Fit for a king
THE glimpse of a stag in the autumn at rutting or an unexpected encounter of a herd of hinds on Exmoor is a spectacle relished by locals and visitors alike. Their majesty is undeniable. However, what is taken for granted is the herd’s robust health, and this does not happen by chance. For centuries, the sole reason red deer have survived and flourished here is the acknowledged consequence of the unique symbiosis between the farming and hunting communities.
From Saxon times, when much of Exmoor was a royal forest, strict laws protected deer to maintain a supply of venison and a hunting ground for the king. The antiquity of staghunting on Exmoor is well-documented, with the first records of hounds being kept at Simonsbath in 1598 or thereabouts. Between then and about 1775 the warden of the forest was responsible for maintaining forest law and the supply of venison to the royal courts, and also acted as master of the staghounds.
Latterly and as the forest boundaries contracted, the role
