SOMETIMES, if very rarely, history and heritage trump efficiency. Nowhere is that truer than in Laxton, the north Nottinghamshire village that, uniquely, still manages its land in the medieval open-field, strip-farming tradition.
However, it takes people of goodwill to deliver it. When the Crown Estate decided to sell the 1,800-acre estate in 2018, there were widespread doubts as to whether anyone would be willing to take on this historic anachronism with all its complex covenants, undertakings and conditions attached. Whoever acquired the land would have to give guarantees that its 13 tenant farmers and their management by a Manorial Court—the last fully functioning one in the country— would be preserved.
Present-day Laxton, after all, is a historical accident. Located seven miles east of Sherwood Forest, a 15-minute drive north from Newark, it lies in the undulating silvery-black Keuper marl soils that characterise the land that skirts the Dukeries. To the untrained eye, the village of largely 18th-century brick houses looks much like any other, although I noted, with mild surprise, the large number of farms and yards set within the curtilage of the settlement—a feature of medieval farming.
Denne historien er fra May 03, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra May 03, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
