Editing Sherwood Forest

{{Short description|Royal forest in Nottinghamshire, England}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox protected area
| name            =
| iucn_category   = IV
| iucn_ref        = <ref>{{cite web | title=Sherwood Forest - Terrestrial and Inland Waters Protected Areas|website=Protected Planet|url=https://www.protectedplanet.net/174641| access-date=7 April 2025}}</ref>
{{Infobox forest
|map = England
|map_caption = 
|relief = yes
|county = [[Nottinghamshire]]
|country = England
|coordinates = {{Coord|53|12|16.09|N|1|4|21.94|W|region:GB_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
|website     = https://visitsherwood.co.uk/
|governing_body     = 
[[Royal Society for the Protection of Birds]], [[Nottinghamshire County Council]],
[[Forestry England]].
<!-- images -->
|photo = Sherwood Forest, May, 2017-5.jpg
|photo_caption = 
}}}}

{{Infobox SSSI
| image         = The Major Oak - geograph.org.uk - 1691865.jpg
| image_caption = [[Major Oak|The Major Oak]]
| name          = Sherwood Forest
| aos           = Nottinghamshire
| interest      = Biological<br>Geological
| area          = Sherwood Forest [[national nature reserve (United Kingdom)|National Nature Reserve]] encompasses 200 hectares.<ref>{{cite web | title=Sherwood Forest A brief history of invertebrate recording | website=Eakring Birds | date=2025 | url=https://www.eakringbirds.com/eakringbirds6/sherwoodforestinvertebrates.ht | access-date=4 April 2025}}</ref>
| notifydate    = 1981<ref>Sherwood Forest A brief history of invertebrate recording|Eakring Birds|2025|cite web: https://www.eakringbirds.com/eakringbirds6/sherwoodforestinvertebrates.ht%7C retrieved on 4 April 2025</ref>}}

'''Sherwood Forest''' is the remnants of an ancient [[royal forest|Royal Forest]] in [[Nottinghamshire]], within the [[East Midlands]] region in [[England]]. It has association with the [[legend]] of [[Robin Hood]]. The forest was proclaimed by [[William the Conqueror]] and mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]] in 1086. The reserve has the highest concentration of ancient trees in Europe.<ref name="ReferenceA">UK Government|Natural England|Nottinghamshire's National Nature Reserve Corporate Report 2014| retrieved on 9 April 2025</ref>

Today, Sherwood Forest [[national nature reserve (United Kingdom)|National Nature Reserve]] encompasses {{convert|424.75|ha|acre|abbr=off}},<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designations/nnr/1009468.aspx |title=Sherwood Forest NNR |publisher=Natural England |access-date=17 March 2013 |archive-date=14 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614045354/http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designations/nnr/1009468.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> surrounding the village of [[Edwinstowe]] and the site of [[Thoresby Hall]]. The reserve contains more than a thousand ancient oaks which are known to be more than 500 years old, with the [[Major Oak]] being twice that age.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Sherwood Forest is within an area which used to be called ‘Birch Lund’ which is [[Vikings|Viking]] in origin, now known as Birklands.<ref>History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak|Nottinghamshire County Council|2025|retrieved on 10 April 2025</ref> The oak trees from Sherwood Forest were used to build the roof of [[St Paul’s Cathedral]] in [[London]] and [[Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson|1st Viscount Nelson]] naval fleet.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://visitsherwood.co.uk/nature-at-sherwood/the-oaks/ | title=The Oaks | website=Visit Sherwood | access-date=16 April 2025}}</ref>

[[File:Robin Hood Statue, Sherwood Forest.jpg|right|thumb|Robin Hood Statue, Sherwood Forest]]

==Etymology==
Sherwood originally was named Sciryuda in 958AD, meaning the ‘woodland belonging to the shire’. Its name is derived from its status as the ''[[shire]]  (or sher) wood'' of Nottinghamshire, which extended into several neighbouring counties (shires), bordered to the west by the [[River Erewash]] and the [[Forest of East Derbyshire]].<ref>History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak. Nottinghamshire County Council. retrieved on 4 April 2025</ref>

==Prehistory==
The area has been wooded since the end of the [[Last Glacial Period]] (as attested by [[palynology|pollen sampling cores]]). This is about 10000 years ago.<ref>Ten things you never knew about Sherwood Forest|2014|BBC|url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/nottingham/sense_of_place/facts/sherwood_forest.shtml|retrieved on 7 April 2025</ref>

Evidence of flint tools have shown use in Sherwood Forest by prehistoric hunter gatherers. During the Iron Age and Roman periods human habitation and farming was common. In the 9th century farming made an impact on Sherwood’s landscape.<ref>History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak|Nottinghamshire County Council|2025|retrieved on the 8 April 2025</ref>

==History==
During [[Roman Britain]] various camps were discovered in parts of Sherwood Forest. It is to this that two remains of [[Roman villa|Roman Villas]] were identified in nearby [[Mansfield Woodhouse]] by [[Hayman Rooke|Major Hayman Rooke]] in 1787.<ref>Robert White, Worksop, The Dukery, and Sherwood Forest, (1875)|retrieved on 3 May 2025</ref>

Sherwood Forest was first recorded as being named Sciryuda in 958AD.<ref>History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak|Nottinghamshire County Council|2025|retrieved on the 6 April 2025</ref>

[[Edwin of Northumbria|King Edwin of Northumbria]] in 633AD was killed at [[Hatfield Chase]] in a battle against his Mercian rival [[Penda of Mercia|King Penda of Mercia]] and his body was carried into the forest and buried/hidden in [[St Mary's Church, Edwinstowe]]. His head was later buried in [[York]] and his body in [[Whitby]].<ref>Sherwood Forest Country Park and Edwinstowe|Sherwood Forest Visitor|retrieved on 5 April 2025</ref> The village of [[Edwinstowe]] takes its name from [[Edwin of Northumbria|King Edwin of Northumbria]].<ref>Cite Web: https://visitsherwood.co.uk/at-the-visitor-centre/edwinstowe-village/|EDWINSTOWE VILLAGE, THE DUKERIES AND BEYOND|Visit Nottinghamshire|retrieved on 20 April 2025</ref><ref>St Marys Church, Edwinstowe| The Origins of Edwinstowe PDF| 2021|A Church Near You|Edwinstowe Guide|retrieved on 27 April 2025</ref>

In 1066, in the invasion of England, [[William the Conqueror]] made Sherwood Forest a Royal Hunting Forest.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of Sherwood - Visit Nottinghamshire |url=https://www.visit-nottinghamshire.co.uk/explore/sherwood-forest/history-of-sherwood |access-date=2024-03-15 |website=www.visit-nottinghamshire.co.uk}}</ref><ref name="auto1">Robert White,The Dukery, and Sherwood Forest, (1875) retrieved in the 8th April 2023</ref> When the [[Domesday Book]] was compiled in 1086, the forest covered perhaps a quarter of Nottinghamshire (approximately 19,000 acres or 7,800 hectares) in woodland and heath subject to the [[royal forest|forest law]]s.

The earliest notice of the forest at Sherwood was at the time of [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] when [[William Peverel the Younger]] answered the plea of the forest, to which he profited and controlled the area.<ref>Robert White|The Dukery and Sherwood Forest|1875|retrieved on 11 April 2025</ref>

During the 12th and 13th centuries Christian Monastic Orders had established large estates within Sherwood Forest. Three Abbeys were founded [[Rufford Abbey]], [[Newstead Abbey]] and [[Priory Church of St Peter, Thurgarton|Thurgarton Priory]].<ref>History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak|Nottinghamshire County Council|2025|retrieved on the 4 May 2025</ref>

Sherwood Forest was frequently visited by the [[List of monarchs of Mercia|Mercian Kings]].<ref name="auto"/> The forest became popular with [[John, King of England|King John]] and [[Edward I of England|Edward I]]. The remains of a [[Sporting lodge|hunting lodge]] can be found at [[Kings Clipstone]] named [[King John's Palace]].<ref name="auto2">cite web Nottinghamshire County Council, History of Sherwood Forest, Robin Hood and Major Oak, 2023 retrieved on the 8th April 2023</ref><ref name="auto1"/>

[[File:Royal.Forests.1327.1336.selected.jpg|right|thumb|Royal Forests between 1327-1336]]

After the [[dissolution of the monasteries]] by [[Henry VIII]] in 1536, the land of Sherwood was sold and granted into private ownership which was converted into house estates. [[James VI and I|James I]] in the 1600s visited the forest, as did [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] and [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] brought back under control the management of Sherwood Forest.<ref name="auto2"/><ref name="auto"/>

Sherwood Forest in 1623 had a narrow escape from a fire which broke out. The only record of this occurrence is written in a letter which is preserved in the [[British Museum]].<ref>William Horner Gloves|The history of Mansfield|1894| retrieved on 11 April 2025]].</ref>

In the 17th and 18th century’s [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] and then [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]] sold large areas of Sherwood Crown Land to private owners who built the estates of [[Thoresby Hall]], [[Clumber Park|The former Clumber House]], [[Welbeck Abbey]] and [[Worksop Manor]]. These estates became known as [[the Dukeries]]. [[Newstead Abbey]] was converted into a country House and [[Rufford Abbey]] was partially demolished and converted into a country House.<ref name="auto2"/><ref>Cite Web:https://southwellchurches.nottingham.ac.uk/edwinstowe/hhistory.php  |St Mary’s Church Edwinstowe  |Southwell Churches| access date 7 May 2025</ref>

[[image:King John's Palace - geograph.org.uk - 3515217.jpg|thumb|250px|[[King John's Palace]]]]

[[Mansfield]] anciently became the pre-eminent in importance among the towns of the forest.<ref name="auto">William Horner Groves, The History of Mansfield, (1894) retrieved on the 8th April 2023</ref>

== Geology ==
Sherwood Forest is established over an area underlain by the [[Permian]] and [[Triassic]] age [[New Red Sandstone]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Reed |first=Michael |year=1990 |chapter=The land of Britain |title=The Landscape of Britain: From the Beginnings to 1914 |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/39848675 |page=11 |location=London |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-01297-3 |oclc=39848675 |access-date=9 November 2021 |archive-date=9 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211109184210/https://www.worldcat.org/title/landscape-of-britain-from-the-beginnings-to-1914/oclc/39848675 |url-status=live }}</ref> The larger part of the Forest is found across the outcrop of pebbly [[sandstone]]s known as the Chester Formation. The regional dip is a gentle one to the east, hence younger rocks are found in that direction and older ones exposed to the west. The local [[stratigraphy]] is (uppermost/youngest at top):

*[[Mercia Mudstone Group]]
**Tarporley Siltstone Formation ([[siltstone]]s, [[mudstone]]s and sandstones)
***including Retford Member (mudstones)
*[[Sherwood Sandstone Group]]
**Chester Formation (pebbly sandstones)
**Lenton Sandstone Formation
**Edlington Formation (mudstones and sandstones)<ref>{{cite web |title=GeoIndex Onshore |url=https://mapapps2.bgs.ac.uk/geoindex/home.html |publisher=British Geological Survey |access-date=2 July 2020 |archive-date=2 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200702100818/http://mapapps2.bgs.ac.uk/geoindex/home.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The sandstone is an [[aquifer]] providing a local water supply. [[Quaternary]] deposits include river [[alluvium|sands and gravels]], river terrace deposits and some scattered mid-[[Pleistocene]] glacial [[till]]. There are 41 [[Regionally important geological site|local geodiversity sites]] within the Sherwood NCA; these are largely quarries and river sections.<ref>{{cite web |title=NCA profile 49. Sherwood |url=http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/1401066?category=587130 |publisher=Natural England |access-date=2 July 2020 |archive-date=27 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127063840/http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/1401066?category=587130 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Management and conservation==
[[Image:Sherwood forest park.JPG|thumb|left|upright|View of the Forest looking northeast]]

The Sherwood Forest Trust is a small [[Charitable organization|charity]] that covers the ancient royal boundary and current [[national character area]] of Sherwood Forest.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sherwoodforest.org.uk/|title=Home - The Sherwood Forest Trust Nottinghamshire|work=The Sherwood Forest Trust Nottinghamshire|access-date=14 June 2014|archive-date=24 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824035538/http://sherwoodforest.org.uk/|url-status=live}}</ref> Its aims are based on conservation, heritage and communities but also include tourism and the economy.

[[Image:Sherwood Forest - panoramio (3).jpg|300px|thumb|Sherwood Forest]]

Nottinghamshire County Council and [[Forestry England]] jointly manage the ancient remnant of forest north of the village of Edwinstowe, providing walks, footpaths and a host of other activities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/enjoying/countryside/countryparks/sherwood/|title=Sherwood Forest|work=nottinghamshire.gov.uk|access-date=10 June 2013|archive-date=5 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905155555/http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/enjoying/countryside/countryparks/sherwood/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

This central core of ancient Sherwood is a [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] (SSSI) called [[Birklands And Bilhaugh|Birklands and Bilhaugh]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271003476%27|title=Magic Map Application|work=defra.gov.uk|access-date=14 June 2014|archive-date=11 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140811045205/http://magic.defra.gov.uk/MagicMap.aspx?startTopic=Designations&activelayer=sssiIndex&query=HYPERLINK%3D%271003476%27|url-status=live}}</ref> NNR<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designations/nnr/1009468.aspx|title=Nottinghamshire's National Nature Reserve|work=naturalengland.org.uk|access-date=17 March 2013|archive-date=14 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614045354/http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designations/nnr/1009468.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Special Area of Conservation]] (SAC).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/protectedsites/sacselection/sac.asp?EUCode=UK0012740|title=Birklands and Bilhaugh|work=defra.gov.uk|access-date=14 June 2014|archive-date=14 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714130234/http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/protectedsites/sacselection/sac.asp?EUCode=UK0012740|url-status=live}}</ref> It is a very important site for ancient oaks, wood pasture, invertebrates and fungi, as well as being linked to the legends of Robin Hood.

[[File:An area of heathland within Sherwood Forest - geograph.org.uk - 6357738.jpg|thumb|left|Oak Tree Heath, Sherwood Forest]]

During the [[Second World War]] parts of Sherwood Forest were used extensively by the military for ammunition stores, [[POW camp]]s and training areas.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://mercian-as.co.uk/sfapworldwartwo.html|title=Sherwood Forest in World War II|website=mercian-as.co.uk|access-date=16 May 2019|archive-date=15 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190515180340/http://www.mercian-as.co.uk/sfapworldwartwo.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Oil was produced at [[Eakring#World War II oil|Eakring]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Levine |first= Joshua |title= The Secret History of the Blitz |year= 2015 |publisher= Simon & Schuster |location= London |isbn= 978-1-4711-3102-8 |pages= 117–130 }}</ref> After the war large ammunition dumps were abandoned in the forest and were not cleared until 1952, with at least 46,000 tons of ammunition in them.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=1950-03-21a.1746.8|title=Ammunition, Sherwood Forest: 21 Mar 1950: House of Commons debates|website=TheyWorkForYou|language=en|access-date=16 May 2019|archive-date=18 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518160341/https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=1950-03-21a.1746.8|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Sherwoodglade.jpg|200px|thumb|[[Birch]] trees in Sherwood Forest]]

Part of the forest was opened to the public as a [[country park]] in 1969 by Nottinghamshire County Council, which manages a small part of the forest under lease from the [[Thoresby Hall|Thoresby Estate]]. In 2002 a portion of Sherwood Forest was designated a [[national nature reserves in England|national nature reserve]] by [[English Nature]]. In 2007 [[Natural England]] officially incorporated the Budby South Forest, Nottinghamshire's largest area of dry lowland heath, into the Nature Reserve, nearly doubling its size from {{convert|220|to|423|ha|acre}}.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/nottinghamshire/6475887.stm |title=Sherwood Forest to double in size |date=21 March 2007 |work=BBC News |access-date=17 March 2013 |archive-date=22 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200722081116/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/nottinghamshire/6475887.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

A new Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre was authorised in 2015. In August 2018 the [[RSPB]] opened the new development with a shop and café, having been granted permission to manage the woods in 2015. Part of an agreement with Natural England was that the land where the existing 1970s visitor centre was located would be restored to wood pasture.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-33879214 RSPB chosen to build Nottinghamshire's Sherwood Forest visitor centre] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204195440/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-33879214 |date=4 December 2020 }} ''[[BBC News]] Nottingham'', 12 August 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2020</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-35851097 Sherwood Forest project: Plans for £5.3m visitor centre unveiled] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190915153600/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-35851097 |date=15 September 2019 }} ''[[BBC News]] Nottingham'', 19 March 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2020</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 |title=New Sherwood Forest visitor centre opens |date=27 August 2018 |work=BBC News |access-date=29 April 2019 |archive-date=23 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190323012705/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Some portions of the forest retain many very old oaks, especially in the portion known as the [[Dukeries]], south of the town of [[Worksop]], which was so called because it used to contain four ducal residences, as well as a number of other country estates.

The [[River Idle]], a tributary of the [[River Trent|Trent]], is formed in Sherwood Forest from the confluence of several minor streams.

==Tourism==
[[Image:Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre.jpg|thumb|250px|Visitor Centre]]

Sherwood attracts around 350,000 tourists annually, many from other countries.<ref>{{cite news |title=New £5m Sherwood Forest centre opens |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 |date=27 August 2018 |access-date=1 September 2019 |archive-date=10 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910222503/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 |url-status=live }}</ref> Each August the nature reserve hosts a week-long Robin Hood Festival. This event recreates a medieval atmosphere and features the major characters from the Robin Hood legend. The week's entertainment includes [[jousting|joust]]ers and strolling players dressed in medieval attire, in addition to a medieval encampment complete with [[jester]]s, musicians, [[rat-catcher]]s, [[Alchemy|alchemists]] and [[fire eating|fire eater]]s.<ref>Visit Sherwood, Robin Hood Festival, cute web https://www.visitsherwood.co.uk/home/robin-hood-festival-2023/ retrieved on the 10th April 2023</ref>

The Sherwood Forest Art and Craft Centre is in the former coach house and stables of Edwinstowe Hall.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/pp/gold/viewGold.asp?id=1937|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071029142504/http://www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/pp/gold/viewGold.asp?ID=1937|archive-date=29 October 2007|title=Sherwood Forest Art and Craft Centre}}</ref> The centre contains art studios and a cafe and hosts special events, including craft demonstrations and exhibitions.

[[image:Edwinstowe - Sherwood Forest Art & Craft Centre.jpg|thumb|left|Sherwood Forest Art and Craft Centre]]

=== Other tourist destinations nearby ===

[[Thoresby Hall]], and park<ref>Thoresby Park web http://whatsonatthoresby.co.uk/ retrieved on the 10th April 2023</ref> 
[[image:Thoresby Hall - geograph.org.uk - 1533497.jpg|thumb|Thoresby Hall]]

[[Rufford Abbey]] country park. Rufford Abbey is owned by [[English Heritage]] with the park managed by Parkwood Outdoors.<ref>Rufford Abbey Country Park, Parkwood Outdoors, cite web https://www.parkwoodoutdoors.co.uk/centre/rufford-abbey retrieved on the 10th April 2023</ref> 
[[image:Rufford Abbey.jpg|thumb|Rufford Abbey]]

[[Clumber Park]] is a former estate of Clumber House. The park is owned by the [[National Trust]].

[[image: Clumber Bridge, Clumber Park - geograph.org.uk - 3699677.jpg|thumb|Clumber Park]]

[[Sherwood Pines Forest Park]] which also houses a [[Go Ape]] site. Adjacent is [[Center Parcs UK and Ireland]] Sherwood Forest. 
[[Image:Track at Culloden Plantation, Sherwood Pines Forest Park - geograph.org.uk - 6890913.jpg|thumb|250px|Sherwood Pines Forest Park]]

[[Southwell, Nottinghamshire]] 
[[image:Southwell minster1.jpg|thumb|Southwell Minster]]

=== Nearest towns/cities to Sherwood Forest ===

[[Worksop]]

[[Mansfield]]

[[Southwell, Nottinghamshire|Southwell]]

[[Newark-on-Trent|Newark on Trent]]

[[Nottingham]]

==Major Oak==
{{main|Major Oak}}
[[File:Major Oak (9494).jpg|thumb|[[Major Oak]]]]

Sherwood Forest is home to the [[Major Oak]], an [[oak]] tree between 800 and 1,000 years old, and since the [[Victorian era]], its limbs have been partially supported by scaffolding. The Major Oak was identified by Major [[Hayman Rooke]] in 1790. It is believed that the Major Oak took the name of Major [[Hayman Rooke]].<ref>cite web:https://visitsherwood.co.uk/celebrating-the-man-who-made-the-major-oak/%7CTitle THE MAN WHO ‘MADE’ THE MAJOR OAK|Richard Townsley - Visit Sherwood|16/02/2023| access date on 8 May 2025</ref><ref>. Book E Sloan| The Landscape studies of Hayman Rooke (1723-1806) - Antiquarianism, Archrology and Natural History in the 18th Century| 2019| access date on 8 May 2025</ref>

Samplings of the Major Oak have been planted in the US Ambassadors [[Winfield House]] in London.<ref>Sapling grown from Sherwood Forest’s Major Oak planted in US Ambassador’s garden in London 2023|Mansfield Ashfield Chad, retrieved on the 3 April 2025</ref>

The Major Oak was featured on the 2005 [[BBC]] TV programme ''[[Seven Natural Wonders]]'' as one of the natural wonders of the [[English Midlands|Midlands]].<ref>“Seven Man Made Wonders, Midlands - Sherwood Forest and the Major Oak” BBC Homepage, 28 October 2014, Archived retrieved on 3 April 2025</ref>

==Parliament Oak==
The [[Parliament Oak]] is situated in Sherwood Forest near [[Market Warsop]].
It is reputed that [[John, King of England|King John]] in 1212 and [[Edward I of England|King Edward I]] in 1290 had impromptu parliaments at the tree.<ref>History & Legend|Sherwood Forest Trust|2025|URl https://sherwoodforest.org.uk/history-legend/|retrieved on the 5 April 2025</ref>

[[File:Parliament Oak.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Parliament Oak|Parliament Oak, Peafield Lane]]]]

==Thynghowe==
{{Main|Thynghowe}}

[[Thynghowe]], an important [[Danelaw]] meeting place where people came to resolve disputes and settle issues, was lost to history until its rediscovery in 2005–06 by local history enthusiasts<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.culture24.org.uk/history%20%26%20heritage/archaeology/art56785 |title=Amateur Archaeologists Find Ancient 'Thyng' In Sherwood Forest |date=25 April 2008 |author=Richard Moss |publisher=Culture24 |access-date=17 March 2013 |archive-date=14 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120114065341/http://www.culture24.org.uk/history%20%26%20heritage/archaeology/art56785 |url-status=live }}</ref> amidst the old oaks of an area known as the Birklands. Experts believe it may also yield clues about the boundary of the ancient [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] kingdoms of [[Mercia]] and [[Northumbria]].

[[English Heritage]] inspected the site, confirming that it was known as ‘Thynghowe’ in 1334 and 1609.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pastscape.org/hob.aspx?hob_id=1461548&search=all&criteria=thynghowe |title=Thynhowe |publisher=english Heritage |access-date=17 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727170304/http://www.pastscape.org/hob.aspx?hob_id=1461548&search=all&criteria=thynghowe |archive-date=27 July 2011 }}</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 New £5m Sherwood Forest visitor centre opens] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190323012705/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-45297589 |date=23 March 2019 }} ''[[BBC News]] Nottingham'', 27 August 2018 Retrieved 3 June 2020</ref>

==Politics==
The forest gives its name to the [[United Kingdom Parliament constituencies|Parliamentary constituency]] of [[Sherwood (UK Parliament constituency)|Sherwood Forest]] (formerly Sherwood before the [[2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies]]).<ref>{{Cite web |title=East Midlands {{!}} Boundary Commission for England |url=https://boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk/2023-review/east-midlands/ |access-date=2023-04-06 |website=boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk}}</ref> This is current represented by one member of parliament.

==See also==
*[[List of forests in the United Kingdom]]
*[[List of ancient woods in England]]
*[[Sherwood Foresters]], a [[British Army]] regiment associated with [[Nottinghamshire]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Bankes, Richard. ''Sherwood Forest in 1609: A Crown Survey'' ([[Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire|Thoroton Society record series]])
*Conduit, Brian. ''Exploring Sherwood Forest''
*Fletcher, John. ''Ornament of Sherwood Forest from Ducal Estate to Public Park''
*Gray, Adrian. ''Sherwood Forest and the Dukeries'' (Phillimore) 2008
*Innes-Smith, Robert. ''The Dukeries & Sherwood Forest''
*''Sherwood Forest and the East Midlands Walks'' (Jarrold Pathfinder Guides)
*Ottewell, David. ''Sherwood Forest in Old Photographs'' (Britain in Old Photographs)
*Woodward, Guy H. and [[Grace Steele Woodward|Woodward, Grace Steele]]. ''The Secrets of Sherwood Forest: Oil Production in England During World War II''. University of Oklahoma Press, 1973.

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sherwood Forest}}
{{Wikivoyage}}
*{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Sherwood Forest |volume=24 |page=853|short=x}}
*[https://www.forestryengland.uk/ Forestry England]
*[http://www.sherwoodforest.info/ The News, History, and Archaeology of The Real Sherwood Forest]
*[http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/enjoying/countryside/countryparks/sherwood/ Nottinghamshire County Council's Official Sherwood Forest Page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905155555/http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/enjoying/countryside/countryparks/sherwood/ |date=5 September 2015 }}
*[http://www.robinhood.co.uk/ Sherwood Forest Regeneration Plans]
*[http://www.sherwoodforest.org.uk/ Sherwood Forest Trust Official Website]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070928061133/http://www.thelivinglegend.co.uk/ The Living Legend] details current plans for the forest.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100422121530/http://www.visitnotts.com/ Official tourism website for Nottinghamshire and Sherwood Forest]
*[http://issuu.com/piro.co.uk/docs/according_to_ancient_custom_-_thynghowe?mode=window&backgroundColor=%23222222 According to Ancient Custom: Research on the possible Origins and Purpose of Thynghowe Sherwood Forest]

{{Robin Hood}}
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[[Category:Sherwood Forest| ]]
[[Category:Country parks in Nottinghamshire]]
[[Category:English royal forests]]
[[Category:Forests and woodlands of Nottinghamshire]]
[[Category:Nature reserves in Nottinghamshire]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 1969]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 2002]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 2007]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Nottinghamshire]]
[[Category:Edwinstowe]]