in the Epping Forest area (14), probably the Forest itself being managed as wood-
pasture and the more fertile soils of the Roding Valley being used for arable crops and
probably also some pasture as well.
HISTORY 1086-1700
There is sadly scant information in the literature concerning Lords Bushes for this
period; presumably the manorial roll which might have yielded information no longer
exists. Lords Bushes being considered 'commonland' (as opposed to privately owned
coppiced woodland) may well have been relatively poorly documented in any case. There
are, though, a number of references to the land surrounding Lords Bushes and these
give us some insight into the history of the area. It is, however, well to remember that
over 600 years of history has been compressed into a few paragraphs.
The first mention I can find is in 1135 when William de Montfitchet granted by
charter to the Cistercian Abbey of Stratford Langthorne "all his lordship of Ham, 11
acres of meadow, two mills by the causeway of Stratford, his wood of Bochherste and his
tithe of pannage" (60). The Bochherste referred to is probably a woodland that existed,
in part until the early 19th century south of Lords Bushes and abutting Pea-field Wood
(now built on) and part of Knighton Wood (23). The wood was subsequently recorded
under a plethora of names, Monkene Bukhurst (1286) and Buckhurst alias Monkyn
(1521) among them, finally it seems it was called Monkham Grove (60). Pannage refers
to the practice of fattening swine on the autumn beech mast and acorns, pigs were an
important source of meat in medieval times and it is possible this practice would have
occurred in Lords Bushes. Monkham Grove, in contrast to Lords Bushes, was managed
as a coppice wood, probably from a small dwelling house established by the Abbey
nearby. In 1514 the Abbot of Stratford leased to John Crofte "citizen and grocer of
London all the wood and underwood, ditches and hedges and a sufficient dwelling house
thereon ... at 40 shillings yearly rent" interestingly there was also a proviso that the
lessee should always keep twenty "stadils" (young trees) to the acre and to keep the
grove enclosed (60).
In 1360 Edward III through his son John of Gaunt bought a messuage and 92 acres
of land (including 20 acres of meadow) (71). This probably refers to land and buildings
that were situated at the junction of what are now Westbury Lane and Kings Avenue. It
seems one or all of the buildings became royal establishments (hence Kings Avenue),
one was probably a hunting lodge: a lodge is marked on the Chapman and Andre map of
1777 (see page 6). If it was a hunting lodge it was unusual in being situated outside the
physical forest, unlike Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge and the New Lodge extant
until the 1890's on Fairmead Bottom (24). A Swainmote, one of the higher Forest
Courts, was held at Bukkershyl in 1495 (26) and its most likely location would have been
this building. It was probably the close proximity of this royal establishment that gave
its name to Lords Bushes, which became known as Lodge Bushes, this name appears on
a map of the keepers walks in Waltham Forest drawn up in about 1641 (72). 'Lords'
appears to be a 19th century corruption perhaps resulting from a word-of-mouth error
or error in transcription. It appears in one 19th century document (the deeds to a house)
as "Lords otherwise Lodge Bushes", though William Cole, a local naturalist, as late as
the 1880s still referred to it as Lodge Bushes. I should also add that its name appears not
to have been well known, Richard Warner the celebrated Woodford botanist referred to
it merely as the "wood between Muncombe and the Bald Faced Stag" (74).
In 1572 attempts were made to enclose the adjacent Knighton Wood (then, as
Lords Bushes, wood-pasture subject to the rights of the commoners) which led to violent
demonstrations by the commoners. There were more attempts in 1670 and 1781 (14), the
latter presumably being partially successful and forming the basis of what was to
become the Knighton Estate, extant until 1928 and latterly the home of the Buxton
family.
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