5 Parks and the Crown

Abstract Medieval kings are traditionally thought to have asserted wide powers over their subjects' creation of hunting reserves, not least through the establishment of forest law over large parts of the country. This chapter re-examines the accepted idea that the royal government closely controlled park-making through a system of licences. It shows that the majority of parks were created without licences and that where licences were obtained the initiative almost invariably came from the petitioner, rather than the crown. Forest law was of limited importance in restricting park creation, and there was little attempt to limit park numbers in general. A more nuanced picture of the nature of the royal interest in private parks is provided, including the ways in which kings helped to protect their subjects' reserves. The chapter also provides a re-assessment of the early chronology of park-making as part of the analysis of royal policy towards parks.