Saving the Splendour of Exmoor
Devon Life|September 2020
The splendour of Exmoor National Park may appear timeless and untroubled,but a new book reveals the long and often bitter struggle conservationists faced to save the landscape from the twin threats of afforestation and the plough
Saving the Splendour of Exmoor
The arrival of summer and the gradual relaxation of lockdown brought visitors flocking back to Exmoor to enjoy once again its spectacular scenery, abundant wildlife and a sense of isolation far different and much more acceptable than that imposed by the Covid-19 virus.

Yet few of the thousands who hurried to make or renew acquaintance with the National Park after many weeks of frustrating close confinement would have realised just how difficult and prolonged was the struggle to preserve Exmoor for their enjoyment. Now the Exmoor Society, which has fought heroically to preserve the moor since its foundation in 1958, has published a new account of the turbulent but ultimately fulfilling chapters not only of its own history but also that of the wider conservation movement.

The author of Saving the Splendour is journalist Philip Dalling, who for many years covered the life and times of Exmoor in a monthly column for Devon Life, entitled Man on the Moor.

Devon can claim just a third of the National Park’s area, compared to neighbouring Somerset, but the county punches well above its weight. The North Devon portion contains the grandest coastal scenery and, in Lynton and Lynmouth, the largest settlement.

And above all, North Devon has an incontestable claim to have inspired the successful campaign to save Exmoor’s iconic central plateau, The Chains, a struggle which led directly to the foundation of the Exmoor Society in 1958.

This story is from the September 2020 edition of Devon Life.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the September 2020 edition of Devon Life.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM DEVON LIFEView All
Legends Of Lockdown
Devon Life

Legends Of Lockdown

A new online exhibition features an array of Devon’s lockdown legends exploring their lives and communities during the pandemic restrictions

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2020
Look Out For Intelligent Slime!
Devon Life

Look Out For Intelligent Slime!

Think you know your waxcaps from your dog vomit slime mould? Exmoor’s conservation team needs our help to record the pretty and the not-so-pretty wildlife living in this unique national park. finds out more

time-read
5 mins  |
November 2020
Retirement redefined
Devon Life

Retirement redefined

Millbrook Village’s Leah Jackson talks to AMELIA THURSTON about how wellbeing and quality of life are at the heart of the later living community

time-read
3 mins  |
November 2020
Look to the future
Devon Life

Look to the future

SU CARROLL talks to Sir Antony Gormley about his contribution to Devon’s artistic life

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2020
Natural beauty
Devon Life

Natural beauty

Working with nature and the cycle of seasons, a new flower farm is blossoming in a fold of the beautiful River Teign valley

time-read
5 mins  |
November 2020
THE DIARY
Devon Life

THE DIARY

SU CARROLL recommends the best events across the county this month

time-read
10+ mins  |
November 2020
My kinda city...
Devon Life

My kinda city...

With the perfect balance of country and city life, Exeter still shines as the jewel of the West. STEPHANIE DARKES shares her insider insights into the city that stole her heart

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2020
Letting themselves in for hard work...
Devon Life

Letting themselves in for hard work...

Renovating your entire house is tough. Renovating someone else’s seven-bedroom Grade-II listed Georgian farmhouse and turning it into a high-end holiday let is even trickier. CHRISSY HARRIS went to Kingston see how it’s done

time-read
6 mins  |
November 2020
Lessons from history
Devon Life

Lessons from history

History author Ian Mortimer has taken readers on travels through time from the Middle Ages to the Industrial Revolution. STU LAMBERT asks him how our country and our county changed in Regency times

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2020
A Reform character
Devon Life

A Reform character

The owner of North Devon’s longest standing brewery is about to take on a new challenge, as CATHERINE COURTENAY discovers

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2020