View source for Epping Forest

{{Short description|Ancient woodland and former royal forest in Essex and Greater London}}
{{about|the woodland in England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2023}}
{{Infobox SSSI
| image             = Epping Forest Centenary Walk 2 - Sept 2008.jpg
| image_caption     = [[Epping Forest Centenary Walk|Centenary Walk]] trail, south of [[High Beech]]
| name              = Epping Forest
| aos               = [[Greater London]]<br />[[Essex]]
| interest          = Biological
| gridref           = {{gbmappingsmall| TL475035 }} to {{gbmappingsmall| TQ 405865 }}
| area              = {{unbulleted list|[[Site of Special Scientific Interest|SSSI]]: {{convert|4270|acres}}|Total: ''circa'' {{convert|5900|acres}}}}
| notifydate        = 1990
| map               = [http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271001814%27   ''Magic Map'']
}}
[[File:Epping Forest location map.jpg|thumb|260px|Location of Epping Forest (shown in green) within Greater London and Essex]]
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| mark-title1       = Epping Forest Gateway, which includes Queen Elizabeth Hunting Lodge & The View visitor centre
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| caption           = The green line shows the boundaries of the various compartments of Epping Forest SSSI.
The three visitor centres are:
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'''Epping Forest''' is a {{convert|2,400|ha|acres|abbr=|adj=on}} area of [[ancient woodland]], and other established habitats, which straddles the border between [[Greater London]] and [[Essex]]. The main body of the forest stretches from [[Epping, Essex|Epping]] in the north, to [[Chingford]] on the edge of the London built-up area. South of Chingford, the forest narrows and becomes a green corridor extending deep into [[east London]], as far as [[Forest Gate]]; the forest's position gives rise to its nickname, the Cockney Paradise.<ref>Brewer's Dictionary of London Phrase and Fable, Russ Willey, Chambers 2009</ref> It is the largest forest in London.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://efht.org.uk/discover-epping-forest/about-the-forest/|title=About the Forest|publisher=Epping Forest Heritage Trust|access-date=11 December 2022}}</ref>

It lies on a ridge between the valleys of the rivers [[River Lea|Lea]] and [[River Roding|Roding]]. It contains areas of woodland, grassland, heath, streams, bogs, and ponds, and its elevation and thin gravelly soil (the result of glaciation) historically made it less suitable for agriculture. The forest was historically managed as a common; the land was held by a number of local landowners who exercised economic rights over aspects such as timber, while local commoners had grazing and other rights. It was designated a [[royal forest]], meaning that only the monarch had the right to hunt deer.

The extensive urban areas on the forest's edges bring many visitors to the forest, and cause a strain on the forest's ecology; however, local recreational users of the forest were crucial in saving the forest when it was threatened with [[enclosure]] and destruction in the late 19th century. The huge public outcry led the [[City of London Corporation]] to buy and so save the site in what was the first major success of the environmental movement in Europe – the corporation still owns the forest.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/Pages/default.aspx |title= Epping Forest |publisher= City of London |access-date= 3 January 2015 |archive-date= 11 August 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120811004010/https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/Pages/default.aspx |url-status= dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Allan C. Fisher Jr. |title="The City" - London's Storied Square Mile |journal=[[National Geographic]] |date=June 1961 |volume=119 |issue=6 |pages=735–778 |quote=In addition to its police, who must be strapping six-footers, the City boasts its own magistrates' courts and health and engineering departments. It maintains four spans over the Thames, including historic London Bridge, and large recreational areas outside the City, such as Epping Forest.}}</ref> This environmental milestone came at a cost, as the City of London's early conservators did not understand the human processes that shaped the forest and its ecosystems, and discontinued the practice of [[pollarding]] trees, while allowing grazing to decline. This changed the character of the forest and has led to reduced biodiversity. The modern Conservators are mindful of these historic errors but it is probably not possible to reverse the effects of this long interruption of historic management methods. {{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

The forest gives its name to the [[Epping Forest (district)|Epping Forest local government district]], which covers part of it, and to [[Forest School, Walthamstow|Forest School]], a private school in Walthamstow towards the south of it.

==The history of Epping Forest==
===Early history===
[[File:Ambresburg Banks in Epping Forrest in London, August 2013 (1).JPG|thumb|right|The ramparts of Ambresburg Banks hill fort]]
The area that became Epping Forest has been continuously wooded since [[Neolithic]] times. Embankments of two [[British Iron Age|Iron Age]] [[hill fort]]s – [[Loughton Camp]] and [[Ambresbury Banks]]<ref>ELLIS, Peter Berresford 'A Guide to Early Celtic Remains in Britain.' London. Constable. 1991</ref> – can be found in the woodland, but [[palynology|pollen profiles]] show that Iron Age occupation had no significant effect on woodland cover. The former [[Tilia cordata|small leaved lime (also known as pry or linden)]] dominated woodland permanently changed during the Anglo-Saxon period, possibly as a result of the selective cutting of trees. Today's [[beech]]-[[birch]] and [[oak]]-[[hornbeam]]-dominated forest may be the result of partial forest clearance in Saxon times.<ref>Baker, Moxey, Oxford 1978.</ref>

===Management of the forest===
The area is thought to have been given legal status as a [[royal forest]] by [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] in the 12th century. At the time, it was part of the much larger [[Forest of Essex]], which covered nearly all of the county. The term "forest" was a legal term, meaning that [[Royal forest#Forest law|Forest Law]] applied, so only the king had the right to hunt deer. The term did not mean the land was well wooded; the large majority of the ''Forest of Essex'' was agricultural land.

The Forest of Essex gradually shrank in size as land was removed from Forest Law, and it was replaced by a number of much smaller forests, including [[Waltham Forest (Legal Forest)|Waltham Forest]] (which gives its name to the modern [[London Borough of Waltham Forest]]. Waltham Forest was a legally defined area which included the areas later known as Epping Forest and [[Hainault Forest]]; the rest of the Waltham Forest area was only lightly wooded.

In physical terms (rather than legal terms), the forest is thought to have declined to something like its modern extent in the early 14th century (possibly long before),<ref>Woodlands, The New Naturalist Library, Oliver Rackham, p416</ref> the [[Black Death in England|Black Death]] reached England in 1348, leading to a huge decline in population, perhaps between a third and a half, which took away the pressure on woods and commons, leading to a very long period of stability in the area of these land uses in England.<ref>Woodlands, The New Naturalist Library, Oliver Rackham, p66</ref> At that time, the forest extended slightly further south to the Romford Road in the  [[Forest Gate]] area of [[West Ham]]; this is the originally [[Roman roads in Britannia|Roman]] [[A118 road]] from [[Aldgate]] on the [[London Wall|City of London wall]] to [[Stratford, London|Stratford]], [[Romford]], and [[Colchester]] (and also known as the Great Essex Road). A coppiced woodland was on the Romford Road, called Hamfrith Wood (meaning the woodland belonging to the [[London Borough of Newham#Manor of Ham|Ham]] area) until around 1700, and an area of plain called Hamfrith Waste, which lasted into the mid-1800s.<ref>The London Encyclopaedia, Weinreb and Hibbert, 1983</ref>

Most of Waltham Forest was later legally deforested (removed form Forest Law), leaving two smaller forests, Epping Forest and [[Hainault Forest]], both of which continued to be very heavily wooded; no reduction in the physical area of woods and commons occurred. The name "Epping Forest" was first recorded in the 17th century.

Although the monarch held hunting and associated rights, the land was owned by a number of local landowners. It was managed as a [[common land|common]], where landowners benefitted from certain rights, while local commoners benefitted from common rights allowing them to [[Estovers|gather firewood]] and foodstuffs, [[grazing rights|to graze livestock]], and [[Pannage|turn out pigs for mast]]. The landscape was primarily a mixture of wood pasture and open plains, rather than thick woodland, and both of these land-use types were grazed by cattle.
[[File:Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge - geograph.org.uk - 1524048.jpg|thumb|[[Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge]], Chingford]]

===Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge===
In [[Tudor dynasty|Tudor]] times, [[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]] and [[Queen Elizabeth I]] may have hunted in the forest, though no documentary evidence has survived to prove it. In 1543, Henry commissioned a building, known as Great Standing, from which to view the chase at [[Chingford]]. The building was renovated in 1589 for Queen Elizabeth I and can still be seen today in Chingford. The building is now known as [[Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge]], and is open to the public. Another hunt standing now forms the core of the forest headquarters at The Warren, [[Loughton]].<ref>[http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-118627-the-warren-loughton-essex British listed buildings – The Warren, Loughton] Retrieved 10 September 2012</ref>

===17th to 19th centuries===
[[File:Easter Nonday or the Cockney Hunt.png|thumb|right|An 1807 caricature by [[Thomas Rowlandson]], ridicules ordinary Londoners at the Easter Monday stag hunt, a sport usually reserved for the wealthy.]]
Following the [[Stuart Restoration|Restoration of the Monarchy]] in 1660, although the deer herd was restocked, royal hunting in the forest never recommenced. The forest was principally used as a source of shipbuilding timber for the [[Royal Navy]], which was taken overland to [[Barking Creek]] and then floated in rafts to the [[Royal Dockyard]]s at [[Woolwich]] and [[Deptford]]. This exploitation continued until about 1725, when all the suitable oak trees had been felled.<ref>Addison 1945, p. 110</ref>

The City of London maintained the ancient tradition of an [[Easter Monday]] stag hunt in the forest, but official participation ended in 1807, when the office of Master of the City Hounds was abolished. In 1827, huntsman of [[William Pole-Tylney-Long-Wellesley, 4th Earl of Mornington|Sir William Pole-Tylney-Long-Wellesley]] chased a forest stag as far as [[West Ham]]. The customary Easter Monday hunt was repeated annually by a large and rowdy crowd of ordinary London tradesmen and working people, who gathered at Fairmead Oak to chase a previously captured stag, which was released from a cart and usually escaped unharmed.<ref>Ramsey 1986, p. 70</ref> The last of these hunts was in 1882, when it descended into a riot and had to be dispersed by the police.<ref>Layton 1985, p. 271</ref>

In the 1830s, the forest took its first significant harm in centuries when a new road, the Epping New Road, was built through the forest, to supplement pre-existing ancient roads. In 1830, civil engineer James Nicoll McAdam, the son of [[John Loudon McAdam]], was engaged by a [[turnpike trust]], the Epping and Ongar Highway Trust, to construct a road from Woodford Green to Epping through the heart of the forest, to avoid Goldings Hill on the old road through Loughton and shorten the distance by one mile. The Epping New Road, once part of the [[A11 road (England)|A11]] and now part of the [[A104 road (England)|A104]], was completed in 1834.<ref>Ramsey 1986, p. 112</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2014-12-12/how-the-a11-used-to-be-in-the-1970s|title=How the A11 all used to be in the 1970s|work=ITV News|date=12 December 2014|accessdate=24 February 2025}}</ref>

With the arrival of railway stations in towns close to the forest from the 1850s, the [[working class]] people of [[East London]] began to use the forest for recreation on Sundays and public holidays, in ever increasing numbers.<ref>Haggar 2012, p. 83</ref> Others arrived by [[horsebus]], which could drive directly to popular spots like High Beach. On [[Whit Monday]] 1880, a parliamentary committee estimated that up to 400,000 people had visited Epping Forest on that day.<ref>Layton 1985, p. 272</ref>

===Fighting enclosure===
[[File:Epping Forest cattle marks.png|thumb|right|The marks used by the Reeves of Epping Forest to brand Commoner's cattle turned out to graze in the "forest. wastes": The marks denote the parishes entitled to this right, and consist of a letter surmounted by crown or a cross.]]

In the first decades of the 19th century, the Lord Warden of Epping Forest, William Long-Wellesley, acquiesced to the [[enclosure]] of {{convert|3,000|acres}} of forest land, about a third of the remaining total, by the [[lord of the manor|lords of the manors]] who held [[Freehold (law)|freehold]]s in the forest. The government was keen to enclose land for farming and building development and allowed the [[Commissioners of Woods, Forests and Land Revenues]] to sell off further freeholds in the forest.<ref>Haggar 2012, pp. 83-84</ref>

In 1851 nearby [[Hainault Forest]], where the Crown owned most of the land, was privatised (enclosed) and nearly all of the trees grubbed out to turn the area into poor-quality farmland. The modern conservation movement grew out of public disgust at the destruction of Hainault Forest and the need to protect its sister forest, Epping Forest.<ref>Woodlands, The New Naturalist Library, Oliver Rackham, p526</ref> Epping Forest had fragmented ownership, which made enclosing it in the same way difficult, though individual landowners began to make encroachments.<ref name="Woodlands p417">Woodlands, The New Naturalist Library, Oliver Rackham, p417</ref> The urbanisation of nearby areas increased the forest's importance as an area of public recreation helped lead to the establishment of the [[Open Spaces Society]] in 1865,<ref name="Woodlands p417"/> whose aim was to protect commons in and around London. The [[Mile End]] branch, founded in the February of that year, was particularly important in mobilising East End environmentalism.<ref>Spitalfields Life article https://spitalfieldslife.com/2021/07/08/the-anniversary-of-saving-epping-forest/</ref>

By 1870, the unenclosed forest had shrunk to only {{convert|3,500|acres}}. One landowner, Reverend John Whitaker Maitland, who had enclosed {{convert|1,100|acres}} in his manor of Loughton, was engaged in a long running dispute with a commoner called [[Thomas Willingale]] and his family, who insisted on maintaining his right to [[Pollarding|lop trees]] in the forest, despite inducements offered for him to stop. The matter came to the public attention in 1866, when Willingale's son and two nephews were fined for damaging Maitland's trees, and were sent to prison for seven days when they refused to pay. Willingale was encouraged to continue the dispute by [[Edward Buxton (conservationist)|Edward Buxton]] and other members of the [[Commons Preservation Society]], however a court action against Maitland lapsed in 1870 when Willingale died.<ref>Haggar 2012, pp. 85-90</ref>

{{anchor|Epping Forest Act 1871|Epping Forest Amendment Act 1872|Epping Forest Act 1875}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title = Epping Forest Act 1871
| type = Act
| parliament = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title = An Act to amend the Act twelfth and thirteenth Victoria chapter eighty-one; and to extend the provisions of that Act and The Metropolitan Commons Act, 1866, so far as regards that part of Waltham Forest known as Epping Forest.
| year = 1871
| citation = [[34 & 35 Vict.]] c. 93
| introduced_commons = 
| introduced_lords = 
| territorial_extent = 
| royal_assent = 21 August 1871
| commencement = 
| expiry_date = 
| repeal_date = 
| amends = {{ubli|[[New Forest and Waltham Forest Act 1849]]}}
| replaces = 
| amendments = {{ubli|Epping Forest Amendment Act 1872}}
| repealing_legislation = {{ubli|[[Wild Creatures and Forest Laws Act 1971]]}}
| related_legislation = [[Metropolitan Commons Act 1866]]
| status = repealed
| legislation_history = 
| theyworkforyou = 
| millbankhansard = 
| original_text = 
| revised_text = 
| use_new_UK-LEG = 
| UK-LEG_title = 
| collapsed = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Epping Forest Amendment Act 1872
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to enlarge the powers of the Epping Forest Commissioners; and for other purposes.
| year                  = 1872
| citation              = [[35 & 36 Vict.]] c. 95
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 10 August 1872
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = Epping Forest Act 1871
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = {{ubli|[[Wild Creatures and Forest Laws Act 1971]]}}
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = repealed
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = 
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Epping Forest Act 1875
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of the United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to extend the Time for the Epping Forest Commissioners to make their Final Report.
| year                  = 
| citation              = [[38 & 39 Vict.]] c. 6
| introduced_commons    = 
| introduced_lords      = 
| territorial_extent    = 
| royal_assent          = 19 March 1875
| commencement          = 
| expiry_date           = 
| repeal_date           = 
| amends                = 
| replaces              = 
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = [[Wild Creatures and Forest Laws Act 1971]]
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = repealed
| legislation_history   = 
| theyworkforyou        = 
| millbankhansard       = 
| original_text         = 
| revised_text          = 
| use_new_UK-LEG        = 
| UK-LEG_title          = 
| collapsed             = yes
}}
In July 1871, around 30,000 East Londoners gathered on [[Wanstead Flats]] to protest about fences which had been erected there by [[Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley|Earl Cowley]] to enclose forest land. Despite clashes with police, including a mounted element, the crowd were able to break down and smash the enclosing fences. The action attracted nationwide attention, much of it critical of the government.<ref>Primary sources and commentary https://pasttense.co.uk/2019/07/08/today-in-london-riotous-history-1871-1000s-demolish-enclosure-fences-on-wanstead-flats/</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://spitalfieldslife.com/2021/07/08/the-anniversary-of-saving-epping-forest/ | title=The Anniversary of Saving Epping Forest {{pipe}} Spitalfields Life }}</ref> At this stage the [[City of London Corporation]] became involved, since in 1853, the city had purchased a farm at [[Manor Park, London|Manor Park]] for the construction of the [[City of London Cemetery and Crematorium|City of London Cemetery]]; this made the City Corporation a forest commoner with the right to graze cattle in the forest.<ref name ="leytonhistory2">{{cite web |url=http://www.leytonhistorysociety.org.uk/Wanstead%20Flats%20History%20Walk%202%20Aldersbrook.pdf |title=Wanstead Flats History Walks : No. 2 : Aldersbrook Flats |last=Gorman |first=Mark |date= |website=www.leytonhistorysociety.org.uk |publisher=Leyton & Leytonstone Historical Society |access-date=3 February 2020 }}</ref> In 1871, the City brought a suit against 16 of the lords of the forest manors, claiming that the enclosures impinged on their ancient grazing rights.<ref>Haggar 2012, p. 90</ref> Following an appeal in 1874, a judgment by the [[Master of the Rolls]], Sir [[George Jessel (jurist)|George Jessel]], ruled that all enclosures made since 1851 were illegal.<ref>Walford 1898, p. 429</ref> Subsequently, two [[acts of Parliament]] in 1871 ([[34 & 35 Vict.]] c. 93) and 1872 ([[35 & 36 Vict.]] c. 95) allowed the city to purchase the 19 forest manors.<ref>Haggar 2012, p. 91</ref> The consequence of this victory was that only 10% of Epping Forest had been lost to enclosure (mainly in the south), compared to 92% of Hainault Forest.<ref>Trees and Woodland in the british landscape, Oliver Rackham, 2001, p179</ref>

Under the terms of the [[Epping Forest Act 1878]], the forest ceased to be a royal forest and was purchased by the City of London Corporation whose Epping Forest Committee act as [[Conservators]]. The committee is composed of twelve members of the [[Court of Common Council]] and four [[Verderer]]s who are residents of the forest and are elected by the Commoners. A Superintendent is responsible for operational management, supported by twelve [[Epping Forest Keepers]].<ref>Buxton 1885, p. 25</ref> In addition, the Crown's right to [[venison]] was terminated, and pollarding was no longer allowed, although grazing rights continued. This act laid down a stipulation that the Conservators "shall at all times keep Epping Forest unenclosed and unbuilt on as an open space for the recreation and enjoyment of the people". In compensation for the loss of lopping rights, Lopping Hall in Loughton was built as a community building.<ref>Haggar 2012, pp. 91-93</ref> This was the first major victory, in Europe, for the modern conservation movement.<ref name="Woodlands p417"/>

==="The People's Forest"===
[[File:Connaught Waters.JPG|thumb|Connaught Water, an ornamental lake of {{convert|8|acre|ha}} named after the [[Duke of Connaught]], the first [[Epping Forest Keepers|forest ranger]]<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gPVI_bc0axIC&q=connaught+water&pg=PA543 | first=E | last=Walford | title=A Narrative of Greater London. Its Places. Its History. Its People | year=1883 | volume=2 | page=543 | isbn=0-543-96787-5 | access-date=4 December 2008}}</ref>]]

When [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]] visited [[Chingford]] on 6 May 1882 she declared "It gives me the greatest satisfaction to dedicate this beautiful forest to the use and enjoyment of my people for all time" and it thus became "The People's Forest". The City of London Corporation still manages Epping Forest in strict conformity with the Epping Forest Act. This care is funded from '[[City's Cash]]', the private funds of the Corporation rather than any money for its upkeep coming from local rates or taxes. The Conservators administer the forest from The Warren, modern offices built in the grounds of [[Grade II* listed]] Warren House, [[Loughton]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-118627-the-warren-loughton-essex |title=The Warren, Loughton |access-date=20 March 2013}}</ref> Warren House, formerly known as the Reindeer Inn, was built around a smaller hunt standing, known as the Little Standing. Its grounds were redesigned by [[Humphry Repton]] in the early 19th century.

Until the outbreak of [[Bovine spongiform encephalopathy|BSE]] in 1996 commoners still exercised their right to graze cattle and every summer herds of cattle would roam freely in the southern part of the forest.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/consultations/files/Grazing%2019%20Oct.pdf |title=Cattle Grazing on Epping Forest |access-date=15 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610064519/https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/consultations/files/Grazing%2019%20Oct.pdf |archive-date=10 June 2015 |df=dmy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/features/3799139.When_our_bovine_buddies_roamed_free/ |title=Waltham Forest Guardian 28 October 2008 |publisher=Guardian-series.co.uk |date=28 October 2008 |access-date=15 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120301172027/http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/features/3799139.When_our_bovine_buddies_roamed_free/ |archive-date=1 March 2012 |df=dmy }}</ref> Cattle were reintroduced in 2001 but their movements are now more restricted to reduce conflict with traffic.<ref name="CoL_wildlife">[http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/living_environment/open_spaces/EF_wildlife.htm City of London Epping Forest wildlife web page] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016193136/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/living_environment/open_spaces/EF_wildlife.htm |date=16 October 2007 }}</ref> Commoners, who are people who live in a Forest parish and own {{convert|0.5|acre|ha}} of land, can still register and graze cattle during the summer months.

The right to collect wood still exists but is rarely practised and is limited to "one [[Faggot (unit)|faggot]] of dead or driftwood" per day per adult resident.<ref>{{cite web|title=Epping Forest Bye-Laws 1980 and additional Bye-Laws 1986 |url=http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/75920B02-E28A-45FD-8D40-94CAD0A25449/0/Byelawscancopy.pdf |publisher=Corporation of London |access-date=21 September 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612214220/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/75920B02-E28A-45FD-8D40-94CAD0A25449/0/Byelawscancopy.pdf |archive-date=12 June 2011 }}</ref>

Originally a barn built in the mid-19th century the [[Grade II listed|Grade II listed building]] [[Butler's Retreat]] is one of the few remaining [[Victorian era|Victorian]] retreats within the forest. The building, which  is adjacent to the Queen Elizabeth Hunting Lodge, takes its name from the 1891 occupier John Butler. Retreats originally served non-alcoholic refreshments as part of the [[Temperance movement]]. After closing in 2009 the building was refurbished by the [[City of London Corporation]] and re-opened as a café in 2012.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120831110048/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/news/Documents/Forest%20Focus%20Autumn%202011.pdf City of London- Butler's Retreat] Retrieved 25 February 2013</ref>

On 12 July 2012 [[Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester|The Duke of Gloucester]]—the official Epping Forest Ranger—opened the View interpretation centre at Chingford. The building, a former Victorian [[coach house]] and stables,<ref>[http://greenflag.keepbritaintidy.org/news/2012/07/stunning-new-visitor-centre-opens-at-epping-forest/ Epping Forest Gateway] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120904162737/http://greenflag.keepbritaintidy.org/news/2012/07/stunning-new-visitor-centre-opens-at-epping-forest/ |date=4 September 2012 }} Retrieved 19 July 2013</ref> together with Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge and Butler's Retreat form the Epping Forest Gateway.<ref>[http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/9814824.CHINGFORD__Duke_of_Gloucester_opens_Epping_Forest_visitors_centre/ News report] Retrieved 18 July 2013</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:A view north at the west of High Beech, Essex, England.jpg|thumb|right|A view across the Lea Valley from High Beach.]]
The forest is approximately {{Convert|19|km}} long in the north–south direction, but no more than {{Convert|4|km}} from east to west at its widest point, and in most places considerably narrower. The main body of the forest stretches from [[Epping, Essex|Epping]] in the north, to [[Chingford]] on the edge of the London built-up area. South of Chingford the forest narrows, and forms a green corridor that extends deep into East London, as far as [[Forest Gate]]. The southern part of the forest was always narrower but enclosure and other destruction in the 19th and 20th centuries mean that this is now more pronounced. The southernmost point of the Forest is now [[Wanstead Flats]] but it formerly extended slightly further south, to the [[A118 road|Romford Road]].<ref>Shown in the (broadly reliable) Chapman and Andre map of Essex, 1777</ref>

The forest occupies a ridge of higher ground, the Epping Forest Ridge, set between the valleys of the [[River Lea|Rivers Lea]] and [[River Roding|Roding]]. These valleys were formed by arms of the [[Scandinavian ice sheet]] during the [[last glacial period]], around 18,000 BC. The ridge consists of [[boulder clay]] topped with loam, while towards its southern end it is overlain with glacial [[gravel]]. The highest points are near [[Ambresbury Banks]] to the south of Epping, which is 111 metres (384 feet) above sea level, while [[Pole Hill]] near Chingford reaches 91 metres (299 feet). On the western edge of the ridge, [[High Beach]] at a similar height, is an expanse of gravel and [[Bagshot Formation|Bagshot sand]], thought to have been deposited by an unknown river which flowed northwards from the [[Weald of Kent]] before the creation of the [[Thames Valley]].<ref>Hagger 2012, p. 10</ref>

The following is a simplified list of the various parts of Epping Forest, starting from the north:
{{div col}}
*'''Lower Forest'''; a triangular expanse of oak and hornbeam wood just north of the town of Epping which separates it from the main body of the forest.
*'''Bell Common''' and '''Epping Thicks'''; the forest area directly to the south of Epping. Bell Common includes a cricket pitch, the [[M25 motorway]] passes underneath enclosed in a tunnel. Epping Thicks is the location of [[Ambresbury Banks|Ambresbury Banks Iron Age fort]].
*'''Genesis Slade'''; an area of unpollarded beech, oak and hornbeam on the eastern edge of the forest towards [[Theydon Bois]].
*'''[[Great Monk Wood]]'''; a large area of pollarded beech and hornbeam astride the Epping New Road, reaching the outskirts of [[Loughton]] in the east.
*'''[[High Beech]]'''; an open sandy ridge to the west of the forest, with views to [[Waltham Abbey (town)|Waltham Abbey]] and across the Lea Valley.
*'''Bury Wood''' and '''Chingford Plain'''; the southwestern part of the main forest extending to Chingford, where the plain includes a golf course.
*'''Knighton Wood''' and '''Lords Bushes'''; an isolated area of forest at [[Buckhurst Hill]], the former being previously landscaped parkland which was added to the forest in 1930.
*'''Hatch Forest''' and '''[[Highams Park]]'''; a strip of forest extending south from Chingford along the [[River Ching]]. [[Highams Park Lake]] was designed by [[Humphry Repton]] in 1794 and was added to the forest in 1891.
*'''[[Woodford Green]]'''; an area of grassland lined by trees, including a cricket pitch.
*'''[[Walthamstow]] Forest''' and '''Gilbert's Slade''' a continuation of the forest southwards from Woodford Green, straddling the [[North Circular Road]] and extending towards [[Whipps Cross]].
*'''[[Whipps Cross|Leyton Flats]]'''; stretch between [[Snaresbrook]], Whipps Cross and the Green Man at [[Leytonstone]]. Largely open grassland with the Eagle and Hollow Ponds.
*'''Bush Wood''' and '''[[Wanstead Flats]]'''; extend east from Leytonstone towards [[Forest Gate]] and [[Manor Park, London|Manor Park]]. Mostly open grassland featuring football pitches and several ponds.
*'''[[Wanstead Park]]'''; an enclosed area of the forest with restricted opening; formerly the landscaped parkland of [[Wanstead House]] demolished in 1825, the park was added to the forest in 1880.
{{div col end}}

==Ecology and habitats==
[[File:Epping Forest pollard.jpg|thumb|left|An overgrown Beech [[Pollarding|pollard]], in Epping Forest]]

The age of the forest and the range of habitats it contains make it a valuable area for wildlife, and it is designated as a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]]. Its former status a common, with wood-pasture and plains has had a great effect on its ecology. Although the Epping Forest Act almost certainly saved the forest from total destruction, it has to some extent had a deleterious effect on the area's [[biodiversity]].<ref>"The major ecological trend in the past 100 years has been towards uniformity" (Baker, Moxey, Oxford 1978).</ref>

===Wood pasture===
The areas historic land use has had an enormous impact on the areas character and ecology, this is particularly evident with the [[Pollarding|pollard]]ed trees, which were cut back to the ''bolling'', the permanent base of the pollard, every 13 years or so.<ref>Trees and Woodland in the British landscape, Oliver Rackham, Phoenix, Revised 1996</ref> The bolling was cut just above the browse line of wild and domestic grazing animals. However, the Forests pollards have not been cut since the passing of the Epping Forest Act, have now grown massive crowns of thick, trunk-like branches with correspondingly large [[bole (botany)|bole]]s. This gives the trees an unusual appearance, uncommon in other forests. Often the weight of the branches cannot be supported by the parent tree, and the large amount of dead wood in the forest supports numerous rare species of fungi and [[invertebrate]]s. Epping Forest has 55,000 [[veteran tree|ancient tree]]s, more than any other single site in the United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://news.cityoflondon.gov.uk/ancient-trees-celebrated-at-epping-forest/#:~:text=Epping%20Forest%20itself%20is%20home,in%20Europe%2C%20irreplaceable%20and%20rare. |title=Ancient trees celebrated at Epping Forest |last=Lascelles |first=Susanna |date=4 July 2017 |website=cityoflondon.gov.uk |publisher=City of London Corporation  |access-date=6 February 2021 }}</ref>
[[File:Epping Forest 2.JPG|thumb|Secondary woodland in Epping Forest]]
Predominant tree species are [[Pedunculate oak]] (''Quercus robur''), [[European beech]] (''Fagus sylvatica''), [[European hornbeam]] (''Carpinus betuloides''), [[silver birch]] (''Betula pendula'') and [[European holly]] (''Ilex aquifolium''). Indicator species of long-uninterrupted woodland include service-tree (''[[Sorbus torminalis]]'') butcher's-broom (''[[Ruscus aculeatus]]'') and drooping sedge (''[[Carex pendula]]'').

The pollarded trees allowed light through to the woodland floor, increasing the numbers of low-growing plants. Since the Act, the vast crowns of the pollards cut out most of the light to the underbrush.

===Plains===
The plains were located in wet or low-lying areas. The area surrounding the forest is now to a great extent urbanised; the corresponding reduction in grazing has led to some former areas of grassland and heathland being overcome by [[ecological succession|secondary woodland]].

===Restoration work===
In recent years, the Conservators have experimented with pollarding in selected areas of the forest, lopping some old pollards back to the bolling (with mixed results) or creating new bollings. A herd of English [[English Longhorn|Longhorn cattle]] has been reintroduced to graze the heathland and grassland.<ref>[http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/media_centre/files2007/81_07.htm City of London press release on extension of grazing by cattle] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101226040933/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/Corporation/media_centre/files2007/81_07.htm |date=26 December 2010 }}</ref>

===Lakes and ponds===
[[File:Hollow pond - geograph.org.uk - 1036284.jpg|thumb|right|Hollow Pond, a former gravel pit on Leyton Flats near [[Whipps Cross]].]]
Over 100 lakes and ponds can be found within the forest varying in size and age.<ref>[http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/wildlife-and-nature/Pages/lakes-and-ponds-of-epping-forest.aspx City of London-Epping Forest] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141204054846/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/wildlife-and-nature/Pages/lakes-and-ponds-of-epping-forest.aspx |date=4 December 2014 }} Retrieved 21 November 2014</ref> They all provide important habitats for numerous species of fauna and flora. Many of them are man-made with the majority of them created through gravel extraction. Several were formed as part of a landscape design and a few were the result of Second World War bombs and [[V-2 rocket]]s.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20180330112958/http://www.friendsofeppingforest.org.uk/hoy.htm Friends of Epping Forest – The Bomb Crater] Retrieved 20 November 2014</ref> Activities allowed on the waters include [[angling]] which is permitted in 24 of the lakes and ponds. A wide range of [[freshwater fish]] can be caught.<ref>[http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Angling.aspx Angling information] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141103033549/http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Angling.aspx |date=3 November 2014 }} Retrieved 27 November 2013</ref> All of the lakes and ponds are accessible to the public and are located on or close to forest paths.

===Fauna===
A wide range of animals are found, including [[fallow deer]] (''Dama dama''), [[muntjac]] (''Muntiacus reevesi'') and European adder (''[[Vipera berus]]'').

====Deer====
The [[fallow deer]] found in Epping Forest are of an unusual black colouration, perhaps descended from some black deer presented by King [[Christian IV of Denmark]] to [[James I of Great Britain|James I]] in 1612, although there are earlier records of black deer in England before this date.<ref>Chapman 1975, p. 26</ref> By 1878 when the Epping Forest Act gave the deer firm legal protection, poaching had reduced the herd to twelve does and one buck; however, numbers had recovered to around 200 by the start of the 20th century.<ref name="Ramsey_p_71">Ramsey 1986, p. 71</ref> In 1954, it was noted that common lighter-brown fallow deer had begun to interbreed in the forest and some black examples were sent to [[Whipsnade Zoo]] to preserve this variety.<ref>Chapman 1975, p. 27</ref> Subsequently, losses to traffic and dogs prompted the establishment of an enclosed deer sanctuary of {{convert|109|acres}} near Debden, to maintain a stock of deer which can be released back into the forest when the population levels become too low.<ref name="Ramsey_p_71"/>

[[Red deer]] were once found in Epping Forest, but the last survivors were rounded-up and taken to [[Windsor Great Park]] at the end of the 19th century. The last recorded sighting of [[roe deer]] in the forest was in 1920.<ref name="Ramsey_p_71"/> In recent decades, [[Reeves's muntjac]] have been reported in the southern part of the forest.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Madelin |first1=Thibaud |title=Muntjac Deer in the South of Epping Forest with a perspective on population study |url=https://www.wrengroup.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/newsletter_Winter14a.pdf |journal=Wren Wildlife and Conservation Group Newsletter |issue=Winter 2014 |pages=13–15 |access-date=17 January 2021}}</ref> The announcement of licensed [[culling]] of fallow deer and muntjac in forest "buffer land" in 2016 was criticised by local residents but defended by environmentalists as necessary to prevent over-grazing of woodland undergrowth.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/fierce-row-over-appalling-plan-to-hunt-deer-at-east-london-woodland-epping-forest-a3409151.html |title=Fierce row over 'appalling' plan to hunt deer at east London woodland Epping Forest |last=Gillett |first=Francesca |date=30 November 2016 |website=www.standard.co.uk |publisher=Evening Standard / ESI Media |access-date=17 January 2021}}</ref>

==Planning designations==
* Most of the forest, an area of {{convert|1,728|ha|acres}} is a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]]<ref name=citation>{{cite web|url=http://www.sssi.naturalengland.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001814.pdf |publisher=Natural England |title=Epping Forest SSSI citation |access-date=15 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024045100/http://www.sssi.naturalengland.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1001814.pdf |archive-date=24 October 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271001814%27 |title=Map of Epping Forest (SSSI) |publisher=Natural England |access-date=14 July 2013}}</ref> 
* The forest is a [[Special Area of Conservation]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/protectedsites/sacselection/sac.asp?EUCode=UK0012720|title=Special Areas of Conservation: Epping Forest|publisher=Joint Nature Conservation Committee|access-date=14 January 2016}}</ref>
* Most of the Forest is part of the [[Metropolitan Green Belt]].
* Much of the Forest is designated as [[Metropolitan Open Land]].

==Leisure activities==
A wide variety of leisure activities associated with the forest, most notably rambling, cycling and horse riding.
[[File:Epping Forest, cyclist - geograph.org.uk - 1214480.jpg|thumb|right|[[Mountain biking]] in Epping Forest.]]
[[File:Football match, Wanstead Flats - geograph.org.uk - 1593630.jpg|thumb|right|A youth football match on [[Wanstead Flats]].]]
Epping Forest attracts large numbers of [[mountain biking|mountain bikers]]. Mountain biking is generally permitted except around the Iron Age camps, Loughton Brook and other ecologically or geomorphologically sensitive areas. Despite clear signposting, a minority of mountain bikers and horse riders continue to cause damage in these areas,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/548902 |title=Epping Forest: Loughton Camp:: OS grid TQ4197 :: Geograph British Isles – photograph every grid square! |publisher=Geograph.org.uk |access-date=15 August 2012}}</ref> and the Conservators of Epping Forest have expressed their concern.<ref>[http://eppingtrails.co.uk/?p=22 Comments from the Corp. at eppingtrails.co.uk<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703104548/http://eppingtrails.co.uk/?p=22 |date=3 July 2009 }}</ref> A number of clubs organise rides, particularly on Sunday mornings. The forest is also used as a training area for many national level mountain-bike racers as it is highly regarded for its fast and tight flowing single track trails. This type of terrain is known within the mountain bike fraternity as cross country (or XC). Epping Forest was considered as a venue for the mountain-biking event of the 2012 Summer Olympics, though the final choice was near [[Hadleigh Castle]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2018}} [[2014 Tour de France, Stage 1 to Stage 11#Stage 3|Stage 3]] of the [[2014 Tour de France]] passed through the forest from Epping to Buckhurst Hill along the Epping New Road.<ref>{{cite news |last=Eggboro |first=David |date=7 July 2014 |title=Reaction to the Tour de France in Epping Forest |url=http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/11325051.Tour_de_France_rolls_through_Epping_Forest/ |work=East London & West Essex Guardian |access-date=13 April 2014 }}</ref>

[[Horse riding]] is popular in Epping Forest. Riders need to be registered with the Epping Forest conservators before they are allowed to ride in the forest. Running as a form of recreation in Epping Forest goes back almost to the birth of the sport in the 1870s, including hosting the inaugural English Championships in 1876. [[Orienteering]] and [[rambling]] are also popular. There are numerous guidebooks offering shorter walks for the casual visitor. The most important event in the ramblers' calendar in the area is the traditional [[Epping Forest Centenary Walk]], an all-day event commemorating the saving of Epping Forest as a public space, which takes place annually on the third Sunday in September.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.friendsofeppingforest.org.uk/cent.htm |title=Annual Centenary Walk |publisher=Friends of Epping Forest |date=18 September 2011 |access-date=15 August 2012 |archive-date=12 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312004855/http://www.friendsofeppingforest.org.uk/cent.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[High Beach]] in Epping Forest was the first British venue for [[motorcycle speedway]] and opened on 19 February 1928.  The track was behind The King's Oak public house, and drew large crowds in its early days.  The track was closed when a swimming pool was added to the pub's grounds after the Second World War, though enthusiasts and veterans still gather at the site every year on the nearest Sunday to 19 February. The remains of the track are still visible, in the grounds of the Epping Forest Field Centre behind the King's Oak.<ref>[http://www.retro-speedway.com/page.php?34 King's Oak speedway] Retrieved 6 August 2010</ref> The field centre in the forest, run by [[Field Studies Council]] provides a variety of courses.

There are 60 pitches for [[Association football|football]] with changing facilities on forest land at Wanstead Flats, which are used by amateur and youth teams.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Football.aspx |title=Epping Forest – Football |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=www.cityoflondon.gov.uk |publisher=The City of London |access-date=24 April 2017 |archive-date=25 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425122204/https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Football.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> There is a public 18-hole [[golf course]] at Chingford Plain, which is also used by the Royal Epping Forest Golf Club, Chingford Golf Club and Chingford Ladies' Golf Club. The course was established in the forest in 1888.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chingfordgolfcourse.co.uk/ |title=Chingford Golf Course |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=www.chingfordgolfcourse.co.uk |publisher=The City of London  |access-date=24 April 2017}}</ref> Cricket is played on forest land at Woodford Green, Bell Common (Epping), Buckhurst Hill, and High Beach.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Other-Sports.aspx |title=Epping Forest – Other sports |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=www.cityoflondon.gov.uk |publisher=The City of London |access-date=24 April 2017 |archive-date=25 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425120332/https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/sports-events-and-activities/Pages/Other-Sports.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> One historic match is recorded in the forest in 1732 between [[London Cricket Club]] and an [[Essex & Hertfordshire cricket team|Essex & Hertfordshire side]]. The result is unknown. The match is the earliest known reference to both [[Essex county cricket teams|Essex]] and [[Hertfordshire county cricket teams|Hertfordshire]] as county teams.<ref name=GB7>G. B. Buckley (1937) ''Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket'', p. 7. Cotterell.</ref><ref name=ca>[https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Grounds/11/2811.html Epping Forest], CricketArchive. Retrieved 24 December 2018. {{subscription required}}</ref>

==Visitor centres==
[[File:Epping Forest Visitor Centre - geograph.org.uk - 5530798.jpg|thumb|right|The Epping Forest Visitor Centre at High Beach]]
The forest has three visitor centres:
*Epping Forest Visitor Centre at Paul’s Nursery Road, High Beach, managed by the Epping Forest Heritage Trust 
*Epping Forest Gateway at Ranger's Road, Chingford
*The Temple in Wanstead Park<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |title=Visit Epping Forest - Visitor Centres |url=https://efht.org.uk/discover-epping-forest/visitor-centre/ |website=efht.org.uk |location=Loughton, Essex |publisher=Epping Forest Heritage Trust |access-date=15 February 2024}}</ref>

== Public transport ==
Public transport serves most locations in and around the forest.  The forest is accessible from most [[London Underground]] Central Line stations between [[Leytonstone tube station|Leytonstone]] and [[Epping tube station|Epping]] and [[London Overground]] between [[Wood Street railway station|Wood Street]] and [[Chingford railway station|Chingford]] and at the very southern end by the [[Elizabeth line]] at [[Manor Park railway station|Manor Park]].

In the 1980s, the name "Forest" was given to one of the districts in which [[Buses in London|London's buses]] was divided, covering east London, and including the south part of the forest.  Its logo was a squirrel above the [[London Transport (brand)|London Transport roundel]].  Later, from 1989 until its collapse in 1991, [[London Forest]] part of London Buses Limited, was the name of an arms length bus operating unit of [[London Regional Transport]] in the area, with an oak tree as its logo.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eplates.info/maps/areas.html |title=London Transport – Local Bus Maps |publisher=eplates.info |access-date=28 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317205652/http://www.eplates.info/maps/areas.html |archive-date=17 March 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Cultural associations==
[[File:Jacob Epstein (1934).jpg|thumb|The sculptor [[Jacob Epstein]] created a series of paintings of the forest]]

Epping Forest has frequently been the setting for novels, and has attracted poets, artists and musicians for centuries. Many of these artists lived at [[Loughton]]. Loughton is also home to the [[East 15 Acting School]] and its Corbett Theatre.

===Fine art===
Sculptor [[Jacob Epstein]] lived on the very edge of the forest for a quarter of a century at Baldwins Hill, Loughton. Epstein in his Autobiography (1955) says that he wanted his sculpture ''Visitation'', now in the [[Tate Collection]], to be sited overlooking the forest. In 1933, he exhibited 100 paintings of the forest, and continued to paint during the war. His [[gouache]], an essay in green tints and textures, ''Pool – Epping Forest'', of Baldwins Hill Pond, was exhibited in 1945. Many of his forest painting are in the [[The Garman Sisters|Garman Ryan Collection]] at the [[Walsall Art Gallery|New Art Gallery, Walsall]]

===Literature===
[[Elizabethan]] poets such as [[George Gascoigne]] and [[Thomas Lodge]] lived in and around the forest. The writer [[Lady Mary Wroth]] lived at [[Loughton Hall]]. [[Ben Jonson]], best known for his [[satirical]] play ''[[The Alchemist (play)|The Alchemist]]'', was a frequent visitor to the forest with [[George Chapman]].<ref name=lit>[http://www.thewordtravels.com/johnclare.html Epping forest in literature] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509053957/http://www.thewordtravels.com/johnclare.html |date=9 May 2008 }} Retrieved 25 April 2008</ref>

In [[Daniel Defoe]]'s novel [[A Journal of the Plague Year]] (1722), a group of Londoners try to escape the plague by settling in and around Epping Forest.

In the 18th century, [[Mary Wollstonecraft]], writer, philosopher and [[feminist]], spent the first five years of her life growing up in the forest.<ref>[http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/wollstonecraft-mary/1792/vindication-rights-woman/preface.htm Mary Wollstonecraft] retrieved 25 April 2008</ref>

In the 19th century, the poet and humorist [[Thomas Hood]] published ''The Epping Hunt'' in 1829, about the rowdy annual [[Easter Monday]] deer hunt for Londoners which started at Buckhurst Hill. In 1832, Hood and his wife moved to the Lake House in Wanstead Park, which was later incorporated into the forest, and his 1838 novel ''Tylny Hall'' is set there.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wickedwilliam.com/tag/epping-forest/ |title=Tally Ho! – A Brief History of The Epping Hunt Part 5 – A Fond Farewell |last=Roberts |first=Greg |date=16 June 2014 |website=www.wickedwilliam.com |publisher=Resources for study of the life and times of William-Pole-Tylney-Long-Wellesley (1788–1857) |access-date=19 November 2017 }}</ref> [[Charles Dickens]]' novel ''[[Barnaby Rudge]]'' begins with a description of the forest in 1775.<ref>[http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=230743&pageno=4 Barnaby Rudge Chapter 1] Retrieved 25 April 2008</ref> [[Alfred, Lord Tennyson]] lived at Beech Hill House, High Beach, from 1837 to 1840, where he wrote parts of ''[[In Memoriam A.H.H.]]''. Suffering from depression, he stayed as a guest at Dr. Martin Allen's asylum, where he would have encountered poet [[John Clare]], whose behaviour became so erratic that he was removed to the asylum in 1837.<ref name=lit/> [[William Morris]], artist, writer and socialist, was born in [[Walthamstow]] in 1834, and spent his early years in what was then rural Essex, close to the outlying sections of the forest.<ref>[http://www1.walthamforest.gov.uk/wmg/waltham.htm William Morris gallery] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080506024521/http://www1.walthamforest.gov.uk/wmg/waltham.htm |date=6 May 2008 }} Retrieved 26 April 2008</ref> [[Arthur Morrison]], "the English [[Émile Zola|Zola]]", lived successively at Chingford, Loughton, and High Beach in the forest, and – particularly in ''To London Town'' – the forest is used as a contrast to the East London deprivation he wrote about. [[Horace Newte]], his contemporary and friend, lived at [[Loughton]] and [[Theydon Bois]]. [[Rudyard Kipling]] and [[Stanley Baldwin]] spent a seminal long holiday as boys in [[Loughton]] adjacent to the Forest, which they loved. This has been documented in detail by Janice Lingley in her ''Loughton Idyll'' (Alderton Press 2020).

The poet [[Edward Thomas (poet)|Edward Thomas]] was posted to a temporary army camp at High Beach when he enlisted in the [[Artists' Rifles]] in 1915.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wilson |first=Jean Moorcroft  |date=2015 |title=Edward Thomas: from Adlestrop to Arras: A Biography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1QK2CAAAQBAJ&q=edward+thomas+%22High+Beech%22&pg=PA379 |publisher=Bloomsbury Continuum |page=343 |isbn=978-1408187135 }}</ref> Although the conditions in the camp were squalid, Thomas enjoyed the forest and the following year moved with his wife to a cottage at Paul's Nursery,<ref>{{cite web|title=High Beach and Paul's Nursery|url=https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/visitor-information/wheretogoineppingforest/Pages/high-beach-and-loughton.aspx|website=City of London.gov.uk|access-date=12 March 2017|archive-date=12 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312200631/https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest/visitor-information/wheretogoineppingforest/Pages/high-beach-and-loughton.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> close to High Beach.<ref>Wilson 2015, p.363</ref> One of his last poems, ''Out in the dark'', was written at High Beach at Christmas 1916, shortly before he was killed in France.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wisniewski  |first=Jacek |date=2009 |title=Edward Thomas: A Mirror of England |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tNymBgAAQBAJ&q=edward+thomas+%22out+in+the+dark%22&pg=PA202 |publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing |page=202 |isbn=978-1443802109 }}</ref>

During the 20th century, several writers used the forest as a setting for their novels, including [[R. Austin Freeman]]'s ''[[The Jacob Street Mystery]]'' (1940), partly set at Loughton Camp. [[Dorothy L. Sayers]]' 1928 mystery ''[[Unnatural Death]]'' includes the discovery, in Epping Forest, of the body of a young woman possessing knowledge that could incriminate a murderer.  The [[horror fiction|horror]] writer [[James Herbert]] used Epping Forest as the setting for his novel ''Lair'' (1979). In the book, a horde of [[Giant Black Rat]]s establish a colony in the forest and embark on a murderous campaign against humans. Herbert mentions a now obscure legend attached to the forest – the legend of the [[white stag]]. Supposedly, the sighting of this animal is an omen of trouble and death. [[Natural historian]] and author [[Fred J Speakman]] lived at the Epping Forest Field Studies Centre, High Beach.<ref>[http://www.field-studies-council.org/eppingforest/ Epping Forest Field Studies Centre] Retrieved 25 April 2008</ref> He wrote several books about the area, including ''A Poacher's Tale'' with Alfred T Curtis, a [[Waltham Abbey (town)|Waltham Abbey]]-born [[Poaching|poacher]],<ref>Speakman F & Curtis A, ''A Poacher's Tale'' (1960) {{ISBN|0-7135-0969-4}} [[George Bell & Sons]]</ref> and ''A Keeper's Tale'', describing the life of forest keeper Sidney Butt.<ref>Speakman, F, ''A Keeper's Tale'' (1962) {{ISBN|0-85115-224-4}} George Bell & Sons</ref>

[[T. E. Lawrence]] owned an estate at [[Pole Hill|Pole Hill, Chingford]]; this was added to the Forest in 1929 and Lawrence's hut re-erected in the Forest Headquarters at the Warren, Loughton, where it remains, largely forgotten, today.<ref>{{Citation
 |last=Ranger
 |first=James
 |title=HISTORY: A look at Lawrence of Arabia in Epping Forest
 |journal=Epping Forest Guardian
 |date=18 June 2010
 |url=http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/rbnews/8227950.HISTORY__A_look_at_Lawrence_of_Arabia_in_Epping_Forest/
 |access-date=5 June 2011
 |url-status=dead
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020135205/http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/rbnews/8227950.HISTORY__A_look_at_Lawrence_of_Arabia_in_Epping_Forest/
 |archive-date=20 October 2011
}}</ref>

Actor and playwright [[Ken Campbell]] (1941–2008) lived in Loughton, adjacent to Epping Forest; his funeral took the form of a woodland burial in the forest.<ref>{{cite web |title=A fond farewell in Epping Forest |url=http://blogs.whatsonstage.com/2008/09/10/a-fond-farewell-in-epping-forest/#more-399 |website=Whatsonstage.com Blogs |access-date=26 September 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915032727/http://blogs.whatsonstage.com/2008/09/10/a-fond-farewell-in-epping-forest/#more-399 |archive-date=15 September 2008 |df=dmy }}</ref>

===Music===
The song "The White Buck of Epping" by [[Sydney Carter]] (1957) refers to a sighting of (and subsequent hunt for) a white buck in the forest.<ref>[http://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/~zierke/folk/records/sydneycarter.html Sydney Carter discography] Retrieved 17 April 2009</ref>

A track on [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]]' 1973 album ''[[Selling England by the Pound]]'' is entitled "The Battle of Epping Forest", and refers to a real-life [[East End]] gang-fight.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bowler|first1=Dave|last2=Dray|first2=Bryan|title=Genesis: A Biography|year=1992|isbn=978-0-283-06132-5|publisher=Sidgwick & Jackson Ltd|page=[https://archive.org/details/genesisbiography0000bowl_h5d4/page/82 82]|url=https://archive.org/details/genesisbiography0000bowl_h5d4/page/82}}</ref>

The interior of the [[gatefold]] sleeve of the [[progressive rock]] band [[Emerson, Lake & Palmer]]'s third studio album [[Trilogy (Emerson, Lake & Palmer album)|Trilogy]]<ref>[http://www.discogs.com/Emerson-Lake-Palmer-Trilogy/master/11956 Trilogy] Retrieved 31 August 2012</ref> features a [[photomontage]] showing multiple images of the band in the forest carpeted with autumn leaves.

The [[Paul McCartney and Wings|Wings]] album ''[[London Town (Wings album)|London Town]]'' includes the song "Famous Groupies" (written by [[Paul McCartney]]) with the lyrics, "There was a lead guitarist / Who lived in Epping Forest / And all he ever wanted was to blow".<ref>{{Citation|title=Paul McCartney & Wings – Famous Groupies|url=https://genius.com/Paul-mccartney-and-wings-famous-groupies-lyrics|language=en|access-date=2019-08-24}}</ref>

[[Damon Albarn]]'s song "[[Hollow Ponds]]" (2014) is based on his memories of locals swimming at Hollow Ponds in Epping Forest in the heat wave of 1976, and other childhood memories of the area.

===Television===
The forest featured heavily in an episode of [[Living TV]]'s ''[[Most Haunted Live]]'' over New Year 2003/2004 as the team, made up of [[Yvette Fielding]] and [[Derek Acorah]], investigated the forest in the hope of discovering the spirit of [[Dick Turpin]]. The team got lost in the forest live on air, and a ranger was required to find them.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120320062006/http://www.theparanormalexperience.co.uk/most_haunted_live_6.htm ''Most Haunted Live'']}} Retrieved 11 February 2011</ref>

In the British [[BBC]] soap opera screened in February 1999, ''[[EastEnders]]'', fictional character [[Steve Owen (EastEnders)|Steve Owen]] ([[Martin Kemp (entertainer)|Martin Kemp]]) accidentally killed his stalker [[Saskia Duncan]] (Deborah-Sheridin Taylor). He later panicked and buried her body in the forest. It was discovered 10 months later.<ref>[http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/soaps/s2/eastenders/news/a200987/eastenders-moments-steve-saskia-and-the-ashtray.html East Enders] Retrieved 3 April 2012</ref>

An episode of the BBC series ''[[New Tricks (TV series)|New Tricks]]'' which was set in the forest was broadcast on 3 September 2013.<ref>[http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/efnews/10255099.Mysterious_signs_explained_as_film_crew_descends_upon_Epping_Forest/ News report] Retrieved 4 September 2013</ref>

In the episode "Day Trippers" of the [[Thames Television]] sitcom ''[[Robin's Nest (TV series)|Robin's Nest]]'', first broadcast on 27 November 1978, the main characters picnic in the forest.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTWxukWcojA Robin's Nest] Retrieved 29 September 2015</ref>

The forest was featured in the [[BBC]] programme ''[[Countryfile]]'' broadcast on 21 June 2020 presented by [[Anita Rani]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Anita's Mini Hub |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000kc31 |website=Countryfile |access-date=28 June 2020}}</ref>

===Cinema===
As of 2013, Epping Forest has been used as a location in fourteen films<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/search/title?locations=Epping%20Forest,%20Essex,%20England,%20UK IMDB – Epping Forest] Retrieved 1 February 2013</ref> including the Black Knight sequence in the 1975 [[British film|film]] ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]''.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071853/locations?ref_=tt_dt_dt IMDB – Monty Python and the Holy Grail] Retrieved 1 February 2013</ref>

==Crime==
[[File:Dickturpin.jpg|thumb|[[Dick Turpin]] is alleged to have had a hideout in the forest]]
The forest has long standing criminal associations. In the 18th century, Epping Forest became notorious as the haunt of [[highwaymen]], who preyed on the coaches of wealthy racegoers on the road from London to [[Newmarket, Suffolk|Newmarket]].<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Cannon |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Crowcroft |editor2-first=Robert  |date=1997 |title=The Oxford Companion to British History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PM9xCgAAQBAJ&q=sixteen+string+jack+%22epping+forest%22&pg=PA465 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=465 |isbn=978-0-19-967783-2 }}</ref> [[Dick Turpin]] and [[Tom King (highwayman)|Tom King]] used the forest as a hideaway, and [[Jack Rann]], known as "Sixteen String Jack", had a [[pub]] named after him in [[Theydon Bois]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Brandon |first=David  |date=2001 |title=Stand and Deliver!: A History of Highway Robbery |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dik7AwAAQBAJ&q=sixteen+string+jack+%22epping+forest%22&pg=PA194 |publisher=The History Press |page=194 |isbn=978-0-7524-6820-4 }}</ref> Turpin had a hideout there.<ref>W Addison, ''Epping Forest, its Literary and Historical Associations'', 1946.</ref> The tree cover and the forest's location close to London have made it notorious as a burial area for murder victims. Triple policeman murderer [[Harry Roberts (murderer)|Harry Roberts]] hid out in the forest for a short time before his arrest in 1966.

===Murders===
{{div col}}
* 1966 – Marian Hartley, a 15-year-old schoolgirl, was killed by Joseph Kiely, 20. Kiely dragged Hartley into the forest late at night, in the Chingford area, where he sexually assaulted her and strangled her, after she had been to a school dance.<ref>[http://garyjones.co.uk/marian-hartley Marian Hartley], Gary Jones.</ref>
* 1970 – The bodies of Susan Blatchford (eleven years old) and Gary Hanlon (twelve years old) were discovered in a [[copse]] on Lippitts Hill, after they went missing from their homes in [[Enfield Town|Enfield]], north London, in March 1970. The case was to be known as the [[Babes in the Wood murders (Epping Forest)|'Babes in the Wood' murders]]. Thirty years later, Ronald Jebson, already serving a life sentence for the 1974 murder of eight-year-old Rosemary Papper, confessed to the murders.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/741866.stm |title=Babes in the Woods murders |publisher=News.bbc.co.uk |access-date=5 January 2011}}</ref>
* 1981 – The thin decomposed 6&nbsp;ft body of a white European man aged 30–40 was found in the undergrowth in the forest. He had a money belt containing English and Spanish money and wore a watch, costing approximately £40. The body remains unidentified.<ref>[http://www.ilfordrecorder.co.uk/news/news/appeals_renewed_for_two_unidentified_bodies_found_in_epping_forest_1_3058955 Appeals renewed for two unidentified bodies found in Epping Forest] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203152934/http://www.ilfordrecorder.co.uk/news/news/appeals_renewed_for_two_unidentified_bodies_found_in_epping_forest_1_3058955 |date=3 February 2014 }}, Harry Kemble, ''Ilford Recorder'', 29 November 2013.</ref>
* 1989 – Terence Gooderham, an accountant, and his girlfriend, Maxine Arnold, were both killed in a hit-man-style slaying whereby they were both shot with a double-barrelled shotgun.<ref>[http://www.truecrimelibrary.com/crime_series_show.php?series_number=11&id=1550 Maxine Arnold And Terry Gooderham – Epping Forest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141204201714/http://www.truecrimelibrary.com/crime_series_show.php?series_number=11&id=1550 |date=4 December 2014 }}, ''True Crime Library''.</ref> Although unsolved, it has been reported in the press that [[Jimmy Moody|James Moody]], described as "Britain's most notorious hitman",<ref>[http://www.waterstones.com/waterstonesweb/products/wensley+clarkson/moody/5334931/ Moody: The Life and Crimes of Britain's Most Notorious Hitman], by Wensley Clarkson.</ref> may have been responsible for the killings,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120822231833/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-hit-at-the-royal-hotel-james-moody-had-been-on-the-run-for-13-years-when-somebody-finally-caught-up-with-him-he-wasnt-in-marbella-but-on-his-old-stamping-ground-in-east-london-and-whoever-killed-him-knew-where-to-find-him-in-his-local-pub-1459957.html The hit at the Royal Hotel], Cal McCrystal, August 1993, ''The Independent''.</ref> although he was also murdered a few years later. It has been further suggested in the press that Gooderham was targeted because he creamed off £250,000 in drugs money that he was involved in laundering and that the hit was ordered by the Adams Family criminal organisation,<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/busted-the-fall-of-britains-most-ruthless-gangster-435531.html Busted: The fall of Britain's most ruthless gangster], ''The Independent'', 8 February 2007.</ref> which is also known as the [[Clerkenwell crime syndicate]].<ref>[[Clerkenwell crime syndicate]]</ref>
* 1990 – Patricia Parsons, who ran a [[Massage parlor|massage parlour]], was found dead in her car having been shot in the head with a cross-bow. It was suggested that she had a 'black book' of clients and was subject to a contract killing following the possibility that she was going to sell details to a newspaper. The murder remains unsolved.<ref>[http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Crossbow+killing+of+vice+girl%3A+Man+held+17+YEARS+ON%3B+EXCLUSIVE+DNA...-a0159137820 Crossbow killing of vice girl: Man held 17 YEARS ON; EXCLUSIVE DNA TESTS LEAD TO BREAKTHROUGH], ''The Free Library''.</ref><ref>[http://www.truecrimelibrary.com/crime_series_show.php?id=1377&series_number=11 Patricia Parsons – Epping Forest] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202143806/http://www.truecrimelibrary.com/crime_series_show.php?id=1377&series_number=11 |date=2 February 2014 }}, ''True Crime Library''.</ref><ref>[http://wolfiewiseguy.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/the-unsolved-murder-of-patricia-parsons.html The Unsolved Murder of Patricia Parsons], Wolfie Wiseguy.</ref>
* 2000 – Wendy Woodhouse, 31, was taken to forest in Essex, stripped, tortured and beaten to death with a snooker cue by two men who thought she had cheated them in a drugs deal. Courtney Peters, 28, an [[Illegal immigration|illegal immigrant]] from [[Jamaica]], and Ewing Thomas, 25, of [[Stoke Newington]], north London, were jailed for life for her murder at the [[Old Bailey]].<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1323783/Men-murdered-woman-cheated-in-drug-deal.html Men murdered woman cheated in drug deal], By Sue Clough, ''The Telegraph''.</ref><ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1513720.stm 'Violent' death over drug duping], 28 August 2001, ''BBC News''.</ref>
* 2004 – The remains of Ivor Willis, who had been missing for two years, were found on [[Wanstead Flats]].<ref>[http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/495424.dead_man_named Dead man named], by David Ivor Willis, ''Watford Observer''.</ref>
* 2003 – The body of a person aged 40 years or more was found in the forest. Experts could not identify the person's sex as the body was believed to have been there for up to 20 years. The body remains unidentified.<ref>[http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/indepth/features/602332.woods_where_killers_dump_their_victims Woods where killers dump their victims] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180412094934/http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/indepth/features/602332.woods_where_killers_dump_their_victims/ |date=12 April 2018 }}, by Sara Dixon, ''This is Local London''.</ref>
* 2005 – Shah Afruj Ali, 40, was lured to the forest and stabbed, before his body was burnt by his younger lover Joygun Nessa, 27, and her brother Azhor Khan, 18, in 2005.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/6048246.stm Killer brother and sister jailed], 13 October 2006, ''BBC News''.</ref>
* 2005 – Rafal Czapczyk was found, after passers-by heard gunshots, with ballistic wounds to his head at Wake Arms. He died later in hospital. The body remained unidentified for several months until his family in [[Poland]] recognised mortuary pictures that had been released by police. It is not believed that his killers have been found.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/essex/4688911.stm Man murdered in forest shooting], 16 July 2005, ''BBC News''.</ref>
* 2015 – [[Scotland Yard]] launched a murder inquiry after the body of Hidir Aksakal was found close to Hollow Ponds, [[Leytonstone]], on 9 September 2015.<ref>[http://www.guardian-series.co.uk/news/13721042.Hollow_Ponds_murder_victim_named_after_body_discovered__partially_buried_/ News report] Retrieved 15 September 2015</ref>
{{div col end}}

==See also==
*[[Edward Buxton (conservationist)|Edward Buxton]], who played a part in saving the forest for public use
*[[Epping Forest Keepers]], responsible for the management and care of the forest
*[[Fred J Speakman]], naturalist and author
*[[List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Greater London]]
*[[List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Essex]]
*[[Metropolitan Police Air Support Unit]], is based in the forest at Lippits Hill
*[[Stephen Pewsey]], historian
*[[Verderer#Epping Forest Verderers|Verderers of Epping Forest]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Sources==
===Books===
* {{cite book |last=Addison |first=William |date=1945 |title=Epping Forest: Its Literary and Historical Associations |location=London |publisher=J.M. Dent & Sons. Ltd }}
* {{cite book |last=Buckley |first=G. B. |author-link=G. B. Buckley |title=Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket |year=1935 |publisher=Cotterell }}
* {{cite book |last=Buxton |first=Edward North |author-link=Edward Buxton (conservationist) |date=1885 |title=Epping Forest |url=https://archive.org/details/eppingforest01buxtgoog/page/n6/mode/2up |location=London |publisher=Edward Stanford }}
* {{cite book |last1=Chapman |first1=Donald |last2=Chapman |first2=Norma |date=1975 |title=Fallow Deer: Their history, distribution and biology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DYA_AAAAYAAJ |location=Lavenham, Suffolk |publisher=Terence Dalton Limited |isbn=978-0900963506}}
* {{cite book |last=Hagger  |first=Nicholas |date=2012 |title=A View of Epping Forest |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5aJ-QuBQtlIC&q=%22epping+forest+ridge%22&pg=PA15 |publisher=O Books |isbn=978-1846945878 }}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Ramsey |editor-first=Winston G |date=1986 |title=Epping Forest then and now: An anthology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u3kNPQAACAAJ |publisher=Battle of Britain Prints International |isbn=978-0900913396}}
* {{cite book |last=Qvist |first=Alfred |date=1971 |title=Epping Forest |publisher=Corporation of London |isbn=978-0852030042}}
* {{cite book |last=Walford |first=Edward |author-link=Edward Walford |date=1898 |title=Greater London: a narrative of its history, its people, and its places. Volume I |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ugHAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA429 |location=London |publisher=Cassell & Company Limited }}

===Articles===
* {{cite journal |last1=Layton |first1=A. B. |date=1985 |title=Recreation, Management and Landscape in Epping Forest: ''c.''1800-1984 |url=https://fsj.field-studies-council.org/media/342863/vol6.2_170.pdf |journal=Field Studies |issue=6 |pages=269–290 |access-date=9 February 2021}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
*[https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/epping-forest The official Epping Forest pages] on the City of London website
* [https://eppingforestheritagetrust.org.uk Epping Forest Heritage Trust] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930013204/https://eppingforestheritagetrust.org.uk/ |date=30 September 2020 }}
*[http://www.english-nature.org.uk/special/sssi/sssi_details.cfm?sssi_id=1001814 Epping Forest SSSI (English Nature)]
* {{UK National Archives ID| id=F159210 |name=Epping Forest}}
* {{UK National Archives ID| id=F229534 |name=Corporation of London: Eppring Forest}}
* {{UK National Archives ID| id=F139025 |name=Epping Forest Preservation Society }}
* [http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/epstein-epping-forest-t05760 ''Epping Forest''] by [[Sir Jacob Epstein]] at [[Tate Britain]]
* [https://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=40943585 Pictures of Epping Forest on geograph.org.uk]

{{coord|51.66|0.05|region:GB_type:landmark|display=title}}

{{Parks and open spaces in London}}
{{Epping Forest}}
{{London landmarks}}
{{English cricket venues to 1770}}
{{SSSIs Greater London}}
{{SSSIs Essex}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Epping Forest District|*]]<!--THE "CATMAIN" IS THE DISTRICT OF EPPING FOREST-->
[[Category:Ancient woods of London]]
[[Category:Geography of London]]
[[Category:Cricket grounds in Essex]]
[[Category:Cricket grounds in London]]
[[Category:Cricket in Essex]]
[[Category:English cricket venues in the 18th century]]
[[Category:English royal forests]]
[[Category:Essex]]
[[Category:Forests and woodlands of Essex]]
[[Category:Forests and woodlands of London]]
[[Category:History of Essex]]
[[Category:History of London]]
[[Category:Nature Conservation Review sites]]
[[Category:Parks and open spaces in Essex]]
[[Category:Parks and open spaces in London]]
[[Category:Parks and open spaces of the City of London Corporation]]
[[Category:Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Essex]]
[[Category:Sites of Special Scientific Interest in London]]
[[Category:Special Areas of Conservation in England]]
[[Category:Sport in Essex]]
[[Category:Sports venues completed in 1732]]
[[Category:Sports venues in Essex]]
[[Category:Sports venues in London]]
[[Category:Urban forests in the United Kingdom]]