https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-379-1%2Fdissemination%2Fpdf%2Fvol_52%2Fsurreyac052_029-031_margary.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref> In Victorian times this route was dubbed the [[Pilgrims' Way]] and was supposedly followed by visitors to the shrines of [[Thomas Becket]] and [[Swithun]] at [[Canterbury Cathedral|Canterbury]] and [[Winchester Cathedral|Winchester]] respectively.<ref>{{harvnb|Margary|1948|pp=260–263}}</ref>

[[Stane Street (Chichester)|Stane Street]] was constructed by the [[Roman Britain|Romans]] in around 60–70 AD to link London ([[Londinium]]) to Chichester ([[Noviomagus Reginorum]]) on the south coast of England.<ref>{{harvnb|Margary|1948|pages=45–46}}</ref> The course of the road runs in a southwesterly direction across Mickleham Downs,<ref name=Hall_2008>{{cite journal |author= Hall A |year= 2008 |title= The archaeological evidence for the route of Stane Street from Mickleham Downs to London Road, Ewell |journal= Surrey Archaeological Collections |publisher= Surrey Archaeological Society |volume= 94 |pages= 225–250 |url= https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-379-1/dissemination/pdf/vol_94/surreyac094_225-249_hall.pdf |access-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102102535/https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-379-1%2Fdissemination%2Fpdf%2Fvol_94%2Fsurreyac094_225-249_hall.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref> before turning south to cross the [[River Mole]] at a ford close to the site of the [[Burford Bridge Hotel]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= The Mole Crossing at Burford |work= The Times |location= London |date= 25 March 1937 |issue= 47642 |page= 17}}</ref> A hoard of nine [[Roman currency|Roman coins]], including bronze ''[[Follis#Roman coin|folles]]'' dating from the reigns of [[Diocletian]], [[Maximian]] and [[Constantius Chlorus|Constantius I]], was discovered on Box Hill close to Broadwood's Folly in 1979.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Alexander |first1= M |last2= Bird |first2= J |year= 1980 |title= Box Hill Roman coins: TQ 179 519 |journal= Surrey Archaeological Society Bulletin |volume= 164 |page= 1 |url= https://www.surreyarchaeology.org.uk/sites/default/files/SAS164.pdf |access-date= 26 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103050/https://www.surreyarchaeology.org.uk/sites/default/files/SAS164.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Medieval and early modern periods===
The [[Warren (burrow)|pillow mounds]] to the north-east of the Salomons Memorial are thought to date from the medieval period and were probably constructed as artificial [[Warren (burrow)|warrens]] for rabbits. High Ashurst warren is recorded as remaining in use until the late 18th century.<ref name=Bannister20>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=20}}</ref> A second warren was probably situated close to Warren Farm in the Headley Valley and it has been speculated that the present farmhouse was originally the warrener's cottage.<ref name=Bannister20/>

[[File:Boxhill surrey trees.jpg|thumb|right|Box and yew trees growing on the steep, western slope of Box Hill, above the River Mole.]]
The origin of the [[buxus|box trees]] growing on the hill is disputed. Several sources from the late 18th century suggest that they were planted by [[Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel]] during the reign of [[Charles I of England|Charles I]].{{sfn|Beavan|1777|p=2}} However Howard never owned the Box Hill estate<ref>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=12}}</ref> and older medieval documents make reference to local individuals with surnames including ''Atteboxe'', ''de la Boxe'' and ''Buxeto'', suggesting that the trees were already common in the area by the 13th century.<ref>{{harvnb|Brayley|Britton|1841|p=461}}</ref> The diarist [[John Evelyn]] records a visit to the hill in August 1655 to view "those natural bowers, cabinets and shady walks in the box copses."<ref name=Evelyn_1870>{{harvnb|Evelyn|1870|p=295}}</ref>

The [[wood grain|close grain]] of the box wood made it highly prized for its [[lumber|timber]] for carving and there are numerous accounts of the sale of trees from the hill throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.<ref name="Littledale 1984 13">{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=13}}</ref> At the end of the eighteenth century, imports from Portugal reduced the market value of box wood and commercial exploitation of timber from Box Hill appears to have ended with a final sale in 1797.<ref name="Littledale 1984 13"/>

===Agriculture===
Despite the commercial importance of timber in the [[early modern period]], the woodland on Box Hill was much less extensive at the start of the 19th century than at the start of the 21st. The 1801 [[Betchworth]] Estate Map shows that there was a network of irregularly shaped fields on the top of the hill, where the more fertile [[clay-with-flints]] overlays the chalk. These ‘clearings’ (each up to {{convert|1|ha}}) were cultivated for [[arable land|arable crops]], but by the 1830s [[British Agricultural Revolution|changes in farming practices]] meant that they were too small to be worked economically and many were over-planted with [[beech]] (with some [[oak]]). These deciduous plantations may be distinguished from older yew- and box-dominated woodland on the hill by the uniform age of the trees.<ref>{{harvnb|Hutchings|Bridges|Sankey|1969|pp=19–20}}</ref><ref name=Littledale14>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=14}}</ref>

Remnants of a few of these arable fields still exist, notably at the head of Juniper Bottom and around the old Box Hill Fort and Swiss Cottage. The Donkey Green (immediately north of the Salomons Memorial) was used as a cricket ground in the 1850s. It acquired its current name in [[Edwardian era|Edwardian times]], when [[donkey rides]] were offered to younger day trippers, although this practice had ceased by [[World War II]].<ref name=Tuson-7>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=7}}</ref>

The soil covering the north- and south-facing chalk slopes of the hill is too thin and insufficiently fertile to allow cultivation. These areas are indicated as ''sheep-walk'' on the 1801 map and were used as [[pasture]], especially during the winter months when lower ground was too wet for productive grazing.<ref name=Littledale14/> [[Conservation grazing|Grazing]] of these slopes has continued into the 21st century and a herd of [[Belted Galloway]] cattle is used by both Surrey Wildlife Trust and the National Trust to control growth of grasses, thereby allowing wild flowers (including orchids) to flourish.<ref name=SWT_CG>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/what-we-do/restoring-surreys-nature/conservation-grazing |title= Conservation grazing |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Surrey Wildlife Trust |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191023183638/https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/what-we-do/restoring-surreys-nature/conservation-grazing |archive-date= 23 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=NT_CG>{{cite web |url= https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/conservation-grazing |title= Conservation grazing |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= National Trust |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191025110156/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/conservation-grazing |archive-date= 25 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

[[File:Gorse on Headley Heath, Surrey (Geograph 5380966).jpg|right|thumb|[[Ulex europaeus|Common gorse]] in bloom on Headley Heath.]]
Throughout its history, Headley Heath has been used for grazing and local villagers have collected [[Calluna|heather]], [[Ulex europaeus|gorse]] and [[sod|turf]] for bedding and making fires.<ref name=Tuson-30-31/> Although most [[Common land|Rights of Common]] connected with the heath were [[Commons Registration Act 1965|abolished by Act of Parliament in 1965]], the inhabitants of one nearby cottage still have the right to graze [[goose|geese]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath/features/lords-of-the-manor-and-headley-heath |title= Lords of the manor and Headley Heath |last= Denyer |first= Peter |year= 2015 |publisher= National Trust |access-date= 18 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200718164352/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath/features/lords-of-the-manor-and-headley-heath |archive-date= 18 July 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Ownership and public access===
The hill was purchased by [[Thomas Hope (banker, born 1769)|Thomas Hope]], shortly before his death in 1831. (Hope was the owner of [[Deepdene House and Gardens|The Deepdene]], the mansion to the east of [[Dorking]].<ref name="Littledale 1984 13"/>) The [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham Parish]] Records credit Hope's widow, Louisa de la Poer Beresford (whom he had married six years previously), with allowing "free access to the beauties of this hill",<ref name="Littledale 1984 13"/> however day-trippers had been arriving in significant numbers for more than a century before that.<ref>{{cite book |last= Macky |first= John |year= 1714 |volume= 1 |title= A journey through England. In familiar letters. From a gentleman here, to his friend abroad |location= London |publisher= J. Hooke |author-link= John Macky}}</ref>

Developments in local transport infrastructure over the course of the 18th and 19th centuries, enabled increasing numbers to visit the area. Following the completion of the [[turnpike trust|turnpike road]] between [[Leatherhead]] and [[Dorking]] in 1750, [[stagecoach]]es stopped regularly at the [[Burford Bridge Hotel]].<ref name=Shepperd128>{{harvnb|Shepperd|1991|p=128}}</ref> As late as 1879, a daily coach ran non-stop to Box Hill from [[Piccadilly]] with a journey time of 2.5 hours.<ref name=DailyNews1>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= The Boxhill Coach |work= Daily News |location= London |date= 31 March 1879}}</ref>{{refn|In March 1879 the coach left Piccadilly at 10:30am every day, arriving at the Burford Bridge Hotel at 1pm. The return journey left Box Hill at 4pm, arriving back in London at 6:30pm.<ref name=DailyNews1/>|group=note}}

The [[South Eastern Railway (England)|South Eastern Railway]] opened [[Dorking West railway station|the first railway station in Dorking]] in 1849, followed by the [[London, Brighton and South Coast Railway]] (LBSCR), which opened [[Box Hill & Westhumble railway station|the station in the village of Westhumble]] in 1867.<ref name=Chapman150-151>{{harvnb|Shepperd|1991|pp=150–151}}</ref><ref name=Shepperd137>{{harvnb|Shepperd|1991|p=137}}</ref> The LBSCR ran dedicated excursion trains to Box Hill on Bank Holiday weekends and over 1300 day-trippers were recorded arriving at Westhumble station on 6 August 1883.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= The Bank Holiday |work= The Times |location= London |date= 7 August 1883}}</ref>

[[File:Box Hill Salomons Memorial 2.jpg|right|thumb|The Salomons Memorial commemorates the gift of {{convert|95|ha|acre|abbr=on|sigfig=2}} of land on Box Hill to the National Trust in 1914.{{refn|Salomons died in September 1915, just over a year after donating the land on Box Hill to the National Trust. His widow opened the Memorial at the viewpoint in August 1920.<ref>{{cite newspaper The Times |title= Memorial To Donor Of Box Hill |date= 17 August 1920 |page= 7 |issue= 42491 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Edwards |first= Mark |date= 11 September 2014 |title= Box Hill viewing point reopens to mark 100th anniversary |url= https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/nostalgia/box-hill-viewing-point-reopens-7756789 |work= Surrey Live |access-date= 21 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191021083357/https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/nostalgia/box-hill-viewing-point-reopens-7756789 |archive-date= 21 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>|group=note}}]]
The proposals for a [[land value tax]] outlined by Chancellor [[David Lloyd George]] in his [[People's Budget]] of 1909 prompted the trustees of the Deepdene estate to start to sell the unimproved land on the western side of Box Hill.<ref name=Littledale15>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=15}}</ref> As a result of negotiations led by [[Robert Hunter (National Trust)|Sir Robert Hunter]], [[Leopold Salomons]] of [[Norbury Park]] purchased {{convert|95|ha|acre|abbr=on|sigfig=2}} of Box Hill in 1913 for £16,000. The following year, Salomons donated the land, which included the Old Fort, Swiss Cottage and the western flank of the hill above the River Mole, to the National Trust.<ref name=Littledale15-16>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|pp=15–16}}</ref>

Two further purchases of {{convert|28|ha|acre|abbr=on|sigfig=2}} and {{convert|102|ha|acre|abbr=on|sigfig=2}} transferred Lodge Hill and Ashurst Rough to National Trust ownership in 1921 and 1923.<ref name=NT_acq>{{cite web|url=http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/servlet/file/store5/item724521/version1/nt_acquisitions_dec2011-2.pdf |title=National Trust Acquisition Data |year=2010 |publisher=National Trust |access-date=12 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120603070439/http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/servlet/file/store5/item724521/version1/nt_acquisitions_dec2011-2.pdf |archive-date=3 June 2012}}</ref> Following World War II, National Trust acquired Headley Heath, a geologically distinct area of heathland which lies to the north-east of Box Hill village, the majority of which was given as a single donation in 1946.<ref name=NT_acq/>{{refn|In 1946 Mr and Mrs Crookenden gave {{convert|195|ha|acre}} of Headley Heath (and the Lordship of the Manor of Headley) to the National Trust. The family of Lady Warburg donated the {{convert|9|ha|acre|adj=on}} Heath Plantation following her death in 1952.|group=note}} The Trust continued to purchase land, and by the mid-1980s the estate comprised some {{convert|500|ha|acre|abbr=on|sigfig=2}}.<ref name=NT_acq/> The most recent additions to the Box Hill Estate include farmland at Westhumble and at the foot of the hill, purchased in the late 1990s.<ref name=NT_acq/>

===Military history===

[[File:Box Hill Fort.JPG|thumb|Box Hill Fort, constructed in 1899. Note the earth [[blast wall|blast bank]] (left) which protects the south west face of the flat-roofed main building (right).<ref name=NHL_Boxhill_Fort>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1018074}}</ref>]]
In the latter half of the 19th century, growing public concern over the ability of the British armed forces to repel an invasion (stoked, in part, by the serialisation of [[George Tomkyns Chesney|George Tomkyns Chesney's]] 1871 novella [[The Battle of Dorking]]<ref name=Tuson-20-21>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|pp=20–21}}</ref>), prompted the government to announce the construction of thirteen fortified mobilisation centres, collectively known as the [[London Defence Positions]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMGCY |title= Box Hill Fort |year= 2006 |work= Historic Forts on Waymarking.com |publisher= waymarking.com |access-date= 10 February 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110806004242/http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMGCY |archive-date= 6 August 2011 |url-status= live }}</ref>{{refn|A common misconception is that the forts were built to protect against invasion by the French Emperor [[Napoleon]], however he had died in 1821, almost 80 years before construction began. <br>The aftermath of the [[Franco-Prussian War]] of 1870 (which led to the [[unification of Germany]]), the reform of the Russian Army following the Crimean War and colonial disputes with France, prompted British fears of a war against an alliance of the main European powers. Lobbying by [[Edward Bruce Hamley|Sir Edward Hamley MP]]<ref>{{cite Hansard|house=House of Commons |title= Defences of the Empire - Coast defences of Great Britain |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1887/mar/14/observations#S3V0312P0_18870314_HOC_240 |date= 14 March 1887 |volume 312 |column_start=238 |column_end=325}}</ref> resulted in the Secretary of State for War, [[Edward Stanhope]],  presenting the bill for construction of the London Defence Positions to Parliament in 1889.<ref name=Beanse-4-6>{{harvnb|Beanse|Gill|2011|pp=4–6}}</ref>|group=note}} Two centres were built on Box Hill, approximately {{convert|2.5|km|mi|abbr=on}} apart: one close to the present National Trust visitor centre (commonly called Box Hill Fort)<ref name=Beanse-Boxhill>{{harvnb|Beanse|Gill|2011|pp=17–19}}</ref>{{refn|The [[bridle path]] that leads from the bottom of the Burford Spur to the National Trust café, is generally known as the ‘Old Military Road’. Although it is mistakenly believed to have been constructed at the same time as Box Hill Fort, it is visible on the 1869 Ordnance survey map and may pre-date the Zig Zag Road.<ref name=Littledate24>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=24}}</ref>|group=note}} and the other close to the summit of the hill, to the south of the present day Box Hill village (known as Betchworth Fort).<ref name=Beanse-Betchworth>{{harvnb|Beanse|Gill|2011|pp=14–16}}</ref>

The sites were purchased from the trustees of the Hope estate by the [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]] in 1891, and construction began in 1899.<ref name=Beanse-Boxhill/><ref name=Beanse-Betchworth/> The two centres were laid out in the form of [[redoubt|infantry redoubts]] typical of the period, but also included [[magazine (artillery)|magazines]] (partially below ground level) for the storage of [[Shell (projectile)|shells]] and [[Cartridge (firearms)|cartridges]].<ref name=Beanse-Betchworth/><ref name=Littledale23>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=23}}</ref> (In common with the majority of the eleven other mobilisation centres, the forts were designed for the use of the infantry only and the stored ammunition was intended for the use of [[Field artillery|mobile field artillery]] which would be deployed nearby as required.)<ref name=Littledale23/> The main flat-roofed buildings were built in brick and reinforced concrete and were protected from [[artillery]] fire by crescent-shaped earth blast banks, surrounded by an outer ditch.<ref name=NHL_Boxhill_Fort/>

A [[Haldane reforms|reform of defence policy]] by the Secretary of War [[Richard Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane|Viscount Haldane]] in 1905 resulted in all 13 centres being declared redundant, and both forts were sold back to the estate trustees in 1908.<ref name=Beanse-Betchworth/><ref name=Bannister27>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=27}}</ref> Both forts are protected by a Scheduled Monument listing.<ref name=NHL_Boxhill_Fort/><ref name=NHL_Betchworth_Fort>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1020370}}</ref> The National Trust owns the Box Hill Fort and a metal grill has been placed over the entrance to allow bats to access to their roosts.<ref name=NHL_Boxhill_Fort/><ref name=Bannister27/> The Betchworth Fort is in private ownership and is not accessible to the public.<ref name=Beanse-Betchworth/>

[[File:Pill Box - geograph.org.uk - 657135.jpg|thumb|[[Pillbox (military)|Pillbox]] on the south-facing scarp slope of Box Hill (to the north of [[Betchworth Castle]]).]]
During World War II, the River Mole comprised part of the fortified [[GHQ Line|GHQ Line B]]. This defensive line ran along the North Downs from [[Farnham]] via [[Guildford]] to Dorking, before following the river to [[Horley]].<ref name=DA12>{{cite web |url= http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue//adsdata/arch-455-1/dissemination/pdf/Text_Reports/DA12_TEXT_-_DORKING_GAP.pdf |title= Defence Area 12: Dorking Gap |author= Foot W |year= 2009 |work= Defence Areas: a national study of Second World War anti-invasion landscapes in England |publisher= English Heritage |access-date= 11 December 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110811042351/http://ads.ahds.ac.uk/catalogue//adsdata/arch-455-1/dissemination/pdf/Text_Reports/DA12_TEXT_-_DORKING_GAP.pdf |archive-date= 11 August 2011 |url-status= live }}</ref> Between Betchworth and Box Hill, the north bank of the River Mole was stabilised and made steeper to prevent wheeled vehicles from crossing. At Boxhill Farm, where access to the river from the north bank was required for the herd of dairy cows, a row of twelve concrete cylinders were cast as an anti-tank measure. Gun mounts were also installed to protect both Boxhill and Deepdene bridges and several [[Pillbox (military)|pillboxes]] were constructed.<ref name=DA12/><ref name="Marchington T 2000 96–100">{{cite journal |author= Marchington T |year= 2000 |title= Wartime Defences: A Second Look |journal= Proceedings of the Leatherhead and District Local History Society |volume= 6 |issue= 4 |pages= 96–100 |publisher= Leatherhead and District Local History Society}}</ref><ref name=Telegraph_walk>{{cite journal |date=2 March 2011 |title=Box Hill, Surrey: walk of the week |journal=Daily Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/activityandadventure/walkingholidays/8356605/Box-Hill-Surrey-walk-of-the-week.html |access-date=29 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110309211404/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/activityandadventure/walkingholidays/8356605/Box-Hill-Surrey-walk-of-the-week.html |archive-date=9 March 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Stepping Stones at the foot of the hill were removed as an anti-invasion measure.<ref name=Telegraph_walk/>

From 1940, [[Headley Court]] was used as the Headquarters for the [[VII Corps (United Kingdom)|VII Corps]] and later for the [[Canadian Corps (World War II)|Canadian Corps]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/Canada/CA/OpSumm/OpSumm-2.html|title=On Guard in Britain, 1940–1941|publisher=The Department of National Defense, Government of Canada|access-date=13 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304212447/http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/Canada/CA/OpSumm/OpSumm-2.html|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> and Canadian troops were billeted at [[High Ashurst]].<ref name=Denyer>{{cite web |last=Denyer |first=Peter |url=https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath/features/the-second-world-war-on-headley-heath |title=The Second World War on Headley Heath |publisher=The National Trust |access-date=21 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021191612/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath/features/the-second-world-war-on-headley-heath |archive-date=21 October 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref> Bellasis House was used as training centre both for Czech agents of the [[Special Operations Executive]] and for German [[Prisoner of war|Prisoners of War]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.secret-ww2.net/copy-of-belgian-soe-agent-s-name |title= National Trust Information Board Unveiled at Bellasis House, Headley Heath, Box Hill, Surrey – formerly SOE's Special Training School STS 2 |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= 14 July 2021 |publisher= Secret WW2 |access-date= 14 October 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://dorkingmuseum.org.uk/wartime-at-dorkings-mansions/ |title=Wartime at Dorking's mansions |publisher=Dorking Museum |access-date=21 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021191613/https://dorkingmuseum.org.uk/wartime-at-dorkings-mansions/ |archive-date=21 October 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref> In preparation for [[Normandy landings|D-Day]], Headley Heath was used for tank and combat training by the Canadian armed forces,<ref name=Tuson-30-31>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|pp=30–31}}</ref><ref name=Matharu>{{cite news |last= Matharu |first= Hardeep |url= https://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/news/9943474.unexploded-mortar-shells-discovered-on-headley-heath/ |title= Unexploded mortar shells discovered on Headley Heath |work= Sutton and Croydon Guardian |date= 21 September 2012 |access-date= 21 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191021191613/https://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/news/9943474.unexploded-mortar-shells-discovered-on-headley-heath/ |archive-date= 21 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> and the area known as The Pyramids is named after the piles of ammunition that they kept on the heath.<ref name=Denyer/> [[Betchworth Quarry and Lime Kilns|Betchworth Quarry]] was used by the British Army in early 1944, to test the firing capabilities of [[Churchill tank]]s.<ref>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|p=154}}</ref>

==Geology==
===Rock types===
[[File:Chalk_Face,_Betchworth_Quarry,_Box_Hill,_Surrey.jpg|thumb|The exposed chalk workings of the former Betchworth Quarry on the south-facing scarp slope of Box Hill.{{refn|Note the transmitter mast in the top-left corner of the photograph which, together with the adjacent water tower (not visible in the picture), marks the true summit of Box Hill at {{convert|224|m|ft|abbr=on}} above OD.|group=note}}]]
The [[Chalk Group|chalk]] which comprises the majority of Box Hill (and the rest of the [[North Downs]]), has its origins in the late [[Cretaceous]] (approximately 100 – 66 million years ago). For the entirety of this period, south east England was covered by a warm, shallow sea in which [[coccolithophores]], single-celled [[alga]]e with small [[calcite]] skeletons, thrived. As the phytoplankton died, their calcium-rich shells were deposited on the sea bed and, over time, formed the chalk we know today.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Hancock JM |year=1975  |title= The petrology of the chalk  |journal= Proc. Geol. Assoc. |volume= 86 |issue= 4 |pages= 499–535 |doi= 10.1016/S0016-7878(75)80061-7|bibcode=1975PrGA...86..499H }}</ref>

Overlying the chalk across much of the higher ground on the hill, is a deposit of [[clay-with-flints]]. Although the origins of this layer are uncertain, the clay is thought to have been formed during several periods of glaciation and was produced by [[cryoturbation]] and decalcification of the chalk.<ref name=Gallois>{{cite journal |last1=Gallois |first1= RW |title= The origin of the Clay-with-flints: the missing link|journal=Geoscience in South-West England|date=2009|volume=12|pages=153–161}}</ref> This hypothesis is supported by the presence of flint, which is also found in the underlying strata.<ref name=Gallois/><ref>{{cite web|last1=Anon|title=Clay-with Flints formation|url=http://www.bgs.ac.uk/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?pub=CWF|website=The BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units|publisher=BGS|access-date=3 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170909085950/http://www.bgs.ac.uk/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?pub=CWF|archive-date=9 September 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

The sandy deposits on Headley Heath have their origin in the [[Quaternary]]. The sand and gravels found in this area, indicate the presence of the sea shore.<ref name=Chapman26>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|p=26}}</ref> On Headley Heath, these deposits are thin and the chalk also comes to the surface in several places, allowing [[calcifuge|acid-loving plants]] to thrive alongside those that [[calcicole|prefer alkaline conditions]], producing the rare [[chalk heath]] habitat.<ref name=Tuson-30-31/>

===Wealden uplift and erosion of the North Downs escarpment===

[[File:Western_Weald_geology_cross_section.png|thumb|Simplified geological cross section of the western Weald, showing how the land was uplifted to form the [[Weald-Artois anticline]] (dashed lines) and the strata as they are today (solid lines).]]
Following the Cretaceous, the sea covering the south of England began to retreat and the land was pushed higher. The Weald (the area covering modern day south Surrey, south Kent and north Sussex) was lifted by [[Alpine orogeny|the same geological processes that created the Alps]], resulting in an [[anticline]] which stretched across the [[English Channel]] to the [[Artois|Artois region]] of northern France. Initially an island, this [[Weald-Artois Anticline|dome-like structure]] was drained by the ancestors of the rivers which today cut through the North and South Downs (including the [[River Mole|Mole]], [[River Wey|Wey]], [[River Arun|Arun]] and [[River Adur|Adur]]). The dome was eroded away over the course of the [[Cenozoic]], exposing the strata beneath and resulting in the escarpments of the Downs and the Greensand Ridge.<ref>{{cite book |last1= Gallois |first1= RW |last2= Edmunds |first2= MA |year= 1965 |title= The Wealden District |publisher= British Geological Survey |isbn= 0-11-884078-9}}</ref><ref name=Chapman-geology>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|pp=15–29}}</ref>

Chalk is a relatively soft rock that may be eroded or weathered in a number of different ways. It is porous, able to absorb up to 20% of its dry weight in water,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Burnham CP, Mutter GM |year= 1993 |title= The depth and productivity of chalky soils |journal= Soil Use and Management |volume= 9 |issue= 1 |pages= 1–8 |doi= 10.1111/j.1475-2743.1993.tb00919.x |bibcode= 1993SUMan...9....1B }}</ref> and therefore highly susceptible to weathering by [[frost weathering|freeze-thaw action]], which may occur over repeated annual or [[diurnal cycle|diurnal]] cycles. This frost weathering produces a mix of rubble and viscous mud, which may be washed downhill, further eroding the landscape (a process known as [[solifluction]]).<ref name=MVGS-morphology>{{cite web |url= http://www.mvgs.org.uk/MVGS%20Files/Geomorphology.pdf |title= Geomorphology of the Mole Valley |last= Lester |first= DE |year= 2015 |website= Mole Valley Geological Society |access-date= 17 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171116082746/http://www.mvgs.org.uk/MVGS%20Files/Geomorphology.pdf |archive-date= 16 November 2017 |url-status= live }}</ref> At the west side of Box Hill, the [[hydraulic action]] of the River Mole has cut a cliff known as The Whites and the river bed contains coarse chalk rubble ([[clastic rock|clast]]), which has fallen from the steep slopes above.<ref name=MVGS-morphology/> Since the chalk contains a very high percentage of [[calcium carbonate]], it can be [[Weathering#Chemical weathering|dissolved by ground water]] and solubilisation of the rock at the base of the hill may have produced the slabwise slumping or subsidence visible at the top of the Burford Spur.<ref name=MVGS-morphology/> Finally, rainwater, which is mildly acidic, will dissolve and react with the chalk.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= West G, Dumbleton MJ |s2cid= 129120488 |year= 1972 |title= Some observations on swallow holes and mines in the chalk |journal= Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology |volume= 5 |issue= 1–2 |pages= 171–177 |doi= 10.1144/GSL.QJEG.1972.005.01.16 }}</ref>

[[File:Headley Heath (geograph 5380860).jpg|thumb|One of two steep-sided combes (dry river valleys) on the western side of Headley Heath.]]
The eastern and northern boundaries of Box Hill are defined by [[dry valley|dry river valleys]], now occupied by Pebblehill Road and Headley Lane respectively. These valleys were active during the [[Last Glacial Period|last ice age]], when the chalk bedrock became [[permafrost|frozen]] and [[Permeability (Earth sciences)|impermeable]], forcing water to run over the surface in streams rather than percolating into the ground.<ref name=Chapman-geology/> Both valleys are narrow, twisting and deep, suggesting that they were created by fast flowing torrents, possibly released during periods of rapid [[snowmelt]].<ref name=Chapman-geology/>{{refn|Unlike much of Great Britain, Surrey was never covered by permanent [[ice sheets]]. During the [[Last Glacial Maximum]] (corresponding to [[Marine Isotope Stage 5]] - 130,000 to 80,000 years ago), the ice sheets reached as far south as St Albans, approximately {{convert|55|km|mi}} north of Box Hill.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Gibbard PL, Clark CD |year= 2011 |title=  Pleistocene Glaciation Limits in Great Britain |journal= Developments in Quaternary Science |series= Developments in Quaternary Sciences |volume= 15 |issue= 7 |pages= 75–93 |doi= 10.1016/B978-0-444-53447-7.00007-6|isbn= 9780444534477 }}</ref>|group=note}}

The northern side of Box Hill (corresponding to the [[dip slope]] of the [[cuesta]] of the North Downs) is cut by six [[combe]]s, also created by Ice Age watercourses.<ref name=Chapman-geology/> The westernmost of these combes (between the Burford Spur and Lodge Hill) is climbed by the Zig Zag Road.<ref name=Chapman-geology/> There is a small reservoir to the west of High Ashurst at the base of the Bullen Wood combe, which is not accessible to the public. All six combes contained tributaries of the stream that created the Headley Valley, which joined the [[River Mole]] near Fredley, [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham]].<ref>{{harvnb|Hutchings|Bridges|Sankey|1969|p=10}}</ref>

===Quarries and lime kilns===
[[File:Betchworth limekiln - geograph.org.uk - 869914.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The Smidth Kiln at [[Betchworth Quarry and Lime Kilns|Betchworth Quarry]] was constructed in around 1901.<ref name=NHL_Betchworth>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1021346}}</ref>]]
Chalk and flint have been quarried from Box Hill and the surrounding area for many centuries. There are limited surviving examples of the incorporation of chalk blocks (or [[clunch]]) into the stonework of local buildings (including [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham Church]]).<ref name=Shepperd112>{{harvnb|Shepperd|1991|p=112}}</ref> Walls made of flints, bound together by [[lime mortar]], are particularly common in [[Surrey]]<ref name=Bannister22>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=22}}</ref> and [[calcium oxide|quicklime]] could be produced with relative ease, by heating chalk above {{convert|825|C|F}} in a [[lime kiln|kiln]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Stecher |first= Paul G |year= 1968 |title= The Merck index : an encyclopedia of chemicals and drugs |location= Rahway NJ |publisher= Merck |edition= 8th}}</ref>

Evidence remains of the small-scale chalk quarrying that occurred prior to the [[Industrial Revolution]], including chalk pits both at Warren Farm and close to the Burford Bridge Hotel.<ref name=Bannister22/> The opening of the [[North Downs Line|Dorking to Reigate railway line]] at the bottom of the hill in 1849, enabled new quarry faces to be opened at [[Brockham]]<ref name=NHL_Brockham>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1021322}}</ref> and [[Betchworth]].<ref name=NHL_Betchworth/> Sidings were provided adjacent to the main line and there was an extensive network of narrow-gauge railway tracks at both sites.<ref name=NHL_Betchworth/><ref name=NHL_Brockham/> The [[Brockham Limeworks]] closed in 1935, however a battery of eight kilns (dating from 1870) still stands and is Grade II listed.<ref name=NHL_Brockham/> The larger [[Betchworth Quarry and Lime Kilns]] (approximately 1&nbsp;km to the east) closed in 1960 and a variety of different kiln types have been preserved and protected with a Grade II listing.<ref name=NHL_Betchworth/> The two sites have been designated as Nature Reserves and are managed by [[Surrey Wildlife Trust]].<ref name=SWT_Betchworth>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/betchworth-quarry-lime-kilns |title= Betchworth Quarry & Lime Kilns |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= Surrey Wildlife Trust |access-date= 23 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181024192136/https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/betchworth-quarry-lime-kilns |archive-date= 24 October 2018 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=SWT_Brockham>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/brockham-limeworks |title= Brockham Limeworks |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= Surrey Wildlife Trust |access-date= 23 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181024192038/https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/brockham-limeworks |archive-date= 24 October 2018 |url-status= live }}</ref> A wide range of bat species now roost in the former kilns.<ref name=SWT_Betchworth/><ref name=SWT_Brockham/>

Gravel was quarried on the northern side of Headley Heath during the 18th and early 19th centuries, most likely to provide material for building local roads.

===Fossils===
Numerous [[fossil]]s, typical of species living in a warm, shallow sea, have been found in the chalk at Box Hill, including [[brachiopod]]s (''[[Terebratulina gracilis]]'', ''Terebratulina carnea'' and ''Rhynchonella cuvieri''), [[arthropod]]s (''Janira quinquecostatus''), [[bivalvia|bivalves]] (''Spondylus spinosus'' and ''Ostrea hippodium''), [[sea urchin|urchins]] (''Holaster planus'', ''Micraster leskei'') and [[sponge]]s (''Plinthosella squamata'').<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Young GW |year= 1905 |title= The chalk area of north-east Surrey |journal= Proc. Geol. Assoc. |volume= 19 |issue= 4 |pages= 188–219 |doi= 10.1016/S0016-7878(05)80074-4 |bibcode= 1905PrGA...19..188Y |url= https://zenodo.org/record/1702213 |access-date= 21 August 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103255/https://zenodo.org/record/1702213 |url-status= live }}</ref>

==Ecology==
===Conservation===
[[File:Belted Galloway Cattle on Box Hill, Surrey.jpg|thumb|[[Belted Galloway]] cattle grazing the Burford Spur on the north western side of the hill.]]
Box Hill is part of the [[Surrey Hills National Landscape]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreyhills.org/board/map-of-the-aonb/ |title= Map of the AONB |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Surrey Hills AONB |publisher= Surrey Hills Society |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191017123321/https://www.surreyhills.org/board/map-of-the-aonb/ |archive-date= 17 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> The vast majority of the publicly accessible areas of the hill that are managed by the National Trust and Surrey Wildlife Trust, form part of the [[Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment]] [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] and have been designated a [[Special Area of Conservation]].<ref name=dsv>{{cite web |url=  https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteDetail.aspx?SiteCode=S1000977&SiteName=&countyCode=41&responsiblePerson=&SeaArea=&IFCAArea= |title=  Designated Sites View: Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment |series=  Sites of Special Scientific Interest |publisher=  Natural England |access-date=  9 November 2018 |archive-url=  https://web.archive.org/web/20181130071609/https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteDetail.aspx?SiteCode=S1000977&SiteName=&countyCode=41&responsiblePerson=&SeaArea=&IFCAArea= |archive-date=  30 November 2018 |url-status=  live }}</ref><ref name=map>{{cite web|url= https://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271000977%27|title= Map of Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment|series= Sites of Special Scientific Interest|publisher= Natural England|access-date= 9 November 2018|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234625/http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D'1000977'|archive-date= 3 March 2016|url-status= live}}</ref>

The chalk downland of Box Hill provides a habitat for a wide range of plant species, which in turn support a varied population of insect species. The alkaline soils are thin and nutrient poor, which prevents deeper-rooted lush grasses (with a high water demand) from dominating. Each square metre of chalk downland may support up to 40 different species.<ref name=Tuson-27>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/whats-special-about-chalk-grassland |title= What's special about chalk grassland? |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= National Trust |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191025110151/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/whats-special-about-chalk-grassland |archive-date= 25 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

Without careful management, the grassland would [[ecological succession|revert to woodland]] and so these areas of the hill are [[conservation grazing|grazed]] in order to prevent [[shrubland|scrub]] from becoming overestablished.<ref name=SWT_CG/>{{refn|Although its spread is often considered undesirable, scrub provides valuable habitat for a range of invertebrates on Box Hill, including the [[Helix pomatia|Roman snail]], [[rufous grasshopper]] and the [[dark green fritillary]].<ref name=FOBH+NT_Woodland>{{cite web |url= http://www.friendsofboxhill.org.uk/what-we-do-3/conservation/ |title= Box Hill Woodland Plan 2009: The condition and habitat management of the woodland compartments of Box Hill |last1= Dawson |first1= Mark |last2= Creasey |first2= Peter |year= 2009 |website= Friends of Box Hill |location= Dorking |access-date= 27 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191027151825/http://www.friendsofboxhill.org.uk/what-we-do-3/conservation/ |archive-date= 27 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>|group=note}} Both the National Trust and Surrey Wildlife Trust use [[Belted Galloway]] cattle (affectionately nicknamed 'Belties'), which crop the grass less hard than other grazers and allow the more delicate wild flowers (including orchids) to flourish.<ref name=SWT_CG/><ref name=NT_CG/> At Betchworth Quarry, Surrey Wildlife Trust allows goats to graze, which can eat woodier plants such as [[Ulex europaeus|gorse]] and [[bramble]].<ref name=SWT_CG/> [[European rabbit|Rabbits]] also make a significant contribution to the control of scrub and coarse grasses on the hill, although their numbers have declined since the introduction of [[myxomatosis]] in 1953.<ref>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|p=95}}</ref>

[[File:Olympic Rings Box Hill-by-Ian-Capper.jpg|thumb|[[Olympic symbols#Olympic rings|Olympic Rings]] were installed at the viewpoint in July 2012.<ref>{{cite news |author= <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= London 2012: Box Hill Olympic road race rings unveiled |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-18920560 |work= BBC News |location= London |date= 20 July 2012 |access-date= 25 October 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120829135155/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-18920560 |archive-date= 29 August 2012 |url-status= live }}</ref>]]
For any conservation area, it is important to find a balance between the interests of people visiting and the needs of the wildlife that it seeks to protect. After the announcement that the Olympic cycling road races would be routed over the hill, concerns were expressed that habitats would be damaged during the event.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/olympics/olympics-road-race-not-in-our-box-hill-55729 |title= Olympics road race: Not in our Box Hill |last= Bingham |first= Keith |date= 15 December 2010 |website= Cycling Weekly |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191025211742/https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/olympics/olympics-road-race-not-in-our-box-hill-55729 |archive-date= 25 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> Scrub clearance along the side of the Zig Zag Road to provide space for spectators began in January 2012, after a pre-race survey (commissioned by the [[London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games]]) showed that the work was likely to increase biodiversity.<ref>{{cite news |author= <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= London 2012: Box Hill woodland scrub cleared for spectators |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-17090065 |work= BBC News |location= London |date= 19 February 2012 |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191026040141/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-17090065 |archive-date= 26 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> A second ecological survey, performed after the Games, showed that no significant damage had occurred, although some areas were subsequently reseeded.<ref>{{cite news |last= Martin |first= Guy |date= 3 August 2012 |title= 'Gold medal' for Box Hill cycling wildlife protection |url= https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/gold-medal-box-hill-cycling-4809320 |work= Surrey Live |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191025211741/https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/gold-medal-box-hill-cycling-4809320 |archive-date= 25 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Biodiversity===
{{multiple image
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 | footer = [[Dactylorhiza fuchsii|Common spotted]] (left) and [[Herminium monorchis|musk]] (right) orchids growing on Box Hill.
 | image1 = Common_Spotted_Orchid_(Dactylorhiza_fuchsii)_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1359262.jpg
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 | image2 = Musk Orchid (Herminium monorchis) - geograph.org.uk - 863983.jpg
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The chalk downland environment supports notable populations of [[bat]]s, [[lepidopterans]], [[orchids]] and the hill's [[namesake]], the box tree (''[[Buxus sempervirens]]'').<ref>[http://www.boxhill.org.uk/visitors/downland.html Box Hill Community Website] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080306220756/http://www.boxhill.org.uk/visitors/downland.html |date=6 March 2008 }} Retrieved 4 February 2008</ref>

====Orchids====
A large number of species of [[orchid]] have been recorded on Box Hill, including [[Spiranthes spiralis|autumn lady's-tresses]], [[Ophrys apifera|bee orchids]], [[Neottia nidus-avis|bird's-nest orchids]], [[Epipactis helleborine|broad-leaved helleborines]], [[Dactylorhiza fuchsii|common spotted orchids]], [[Neottia ovata|common twayblades]], [[Gymnadenia conopsea|fragrant orchids]], [[Anacamptis pyramidalis|pyramidal orchids]] and [[Cephalanthera damasonium|white helleborines]].<ref>{{harvnb|Sankey|2000|p=3}}</ref>

====Other wild flowers====
[[Allium ursinum|Wild garlic]] grows alongside [[Hyacinthoides non-scripta|bluebells]] under the tree canopy beside the River Mole at the western edge of the hill, giving the area its distinctive smell in springtime.<ref name=FOBH+NT_Woodland/>

====Aquatic plants====
''[[Damasonium alisma]]'' (starfruit) was reintroduced to Headley Heath in 2013 using seeds from the [[Wakehurst Place#Millennium Seed Bank|Millennium Seed Bank]], having been absent since 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://plantlife.love-wildflowers.org.uk/uploads/documents/Damasonium_alisma_dossier.pdf |last=Wheeler |first=Belinda |title=I Damasonium alisma Miller |publisher=Plant Lifeg |date=13 February 2007 |access-date=12 May 2020 |archive-date=2 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103052/https://plantlife.love-wildflowers.org.uk/uploads/documents/Damasonium_alisma_dossier.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> It is now found in Brimmer Pond (half of which is enclosed to prevent habitat disturbance by dogs) and also in Heath House Pond.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/2019-Starfruit-Survey-Report.pdf |title= Notes on surveys of sites known to have supported Damasonium alisma in recent years |last1= Lansdown |first1= RV |last2= McVeigh |first2= A |date= September 2019 |website= Freshwater Habitats Trust |access-date= 14 May 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103052/https://freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/2019-Starfruit-Survey-Report.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref>

====Trees====
[[File:The Whites Box Hill- geograph.org.uk - 1503979.jpg|thumb|Yew and box trees growing on the west side of the hill.{{refn|The [[cut bank|cliff above the River Mole]] is so steep and the [[orthent|soil is so shallow]] that the bare chalk rock is exposed in several places.|group=note}}]]
The [[Buxus sempervirens|box]] and [[Taxus baccata|yew]] woodland, on the steep-sloping sides of the hill above the River Mole, is of international importance. Common [[Canopy (biology)|canopy-layer]] species include [[Fagus sylvatica|beech]], [[Fraxinus excelsior|ash]] and [[Quercus robur|oak]]. [[Understory|Understorey]] species include [[Ilex aquifolium|holly]], [[Corylus avellana|hazel]], [[Sambucus|elder]] and [[honeysuckle]].<ref name=FOBH+NT_Woodland/>

[[Invasive species]] found on the hill include [[Buddleja|buddleia]], [[Prunus laurocerasus|cherry laurel]], [[Reynoutria japonica|Japanese knot weed]] and [[Solidago canadensis|Canadian goldenrod]]. [[Boxwood blight]], a [[pathogenic fungus|fungal disease]] caused by [[Cylindrocladium|''Cylindrocladium buxicola'']], is widespread.<ref name=FOBH+NT_Woodland/>

====Bats====
Several abandoned brick and concrete structures provide habitats for [[bat]]s and grills have been placed over their entrances to protect the roosting sites.<ref name=NHL_Betchworth/><ref name=NHL_Brockham/> Three species are known to inhabit the old Box Hill Fort: the [[brown long-eared bat]], the [[common noctule|noctule bat]] and [[Natterer's bat]].<ref>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=22}}</ref> The brown long-eared bat, Natterer's bat, the [[whiskered bat]] and [[Daubenton's bat]] have been recorded at both Betchworth and Brockham quarries.<ref name=SWT_Betchworth/><ref name=SWT_Brockham/> [[Brandt's bat]] has been recorded at Betchworth;<ref name=SWT_Betchworth/> [[Bechstein's bat]] and the [[common pipistrelle]] have been recorded at Brockham.<ref name=SWT_Brockham/>

====Butterflies and moths====
 {{multiple image
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 | footer = [[Chalkhill blue]] (left) and [[Melanargia galathea|marbled white]] (right) butterflies on [[Centaurea nigra|knapweed]] flowers on Box Hill.
 | image1 = Lysandra coridon on Box Hill.jpg
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 | caption1 = 
 | image2 = Melanargia galathea on Box Hill-by-Ian-Capper.jpg
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 }}
Box Hill supports 38 different species of butterflies.<ref name=Surrey_Skipper/> Species include [[Hesperia comma|silver-spotted skipper]], [[Adonis blue]] and [[Lysandra coridon|chalkhill blue]] (grassland);<ref name=Surrey_Skipper/> [[brown hairstreak]] (scrub);<ref name=Surrey_Skipper/> [[Apatura iris|purple emperor]] and [[Limenitis camilla|white admiral]] (woodland).<ref name=Butterfly_Conservation_Species_List>{{cite web |url= https://butterfly-conservation.org/in-your-area/surrey-and-sw-london-branch/sites-species |title= Sites & Species |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Butterfly Conservation |access-date= 5 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200706140214/https://butterfly-conservation.org/in-your-area/surrey-and-sw-london-branch/sites-species |archive-date= 6 July 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref> The  [[small pearl-bordered fritillary]] was present on the hill in the 1970s,<ref>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|p=97}}</ref> but has not been recorded locally since 1997.<ref name=Butterfly_Conservation_Species_List/>

[[Anthyllis vulneraria|Kidney vetch]], growing in the Zig Zag Valley and below the Viewpoint, supports populations of the [[small blue]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/CausewayDocList/DocServlet?ref=MO/2012/0536&docid=404511 |title= Box Hill Ecological Report, November, 2011 |website= Mole Valley District Council |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103210/https://www.molevalley.gov.uk/CausewayDocList/DocServlet?ref=MO%2F2012%2F0536&docid=404511 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/1-skipper-2017-10.pdf |title= Small Blue update |last= Jeffcoate |first= Gail |year= 2017 |website= Surrey Skipper |publisher= Butterfly Conservation |access-date= 25 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200128164700/https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/1-skipper-2017-10.pdf |archive-date= 28 January 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref> To create new habitats for the butterflies, a number of ‘scrapes’ were excavated in the late 2010s, exposing bare chalk on which vetch can become established with minimal competition. Buddleia removal was also initiated as part of the same programme.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/Surrey%20Small%20Blue%20Stepping%20Stones%20Report%202019-10b.pdf |title= Report: Surrey Small Blue Stepping Stones Project 2017 to 2019 |last= Haynes |first= Fiona |year= 2019 |publisher= Butterfly Conservation |access-date= 5 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200128164825/https://butterfly-conservation.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/Surrey%20Small%20Blue%20Stepping%20Stones%20Report%202019-10b.pdf |archive-date= 28 January 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref>

Rare moth species found on the hill include the [[Aspitates gilvaria|straw belle]], [[Scotopteryx bipunctaria|chalk carpet]], [[Scopula ornata|lace border]], [[Synanthedon andrenaeformis|orange-tailed clearwing]] and the [[Phyllonorycter scabiosella|Surrey midget moth]].<ref name=Surrey_Skipper/>

====Other insects====
The hill has given its name to a species of [[Coreidae|squash bug]], now found throughout south-east England.<ref name=british_bugs/>

==Recreation==
[[File:Box_Hill_Salomons_Memorial.jpg|thumb|Salomons Memorial viewpoint, looking south, in 2010]]

===Box Hill Country Park===
The western part of Box Hill, managed by the [[National Trust]], was designated a [[Country Park]] in 1971<ref name=Littledate5>{{harvnb|Littledale|Locock|Sankey|1984|p=5}}</ref> and some of the outbuildings associated with the Box Hill Fort are in use as a visitor centre, gift shop and servery.<ref name=Littledate24/> In 2011, a ''Natural Play Trail'' was constructed close to the visitor centre, cofunded by the National Trust and the Friends of Box Hill.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreylife.co.uk/out-about/walks/national-trust-s-new-natural-play-trail-at-box-hill-1-1644611 |title= National Trust's new natural play trail at Box Hill |last= Brien |first= Emma |date= 24 November 2011 |website= Surrey Life |access-date= 29 February 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200229122938/https://www.surreylife.co.uk/out-about/walks/national-trust-s-new-natural-play-trail-at-box-hill-1-1644611 |archive-date= 29 February 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref>

On the hill there are [[Parking lot|car parks]]<ref>{{cite news |author= <!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= Box Hill, Surrey: walk of the week |url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/activityandadventure/walkingholidays/8356605/Box-Hill-Surrey-walk-of-the-week.html |date= 2 March 2011 |access-date= 19 October 2019 |work= Daily Telegraph |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110309211404/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/activityandadventure/walkingholidays/8356605/Box-Hill-Surrey-walk-of-the-week.html |archive-date= 9 March 2011 |url-status= live }}</ref> and a panoramic view over the [[Weald]] towards the [[South Downs]] may be enjoyed from the Salomons Memorial (more commonly known as the viewpoint).{{refn|A common misconception is that the Salomons Memorial (at {{convert|172|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[Ordnance Datum|above OD]]) marks the highest point of the hill, however the land continues to rise to the east. The true summit of the hill is at Betchworth Clump at {{convert|224|m|ft|abbr=on}} above OD and is currently occupied by a water tower and transmitter mast.<ref name=Wooldridge_1957_79/> |group=note}}<ref name=Littledate5/> Juniper Top, on the northern side of the hill, offers views to the northwest towards [[Windsor Castle]].<ref name=Littledate5/>

The Country Park is crisscrossed by a large number of [[footpath]]s and [[bridle path|bridleways]], and there are several signposted, self-guided trails.

===Cycling===
{{Infobox cycling hill climb
| name = Zig Zag Road
| image = RW1_3172.jpg
| image_size = 240
| image_alt =
| caption = Prudential Ride-London 100: Amateur cyclists ascending the Zig Zag Road (July 2016)
| max_elevation_m = 175
| location = Box Hill, Surrey
| start = 
| altitude_m = 120
| length_km = 2.5
| gradient = 5.0
| maxgradient = 7.3
| website = [https://www.surreyhills.org/discover-route/box-hill-olympic-route/ Box Hill Olympic Circuit] }} 
Box Hill has been popular with cyclists since the 1880s<ref>{{cite journal |year= 1883 |title=Unknown title |journal= London Bicycle Club Gazette |volume= 6 |page= 147 }}</ref> and by the 1890s, Dorking Cycle Club was organising camps for amateur cyclists from across the south east of England.<ref name=Tuson-10>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=10}}</ref>{{refn|In February 2017 the ''Sunday Times'' newspaper identified Box Hill as one of the top six rural cycling accident blackspots in the UK, stating that seven accidents on the Zig Zag Road had been reported to the Police in 2015.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Hookham |first= M |date= 12 February 2017 |title= Roundabout is UK's deadliest spot for cyclists |journal= The Sunday Times  |location= London |publisher= News International }}</ref>|group=note}} The [[Cycling at the 2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Summer Olympic cycling]] road races included {{convert|15.8|km|mi|adj=on|abbr=on}} mid-race circuits of Box Hill.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreyhills.org/discover-route/box-hill-olympic-route/ |title= Box Hill Olympic Route |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Surrey Hills |access-date= 17 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191017110024/https://www.surreyhills.org/discover-route/box-hill-olympic-route/ |archive-date= 17 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> An estimated 15,000 spectators travelled to the hill on 28 July 2012 to watch the men's race, which included nine circuits<ref name=Tuson-11>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=11}}</ref> and the following day, competitors in the women's race climbed Box Hill twice.<ref name=Tuson-12>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=12}}</ref><ref name="guardian1"/>

The {{convert|15.8|km|mi|adj=on|abbr=on}} Box Hill Olympic circuit is generally cycled in an [[clockwise|anticlockwise]] direction and begins to the south of the village of [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham]] with an ascent of the hill via the Zig Zag Road. From the National Trust Visitor Centre, the route turns eastwards, running along the escarpment and through the urban area of Box Hill village, reaching a maximum elevation of {{convert|216|m|ft}} above [[Ordnance Datum]]. After {{convert|6.6|km|mi}} the route turns northwest along the B2033, passing through the village of [[Headley, Surrey|Headley]]. After {{convert|9.5|km|mi}}, the circuit begins a continuous descent to the valley of the [[River Mole]], passing to the south of [[Leatherhead]], before turning southwards again through Mickleham to return to the start.

The Zig Zag Road is a steady climb of {{convert|120|m}} over {{convert|2.5|km}} and has, although on a much smaller scale, been likened to the [[Alpe d'Huez]] in the French Alps.<ref>{{harvnb|Warren|2010|p=37}}</ref>{{refn|On 15 August 2014 Ciaran O'Hara and Roger Barr cycled up the hill 73 times to complete a challenge known as ''Everesting'', in which cyclists repeatedly climb a hill to gain the same vertical elevation (8848&nbsp;m) as [[Mount Everest]].<ref>{{cite journal |last= Smurthwaite |first= T |date= 16 August 2014 |title= Everest attempt succeeds at Box Hill |url= http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/everest-attempt-succeeds-box-hill-7627204 |journal= GetSurrey |publisher= Trinity Mirror |access-date= 30 August 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140903052857/http://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/everest-attempt-succeeds-box-hill-7627204 |archive-date= 3 September 2014 |url-status= live }}</ref>|group=note}} The exact date of construction is uncertain: The road first appears on the Ordnance Survey map of 1869,<ref name=Bannister24>{{harvnb|Bannister|1999|p=24}}</ref> but is not shown in a [[watercolor painting|watercolour painting]] dated 1861 by [[William Leighton Leitch]], which is owned by the [[Royal Collection]].<ref name=Littledale15/><ref name=Leitch>{{cite web |url= https://www.rct.uk/collection/923641/box-hill-surrey |title= Box Hill, Surrey – WILLIAM LEIGHTON LEITCH, 1861 |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= The Royal Collection |publisher= Royal Collection Trust |access-date= 14 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191014212400/https://www.rct.uk/collection/923641/box-hill-surrey |archive-date= 14 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> The Zig Zag Road is not a public [[Rights of way in England and Wales|right of way]] and is closed for one day each year by the National Trust, to preserve its [[private road]] status.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title= Box Hill May Get Toll |work= The Times |location= London |date= 18 January 1962 |issue= 55292 |page= 12}}</ref>

As part of the 2011 [[London Prepares series]], the [[London–Surrey Cycle Classic]] for professional cyclists was organised to test the Olympic course.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/14521435|title=Mark Cavendish wins London 2012 road race test event|author=Ollie Williams|work=BBC News|publisher=BBC Sport|date=14 August 2011|access-date=18 August 2011|archive-date=2 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102102048/https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/14521435|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100]] and [[London–Surrey Classic]], for amateur and professional cyclists respectively, have taken place annually following the Games and, although the course has undergone several alterations from the 2012 Olympic course, the two races always include a climb of Box Hill.

===High Ashurst===
{{Main|High Ashurst}}
High Ashurst is an [[outdoor education]] and [[outdoor recreation|activity]] centre on the northern side of Box Hill, adjacent to Headley Heath. The centre is run by Surrey Outdoor Learning and Development on behalf of [[Surrey County Council]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreyoutdoorlearning.uk |title= Surrey Outdoor Learning and Development |author= <!--Not stated--> |access-date= 16 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191016222640/https://www.surreyoutdoorlearning.uk/ |archive-date= 16 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref> Previously the site comprised the grounds of a country house, which was demolished in the 1970s, having been derelict for several decades.

===Boidier Hurst campsite===
The District [[The Scout Association|Scout Associations]] of [[Leatherhead]] and [[Epsom and Ewell]] own a {{convert|10|acre|ha|adj=on|order=flip}} [[campsite]], located between Box Hill village and Headley Heath.<ref name=Boidier_index>{{cite web |url= http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/index.html |title= Boidier Hurst Scout campsite |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Boidier Hurst Scout campsite |access-date= 1 March 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200301083815/http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/index.html |archive-date= 1 March 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=Boidier_site>{{cite web |url= http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/the-site.html |title= The site |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Boidier Hurst Scout campsite |access-date= 1 March 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200301083814/http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/the-site.html |archive-date= 1 March 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref> There are 11 areas for pitching groups of tents, set within [[coppicing|coppiced]] [[Aesculus hippocastanum|chestnut]] woodland. Washing, toilet facilities and a kitchen are available.<ref name=Boidier_site/><ref name=Boidier_Manly>{{cite web |url= http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/manly-building.html |title= The Manly Building |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Boidier Hurst Scout campsite |access-date= 1 March 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200301083815/http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/manly-building.html |archive-date= 1 March 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref> Use of Boidier Hurst is restricted to members of The Scout Association, [[Girlguiding|The Guide Association]] and to local school groups on [[The Duke of Edinburgh's Award|Duke of Edinburgh's Award]] expeditions.<ref name=Boidier_index/>

==Points of interest==
===Betchworth Clump===
The highest point on Box Hill is immediately to the east of Box Hill village at {{convert|224|m|ft|abbr=on}} [[Ordnance Datum|above OD]].<ref name=Wooldridge_1957_79/> The area is known as Betchworth Clump after a distinctive group of beech trees, which were present at the start of the 20th century.<ref>{{cite book |last= Malden |first= Henry Elliot |year= 1902–1914 |title= The Victoria history of the county of Surrey  |location= Westminster |publisher= Archibald Constable |page= 166 }}</ref> Today, the dense woodland at the summit conceals a [[water tower]] and [[Radio masts and towers|transmitter mast]], neither of which are accessible to the public.

The concrete water tower was built in 1930 by East Surrey Water, the forerunner of [[SES Water]]. The structure was refurbished in 2009 to extend its working life by at least 25 years; modifications included the relining of the water bowl, repair of cracks in the walls and roof, as well as the provision of a new access staircase.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.edie.net/library/CRL-gets-started-on-water-tower-repairs/5046 |title= CRL gets started on water tower repairs |author= <!--Not stated--> |date= 10 June 2009 |website= edie.net |access-date= 1 March 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103226/https://www.edie.net/library/CRL-gets-started-on-water-tower-repairs/5046 |url-status= live }}</ref>

The 30m-high mobile phone mast was constructed in 2003 and is operated by [[Vodafone]] and [[EE Limited]].

===Broadwood's Folly===
[[File:Broadwood's_Tower-cropped.jpg|thumb|Broadwood's Folly was built in around 1820.<ref name=NHL_Broadwood>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1391454}}</ref> Part of the Zig Zag Road is visible to the right of the tower.]]
The circular flint tower located on the northern tip of Lodge Hill was built for the piano maker [[Broadwood and Sons|Thomas Broadwood]], who purchased [[Juniper Hall]] in 1815.<ref>{{harvnb|Wainwright|1982|p=338}}</ref><ref name=BLB_Broadwood>{{cite web |url= http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-494323-the-broadwood-folly-at-juniper-hall-dork |title= The Broadwood Folly at Juniper Hall, Mickleham |author= Goodge M |year= 2005 |publisher= British Listed Buildings |access-date= 28 April 2011 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103313/https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101391454-the-broadwood-folly-at-juniper-hall-mickleham |url-status= live }}</ref> It is approximately {{convert|8|m|ft}} high and originally had two internal floors, linked by a spiral staircase. The original doorway is visible on the east side, but has been sealed with rough flints. An avenue of beech trees linked the folly to Juniper Hall, although these were destroyed by the [[Great Storm of 1987]].<ref name=NHL_Broadwood/> The tower may have been built to commemorate the [[Battle of Waterloo]].<ref>{{harvnb|Headley|Meulenkamp|1986|p=118}}</ref>

A [[sparkling wine]], produced by [[Denbies Wine Estate]] for the [[Lidl]] supermarket chain, has been named after the folly.<ref>{{cite news |last= Williams |first= David |date= 18 September 2016 |title= National treasures: Welcome to the new world of English and Welsh wines |url= https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/sep/18/six-of-the-best-english-wines |work= The Guardian |location= London |access-date= 26 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191026113708/https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/sep/18/six-of-the-best-english-wines |archive-date= 26 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Labilliere's grave===
[[File:Peter Labelliere's grave, Box Hill.JPG|upright|thumb|Labilliere's tombstone]]

[[Peter Labilliere]] was born in [[Dublin]] on 30 May 1725 to a family of French [[Huguenot]] descent. He joined the British Army at the age of 14, becoming a major in 1760.<ref>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=7–8}}</ref> After leaving the army he became a political agitator and was accused in 1775 of bribing British troops not to fight in the American War of Independence, although he was never tried for treason.<ref name=Lander_20-21>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=20–21}}</ref>

After moving to Dorking in around 1789,<ref name=Lander_20-21/> Labilliere often visited Box Hill to meditate.<ref name=Lander_35-36>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=35–36}}</ref> With old age he became increasingly eccentric and neglected his own personal hygiene to such an extent that he acquired the nickname "the walking dung-hill".<ref name=Lander_35-36/> He died on 6 June 1800.<ref name=Timbs>{{harvnb|Timbs|1877}}</ref> In accordance with his wishes he was [[Burial#Inverted burial|buried head downwards]], on 11 June on the western side of Box Hill above The Whites. In the presence of a crowd of thousands that included visitors from London as well as the local "quality gentry",<ref name=Timbs/><ref>[https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/nostalgia/major-peter-labelliere-strange-history-13643026 Major Peter Labelliere: Strange history of man buried upside down atop Box Hill] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226091910/https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/nostalgia/major-peter-labelliere-strange-history-13643026 |date=26 February 2018 }}, Surrey Mirror, by W. H. Chouler, July 1963</ref> Labilliere was buried without any religious ceremony, having reportedly said that the world was "topsy-turvey" and that it would be righted in the end if he were interred thus. However, in his "Book of Devotions", he wrote that he wished to emulate the example of [[Saint Peter|St Peter]], who was [[Cross of St. Peter|crucified upside-down]] according to tradition.<ref>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|pp=39–40}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last= Gittings |first= Clare |s2cid= 143937885 |date= 20 November 2017 |title= Eccentric or enlightened? Unusual burial and commemoration in England, 1689 - 1823 |journal= Mortality |volume= 12 |issue= 4 |pages= 321–349 |doi= 10.1080/13576270701609667}}</ref>

The current memorial stone on Box Hill is not believed to mark the exact location of his burial (which is thought to be several metres to the west on a steep incline). There are two errors on the stone itself: He was buried in ''June'' 1800 (rather than July) and all surviving manuscripts indicate that he spelt his name Lab'''i'''lliere (rather than Lab'''e'''lliere).<ref>{{harvnb|Lander|2000|p=6}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=No |first=Doilum |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/doilum/387839851/ |title=Box Hill, Surrey sur Flickr : partage de photos ! |publisher=Flickr.com |access-date=27 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916082840/http://www.flickr.com/photos/doilum/387839851 |archive-date=16 September 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Weypole and Stepping Stones===
[[File:Stepping stones.jpg|right|thumb|The Stepping Stones at the foot of Box Hill. The photograph is taken from the west bank of the Mole, looking across the river to the Weypole.]]
The ''Weypole'' (or ''Waypole'') is a roughly semi-circular {{convert|2.4|ha|acre|abbr=on|adj=on}} area of level ground at the foot of Box Hill, between The Whites and the River Mole.<ref name="NT_acq"/> The area was originally part of the grounds of Burford Lodge, built by John Eckersall in 1776, and the apple and cherry trees in the area suggest that it was used as an orchard for a time.<ref>{{harvnb|Chapman|Young|1979|p=164}}</ref> The Burford Lodge estate was later owned by the horticulturalist [[Sir Trevor Lawrence, 2nd Baronet|Sir Trevor Lawrence]], who created a garden along the banks of the Mole for his collection of orchids.<ref>{{harvnb|Chadwick|Chadwick|2006|p=121}}</ref>

A ford across the River Mole is thought to have existed here since prehistoric times.<ref name=Margary_52/><ref>{{harvnb|Ashton|Blight|2006|p=65}}</ref> The ''way-pole'' was a notched post, secured in the riverbed, that indicated the depth of the water.<ref>{{cite journal |author=A Son of the Marshed |year=1890 |title=A Surrey River |journal= The Living Age |volume= 185 |issue=2395 |pages=486–497 |publisher=Littell}}</ref> Stepping stones at this site are first recorded in 1841 and they may have been installed by an owner of Burford Lodge to facilitate access to the Weypole orchard.<ref>{{harvnb|Brayley|Britton|1841|p=179}}</ref> The crossing was formally reopened on 11 September 1946 by Prime Minister [[Clement Attlee]], at the request of [[James Chuter Ede]], local politician and Attlee's Home Secretary.<ref>Chuter Ede papers collection, Surrey History Centre, 6408/13</ref> The new stones replaced those removed during World War II as an anti-invasion measure.<ref name=Telegraph_walk/><ref>{{cite magazine |year= 1946 |title= Picture of the Week |magazine= Life |volume= 21 |issue= 13 |page= 36 |publisher= Time Inc.}}</ref>{{refn|Chuter Ede paid for the reinstatement of the stones, a total of £156 19s 6d. He commented that the cost of the work was "considerably higher than I expected".<ref>{{harvnb|Hart|2021|pp=180–181}}</ref>|group=note}}

The spot is popular with both anglers and families, although swimming is strongly discouraged. The stones give their name to the pub in the nearby village of [[Westhumble]].

===Other===
The [[Burford Bridge Hotel]] and [[Juniper Hall]] Field Studies Centre lie at the foot of Box Hill close to the river Mole. Both are rich in historical associations with famous visitors and residents.

==Notable former residents==
===John Logie Baird===
[[John Logie Baird]] (1888-1946), the inventor of the [[history of television|first working television system]], lived at Box Hill from 1929 until 1932.<ref>{{harvnb|Burns|2000|page=205}}</ref> He had first demonstrated the new technology in early 1926,<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= McLean DF |s2cid= 110636009 |year= 2014 |title= The Achievement of Television: The Quality and Features of John Logie Baird's System in 1926 |journal= International Journal for the History of Engineering & Technology |volume= 84 |issue= 2 |pages= 227–247 |doi=10.1179/1758120614Z.00000000048 }}</ref> and continued with his work when he moved to Swiss Cottage on the top of the hill. He installed a small-scale electricity generating plant in a purpose-built outbuilding, to provide electrical power for his experiments, which included test transmissions to the roof of the Red Lion [[pub]] in [[Dorking]] High Street.<ref name=NHL_Baird>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1393745}}</ref> He also demonstrated his Noctovisor, an [[infrared]] viewing device, which was designed to enable ships to see each other at night or in fog.<ref name=NHL_Baird/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://geocities.com/neveyaakov/electro_science/baird.html |title=Baird |date=27 October 2009 |access-date=27 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027123028/http://geocities.com/neveyaakov/electro_science/baird.html |archive-date=27 October 2009 }}</ref>

Swiss Cottage was built in the mid-19th century and is protected by a Grade II listing. It is not accessible to the public.<ref name=NHL_Baird/>

===Brodie family===
Brockham Warren was the family seat of the [[Brodie baronets]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/surrey/vol3/pp166-173 |title=Parishes: Betchworth |work=A History of the County of Surrey |publisher=[[Victoria County History]] |page=167}}</ref><ref name=Brockham_Brodie>{{cite web |url= http://www.brockhamhistory.org/brockham-people/sir-benjamin-collins-brodie/ |title= Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie |last= Hines |first= T |website= Brockham History |access-date= 29 July 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103125/http://www.brockhamhistory.org/brockham-people/sir-benjamin-collins-brodie/ |url-status= live }}</ref> [[Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, 1st Baronet]] (1783-1862) was a [[physiologist]] and [[surgery|surgeon]], who performed pioneering research into bone and joint diseases. He served as sergeant-surgeon to both [[William IV of the United Kingdom|William IV]] and subsequently [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]]. He was made a [[baronet]] in 1834 and was President of the [[Royal Society]] from 1858 to 1861.<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=1|wstitle=Brodie, Sir Benjamin Collins|volume=4|page=625}}</ref> His son, [[Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, 2nd Baronet]] (1817-1880), was a Chemistry Professor at [[Oxford University]] from 1865 to 1872, and is chiefly known for his investigations into the [[allotropes of carbon|allotropic states of carbon]] and for his discovery of [[graphite oxide|graphitic acid]].<ref name="EB1911"/><ref name="brodie2">{{cite journal | last1 = Brodie | first1 = B. C. | doi = 10.1098/rstl.1859.0013 | title = On the Atomic Weight of Graphite | journal = Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London | volume = 149 | pages = 249–259 | year = 1859 | url = https://archive.org/details/philtrans03630074  | jstor = 108699 | bibcode=1859RSPT..149..249B| doi-access = free }}</ref>

===George Meredith===
[[File:George_Meredith's_Home.jpg|thumb|George Meredith and family members, photographed in the rear garden of Flint Cottage, Box Hill.]]
The author [[George Meredith]] (1828-1909) lived in Flint Cottage from 1868 until his death. He built a chalet in the garden in which he wrote. Today the house is protected by a Grade II listing and is not accessible to the public.<ref name=FlintCott>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1278478}}</ref>

Among several works written at Box Hill, Meredith's poem ''[[The Lark Ascending]]'', published in 1881, inspired [[Ralph Vaughan Williams]] to compose the [[The Lark Ascending (Vaughan Williams)|musical work of the same name]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/vaughan-williams-the-lark-ascending |title= Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= British Library |access-date= 19 July 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103127/https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/vaughan-williams-the-lark-ascending |url-status= live }}</ref> A second poem, ''[[s:Poems and Lyrics of the Joy of Earth/Love in the Valley|Love in the Valley]]'' (published in 1883 as part of a collection entitled ''Poems and Lyrics of the Joy of Earth''), is said to have been inspired by the part of Box Hill known as Juniper Bottom or Happy Valley.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Pevy |first= M |year= 2003 |title= Box Hill |journal= Surrey Archaeological Society Bulletin |volume= 368 |pages= 13–14 |url= https://www.surreyarchaeology.org.uk/sites/default/files/SAS368_0.pdf |access-date= 26 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103055/https://www.surreyarchaeology.org.uk/sites/default/files/SAS368_0.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref>

The part of the hill immediately opposite the cottage is known as ''Barrie's Bank'', because the author [[J. M. Barrie]] supposedly waited there, while summoning the courage to introduce himself to Meredith.<ref>{{harvnb|Tuson|2013|p=18}}</ref>

===E. F. Warburg===
The botanist [[E. F. Warburg|Edmund Frederic ("Heff") Warburg]] (1908-1966) grew up at Boidier, a house close to the southeastern corner of Headley Heath. His father was a keen gardener and had assembled a large collection of exotic plants at the family home. Heff became [[Reader (academic rank)|reader]] in [[plant taxonomy]] at [[Oxford University]] and was a [[fellow]] of [[New College, Oxford|New College]].<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Smith AJ |year= 1967 |title= Obituary: Dr E F Warburg |url= http://archive.bsbi.org.uk/Proc7p67.pdf |journal= Proc. Bot. Soc. Br. Isl. |volume= 7 |issue= 1 |pages= 67–69 |access-date= 21 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121011104145/http://archive.bsbi.org.uk/Proc7p67.pdf |archive-date= 11 October 2012 |url-status= live }}</ref>

His mother, Lady Warburg, gave the land for Boidier Hurst Camp Site to the District [[The Scout Association|Scout Associations]] of [[Leatherhead]] and [[Epsom and Ewell]] in 1946<ref name=Boidier_History>{{cite web |url= http://www.boidierhurst.org.uk/files/history-of-boidier-hurst-scout-campsite.pdf |title= History of Boidier Hurst Scout Campsite |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Boidier Hurst Scout campsite |access-date= 21 July 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160607225602/http://boidierhurst.org.uk/files/History-of-Boidier-Hurst-Scout-Campsite.pdf |archive-date= 7 June 2016 |url-status= live }}</ref> and her family donated the neighbouring, {{convert|9|ha|acre|adj=on}} Heath Plantation to the National Trust following her death in 1952.<ref>{{harvnb|Hutchings|Bridges|Sankey|1969|p=42}}</ref>

===Edvard Westermarck===

The Finnish philosopher and sociologist [[Edvard Westermarck]] (1862-1939) rented Keeper's Cottage as his summer residence between 1910 and 1927.<ref>{{cite book |last= Westermarck |first= Edvard |author-link= Edvard Westermarck |translator-last1= Barwell |translator-first1= Anna |year= 1929 |title= Memories of my life |location=  London |publisher= Allen & Unwin}}</ref>

==Registered charities==
The [[National Trust]] owns around half of the land on Box Hill (principally the Country Park in the west and Headley Heath in the north-east). [[Surrey Wildlife Trust]] manage [[Brockham Limeworks]] (owned by [[Surrey County Council]]) as well as [[Betchworth Quarry and Lime Kilns]] (privately owned).<ref name=SWT_Betchworth/><ref name=SWT_Brockham/>  Both Trusts rely on the support of volunteer groups, working alongside paid employees, to carry out conservation and education work.

The ''Friends of Box Hill'' (FoBH) is a local organisation, which supports the National Trust in its work in the Country Park. Several of its members advise the Trust on its wildlife management plans and the FoBH also fund specific projects, including the purchase of equipment and improvement of visitor facilities. They also organise a programme of social events, which includes regular talks by Trust staff.<ref name=FoBH_WWD>{{cite web |url= http://www.friendsofboxhill.org.uk/what-we-do-3/ |title= What we do |website= Friends of Box Hill |access-date= 29 February 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191027151842/http://www.friendsofboxhill.org.uk/what-we-do-3/ |archive-date= 27 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

The ''Friends of Headley Heath'' (FoHH) coordinate volunteer working parties to assist National Trust Rangers and also run a series of social events.<ref name=FoHH>{{cite web |url= http://www.headleysurrey.org.uk/fohh.htm |title= Friends of Headley Heath |website= Headley Village Website |access-date= 29 February 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191021191617/http://www.headleysurrey.org.uk/fohh.htm |archive-date= 21 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

(Both the FoBH and FoHH are independent of the National Trust.<ref name=FoBH_WWD/><ref name=FoHH/>)

==Transport links==
===Public transport===
{{stnlink|Box Hill & Westhumble}} is the closest railway station to the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]] Country Park (approximately 500 m) and is served by trains from both [[London Victoria station|London Victoria]] and [[London Waterloo station|London Waterloo]]. Both {{stnlink|Dorking Deepdene}} and [[Dorking railway station|Dorking (Main)]] stations are around 1&nbsp;km from the south western corner of the hill. {{stnlink|Betchworth}} station is at the south eastern corner of the hill.<ref name=NT_directions>{{cite web |url= https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/box-hill#How%20to%20get%20here |title= Box Hill: How to get here |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= National Trust |access-date= 3 September 2020 |archive-date= 15 August 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200815042046/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/box-hill#How%20to%20get%20here |url-status= live }}</ref>

[[File:Box Hill bus and bus stop.JPG|thumb|A Sunray Travel bus passing the visitor centre. Inset left shows the special wooden National Trust bus stop, with logo engraved.]]
Box Hill is served by local and [[London Buses route 465|London]] bus routes.<ref name=NT_directions/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspublications.nsf/WebLookupFileResourcesByUNID/docidF9D4ED4E860D1F9F8025729600568D66?openDocument |title=Surrey County Council – 516 bus timetable via Box Hill visitor centre |access-date=27 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628230635/http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspublications.nsf/WebLookupFileResourcesByUNID/docidF9D4ED4E860D1F9F8025729600568D66?openDocument |archive-date=28 June 2011  }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspublications.nsf/WebLookupFileResourcesByUNID/docid2D0E4B78B92134EC802572960054AE40?openDocument |title=Surrey County Council – 465 bus timetable via foot of Box Hill |access-date=27 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628230715/http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspublications.nsf/WebLookupFileResourcesByUNID/docid2D0E4B78B92134EC802572960054AE40?openDocument |archive-date=28 June 2011  }}</ref>

===Access for motor vehicles===
Access to the National Trust Country Park from the [[A24 road (England)|A24]] dual carriageway is via the B2209 and the Zig Zag Road, however this route is not suitable for buses or coaches. Alternative access is via the B2033 and Boxhill Road, which leads through Box Hill village and approaches the Country Park from the west.<ref name=NT_directions/> Headley Heath is directly accessible from the B2033.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath#How%20to%20get%20here |title= Headley Heath: How to get here |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= National Trust |access-date= 3 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103128/https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath#How%20to%20get%20here |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Cycle routes===
[[National Cycle Route 22]] runs along the northern boundary of the hill via Lodgebottom Road and Headley Lane, before turning south along the [[A24 road (England)|A24]] close to the western boundary.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.sustrans.org.uk/find-a-route-on-the-national-cycle-network/route-22 |title= Route 22 |author= <!--Not stated--> |publisher= Sustrans |access-date= 3 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102102025/https://www.sustrans.org.uk/find-a-route-on-the-national-cycle-network/route-22 |url-status= live }}</ref> The Surrey Cycleway approaches Box Hill from the west via Westhumble, before turning to the south towards Dorking.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/132001/Surrey-Cycleway-Map-updated-July-2019.pdf |title= The Surrey Cycleway |author= <!--Not stated--> |date= 7 July 2019 |publisher= Surrey County Council |access-date= 3 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102102017/https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/132001/Surrey-Cycleway-Map-updated-July-2019.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Walking===
The [[North Downs Way]] [[long-distance footpath]] from [[Farnham]] to [[Dover]], crosses the River Mole at the Stepping Stones and then runs from west to east at the top of the scarp slope, passing in front of the Salomons Memorial.<ref>{{cite book |last= Saunders |first= Colin |year= 2016 |title= North Downs Way|location= London |publisher= Aurum Press |isbn= 9781781315002 |series= National Trail Guides }}</ref>

The [[Thames Down Link]] follows the course of [[Stane Street (Chichester)|Stane Street]] across Mickleham Downs, to the north of Box Hill, and meets the [[North Downs Way]] close to the [[Burford Bridge Hotel]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/culture-and-leisure/countryside/walking/long-walks/the-thames-down-link |title= The Thames Down Link |author= <!--Not stated--> |date= 2 September 2020 |publisher= Surrey County Council |access-date= 3 September 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103129/https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/culture-and-leisure/countryside/walking/long-walks/the-thames-down-link |url-status= live }}</ref>

==Cultural references==
[[File:A View of Box Hill, Surrey 1733.jpg|thumb|right|''A view of Box Hill, Surrey'' (1733) by [[George Lambert (English painter)|George Lambert]] – held by [[The Tate]].]]

===Art===
[[File:George Lambert - Box Hill, Surrey, with Dorking in the distance - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|right|''Box Hill, Surrey with Dorking in the distance'' (1733) by [[George Lambert (English painter)|George Lambert]] – held by the [[Yale Center for British Art]].]]
In 1733, [[George Lambert (English painter)|George Lambert]] painted two views of Box Hill, now held by [[The Tate]]<ref>[http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=8266&searchid=15987&tabview=work "A view of Box Hill, Surrey"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607095310/http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=8266&searchid=15987&tabview=work |date=7 June 2011 }} at [[Tate|The Tate]]</ref> and the [[Yale Center for British Art]].<ref>{{cite web |url= https://collections.britishart.yale.edu/vufind/Record/1669128 |title= Box Hill, Surrey, with Dorking in the distance |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Yale Center for British Art |publisher= Yale University |access-date= 13 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191013122418/https://collections.britishart.yale.edu/vufind/Record/1669128 |archive-date= 13 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

''The Stonebreaker'' (1857 -1858), a painting by [[John Brett (artist)|John Brett]] (1831–1902), depicts a young boy breaking stones for road mending, with Box Hill in the background.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/collections/paintings/19c/item-236997.aspx |title= The Stonebreaker JOHN BRETT, 1857–1858 |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Walker Art Gallery |publisher= National Museums Liverpool |access-date= 13 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191013122415/https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/walker/collections/paintings/19c/item-236997.aspx |archive-date= 13 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

[[File:Brett The Stonebreaker.jpg|thumb|right|Box Hill forms the backdrop to ''The Stonebreaker'', painted by John Brett in 1857–1858.]]

A watercolour entitled ''Box Hill, Surrey'' dated 1861 by [[William Leighton Leitch]] (1804–1883), which depicts the view looking northwards from the top of the Burford Spur before the Zig Zag Road was built, is part of the [[Royal Collection]].<ref name=Littledale15/><ref name=Leitch/>

The ''Box Hill Road River'', a highly curved, {{convert|100|m|ft|adj=on}} line painted onto the surface of the Zig Zag Road by the British sculptor and [[land art]]ist [[Richard Long (artist)|Richard Long]], was commissioned jointly by the London 2012 Festival and the National Trust to celebrate the route of the Olympic Cycling road races.<ref>{{cite news |last= Jones |first= Jonathan |date= 30 July 2012 |title= Olympics 2012: Richard Long's cycling art shows British landscape at its best |url= https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/jul/30/olympics-richard-long-cycling-art |work= The Guardian |access-date= 15 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191015091053/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2012/jul/30/olympics-richard-long-cycling-art |archive-date= 15 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Literature===

John Evelyn notes in his ''[[John Evelyn's Diary|Diary]]'' in 1662 that Box Hill was frequented by the ladies and gentlemen from nearby [[Epsom]] spa.<ref name=Evelyn_1870/><ref>Noted in Alice M. Coats, ''Garden Shrubs and Their Histories'' (1964) 1992, ''s.v.'' "Buxus".</ref>

[[Daniel Defoe]] (the author of ''[[Robinson Crusoe]]'') was educated for five years (until around the age of fourteen) at the Rev. James Fisher's boarding school in Pixham Lane, Dorking. He writes extensively about the area around Box Hill in his travelogue, ''[[A tour thro' the whole island of Great Britain]]'' (1724–1727), which describes the country shortly before the start of the [[Industrial Revolution]].<ref name=SAC_Defoe>{{cite journal |author= Bastian F |year= 1957 |title= Daniel Defoe and the Dorking District |journal= Surrey Archaeological Collections |volume= 55 |pages= 41–64 |url= https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/catalogue/adsdata/arch-379-1/dissemination/pdf/vol_55/surreyac055_041-064_bastian.pdf |access-date= 27 September 2020 |doi= 10.5284/1068897 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102102002/https://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-379-1%2Fdissemination%2Fpdf%2Fvol_55%2Fsurreyac055_041-064_bastian.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref> He records that in the late 17th century, [[Sir Adam Browne, 2nd Baronet|Sir Adam Browne]] the then landowner, approved the fitting out of a cave or vault close to what is now the Salomons Memorial, to supply 'refreshment' to visitors to the hill. A group of young [[English Dissenters|Dissenters]] from [[Dorking]] were so disgusted by the 'debauched' behaviour that the sale of alcohol encouraged (which took place even on Sundays), that they stormed up the hill one Saturday night and blew up the cavern with gunpowder.<ref name=SAC_Defoe/>

The writer Edward Beavan describes the hill and the surrounding area of Surrey in his poem ''Box-Hill, a descriptive poem'', published in 1777.{{sfn|Beavan|1777}}

[[File: Hammond-Emma22 (recadrée).jpg|thumb|upright|The Picnic at Box Hill: Pen-and-ink drawing by Chris Hammond (1860–1900) for the 1898 edition of ''[[Emma (novel)|Emma]]'' by [[Jane Austen]].]]
The '[[s:Emma/Volume 3/Chapter 7|picnic scene]]', a pivotal passage of [[Jane Austen]]'s novel ''[[Emma (novel)|Emma]]'' (first published in 1815) is set at Box Hill.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Austen |first1=Jane |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/158/158-h/158-h.htm |title=Emma |access-date=2 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903013329/https://www.gutenberg.org/files/158/158-h/158-h.htm |archive-date=3 September 2018 |url-status=live |via=Project Gutenberg}}</ref>

[[Celia Fiennes]], a contemporary of Defoe, described Box Hill in her travel memoirs, which were published in 1888 (almost 150 years after her death) under the title ''Through England on a Side Saddle''.<ref name="Fiennes_1888">{{harvnb|Fiennes|1888|pp=289–290}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors= Taylor EG |year= 1948 |title= England of the Glorious Revolution |journal= The Geographical Journal |volume= 111 |issue= 1 |pages= 101–104 |doi= 10.2307/1789289 |jstor= 1789289 }}</ref> 
:"Box Hill… is the Continuation of the Ridge of hills I mentiond by Maidstone; its a Greate height and shows you a vast precipice down on the farther side, and such a vast vale full of woods Enclosures and Little towns. There is a very good river that runs by a Little town Called Darken just at the foote of this hill, very famous for good troutts and great store of ffish. On this hill the top is Cover'd with box whence its name proceeds, and there is other wood but its all Cutt in Long private walks very shady and pleasant, and this is a great diversion to the Company and would be more ffrequented if nearer Epsom town."<ref name=Fiennes_1888/>

In ''England: A Nation'', (London: R. Brimley Johnson, 1904), edited by Lucian Oldershaw, and in a chapter entitled "The Patriotic Idea" written by [[G. K. Chesterton]], the beauty of Box Hill violated by an invading army is used to express a healthy patriot's love for his nation as opposed to the jingoistic nationalism of tabloid newspapers:<ref name=Oldershaw>{{cite book |last= Chesterton |first=GK |author-link= G. K. Chesterton |editor-last= Oldershaw |editor-first= Lucian |title=England: A Nation |publisher= R. Brimley Johnson |location= London |date=1904 |pages=100–110 |chapter=Chapter 1: The Patriotic Idea |url= https://archive.org/stream/englandnationbei00patrrich/englandnationbei00patrrich_djvu.txt}}</ref>
:"But just as a man who has been in love will find it difficult to write a whole frantic epic about a flirtation, so all that kind of rhetoric about the Union Jack and the Anglo-Saxon blood, which has made amusing the journalism of this country for the last six years, will be merely impossible to the man who has for one moment called up before himself what would be the real sensation of hearing that a foreign army was encamped on Box Hill."<ref name=Oldershaw/>

Mystery author [[Cyril Hare]] sets his 1954 novel, ''[[That Yew Tree's Shade]]'' (published in the US as ''Death Walks the Woods''), at "Yew Hill", which Hare admits in an introduction is modelled on Box Hill.<ref>{{cite book |last= Hare |first= Cyril |orig-year= 1954 |year= 1986 |title= That Yew Tree's Shade |location= London |publisher= Faber |isbn= 978-0-57-113800-5 |author-link= Cyril Hare}}</ref>

In his novel, ''Box Hill'', published in 2020, British author [[Adam Mars-Jones]] tells the story of a same-sex relationship between a teenager and an older man, set within the Surrey motorbiking fraternity of the mid-1970s.<ref>{{cite news |last= Cummins |first= Anthony |date= 16 March 2020 |title= Box Hill by Adam Mars-Jones review – the mystery of love |url= https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/mar/16/box-hill-adam-mars-jones-review |work= The Guardian |access-date= 4 May 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200324040617/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/mar/16/box-hill-adam-mars-jones-review |archive-date= 24 March 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Music===

British biker rock band [[Dumpy's Rusty Nuts]] released a single called ''Box Hill or Bust'' in 1984.  The song is something of a cult anthem for bikers and reflects the popularity of Box Hill among the biking community.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/dumpys-rusty-nuts-mn0001181852|title=Dumpy's Rusty Nuts – Biography|first=Steve|last=Huey|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=17 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113064012/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/dumpys-rusty-nuts-mn0001181852|archive-date=13 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

In [[Public Image Limited]]'s song ''[[Flowers of Romance (song)|Flowers of Romance]]'', [[John Lydon]] sings "I've got binoculars. On top of Box Hill".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Songlyrics.com|url=http://www.songlyrics.com/public-image-limited/flowers-of-romance-lyrics/|url-status=live|access-date=18 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018060506/http://www.songlyrics.com/public-image-limited/flowers-of-romance-lyrics/ |archive-date=18 October 2021 }}</ref>

In [[Richard Thompson (musician)|Richard Thompson]]'s song ''[[1952 Vincent Black Lightning]]'' (released in 1991), Box Hill is the location to which James and Red Molly ride on James' motorcycle.<ref>{{cite web |last=Beviglia |first=Jim |url=https://americansongwriter.com/1952-vincent-black-lightning-by-richard-thompson/ |title='1952 Vincent Black Lightning,' By Richard Thompson |work=[[American Songwriter]] |date=12 August 2012 |access-date=9 May 2020 |archive-date=2 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103132/https://americansongwriter.com/1952-vincent-black-lightning-by-richard-thompson/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In [[cover version]]s of this song by American musicians, Box Hill is sometimes changed to [[Knoxville]], a city in [[Tennessee]].<ref>{{cite news |last= Himes |first= Geoffrey |date= 21 August 2018 |title= The Curmudgeon: How an English Song about an English Motorcycle Became an American Classic |url= https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/richard-thompson/the-curmudgeon-how-an-english-song-about-an-englis/ |magazine= [[Paste (magazine)|Paste]] |location= Atlanta, GA |access-date= 9 May 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103131/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/richard-thompson/the-curmudgeon-how-an-english-song-about-an-englis/ |url-status= live }}</ref>

The first song on [[Ben Watt]]'s 1983 debut album ''[[North Marine Drive]]'' is entitled ''On Box Hill''.<ref>{{cite news |last= Dennis |first= Jon |date= 10 April 2014 |title= Ben Watt: Hendra review – excellent, decorous new set of alt-folk songs |url= https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/apr/10/ben-watt-hendra-review |work= The Guardian |access-date= 4 May 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191204084610/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/apr/10/ben-watt-hendra-review |archive-date= 4 December 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

Actor and singer [[Tom Felton]]'s song called ''Time Well Spent'' mentions him going to "chill out on Box Hill".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://feltbeats.com/music/time-well-spent-lyrics/ |title= Time Well Spent – Tom Felton |author= <!--Not stated--> |website= Feltbeats.com |access-date= 13 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191013125446/http://feltbeats.com/music/time-well-spent-lyrics/ |archive-date= 13 October 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

===Film===

The racing scenes during the opening credits of the 1968 film [[Chitty Chitty Bang Bang]] were filmed on the Zig Zag Road.<ref>{{cite news |first= Martin |last= Cholton |title= 10 things you didn't know about Chitty Chitty Bang Bang |url= https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/chitty-chitty-bang-bang-50-anniversary-dick-van-dyke-a8680251.html |date= 20 December 2018 |access-date= 19 October 2019 |work= The Independent |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190519170440/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/chitty-chitty-bang-bang-50-anniversary-dick-van-dyke-a8680251.html |archive-date= 19 May 2019 |url-status= live }}</ref>

The 2012 British film ''[[Berberian Sound Studio]]'' contains a short [[Story within a story#Nested films|film-within-the-film]] – a spoof 1970s-style documentary about the outstanding natural and man-made features of Box Hill.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/aug/30/berberian-sound-studio-review |title= Berberian Sound Studio – review |author= Peter Bradshaw |date= 30 August 2012 |website= The Guardian |author-link= Peter Bradshaw |access-date= 13 October 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131022081925/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/aug/30/berberian-sound-studio-review |archive-date= 22 October 2013 |url-status= live }}</ref>

==In the news==
In 1963 [[Great Train Robbery (1963)|Great Train Robber]], Jimmy White, hid £30,440 (approximately one fifth of his share of the stolen cash), in a caravan at Clovelly Caravan Park at the top of Box Hill.<ref>{{cite news |last= Wallis |first= Nick |date= 21 December 2014 |title= The Great Train Robbery, Ronnie Biggs and the Surrey connection |url= https://www.surreylife.co.uk/out-about/events/the-great-train-robbery-ronnie-biggs-and-the-surrey-connection-1-2337119 |work= Surrey Life |access-date= 24 July 2020 |archive-date= 2 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210102103136/https://www.surreylife.co.uk/out-about/events/the-great-train-robbery-ronnie-biggs-and-the-surrey-connection-1-2337119 |url-status= live }}</ref>

In 1995 teenager [[Disappearance of Ruth Wilson|Ruth Wilson]] disappeared after being dropped off by taxi on Box Hill.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2002/dec/15/features.magazine57|title=The vanishing|last=Bright|first=Martin|date=15 December 2002|website=The Guardian|access-date=25 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180713102930/https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2002/dec/15/features.magazine57|archive-date=13 July 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013 a body that had lain undiscovered for two years was found on Box Hill.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/body-box-hill-identified-missing-4721925|title=Body on Box Hill identified as missing man|last=Martin|first=Guy|date=28 May 2013|work=getsurrey|access-date=24 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624232827/https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/body-box-hill-identified-missing-4721925|archive-date=24 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> It was identified as missing teacher Brian Hynard who had left two suicide notes before disappearing.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/the-vanishing-bs252s00wcv|title=The vanishing|last=Boggan|first=Steve|date=11 August 2013|work=The Sunday Times|access-date=24 June 2018|issn=0956-1382|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180625021514/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/the-vanishing-bs252s00wcv|archive-date=25 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Notes==
[[File:Headley Heath (geograph 5380881).jpg|thumb|upright|Bellamoss Pond, Headley Heath.{{refn|There are six ponds on Headley Heath: Aspen Pond, Bellamoss Pond, Brimmer Pond, Browns Pond, Heath House Pond and Hopeful Pond. Only Brimmer Pond is of significant age.|group=note}}]]
{{Reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{Reflist|24em}}

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{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Box Hill}}
*[http://www.boxhillcommunity.com/ Box Hill community website]
*[https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/box-hill Box Hill – National Trust]
*[https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/betchworth-quarry-lime-kilns Betchworth Quarry – Surrey Wildlife Trust]
*[https://www.surreywildlifetrust.org/nature-reserves/brockham-limeworks Brockham Quarry – Surrey Wildlife Trust]
*[https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/headley-heath Headley Heath – National Trust]
*[https://www.surreyoutdoorlearning.uk/facilities/high-ashurst High Ashurst – Surrey Outdoor Learning]
*[https://www.field-studies-council.org/locations/juniperhall/ Juniper Hall – Field Studies Council]

{{Geographic location
|title     = '''Nearest Settlements'''
|Centre    = Box Hill
|North     = Tyrrells Wood
|Northeast = [[Headley, Surrey|Headley]]
|East      = [[Colley Hill]]
|Southeast = [[Betchworth]]
|South     = [[Brockham]] 
|Southwest = [[Pixham]]<br>[[Dorking]]
|West      = [[Westhumble]]
|Northwest = [[Mickleham, Surrey|Mickleham]]<br>[[Leatherhead]]
}}
{{Mole Valley}}
{{Surrey Hills AONB}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Box Hill, Surrey| ]]
[[Category:Hills of Surrey]]
[[Category:National Trust properties in Surrey]]
[[Category:Climbs in cycle racing in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:RideLondon–Surrey Classic]]
[[Category:Cycle racing in England]]
[[Category:Villages in Surrey]]
[[Category:Mole Valley]]