presumably to facilitate a similar descent. It is true that in the
19th century a pony was kept at the lodge which could be hired
by intrepid visitors for the purpose of emulating the Queen's feat.
There is no doubt that such a performance is quite feasible.
On the occasion of another of Queen Elizabeth's visits to
the lodge she is reputed to have granted to the poor of the forest
parishes the privilege of lopping wood for fuel a right which
persisted in its customary form until the Epping Forest Act of
1878. This was latterly due to the tenacity of a Loughton villager,
Thomas Willingale, who was prosecuted in 1866 for asserting in
defiance of a Restraining Order of the High Court his ancient
right within the Manor. It is not in fact clear when the lopping
rights as such were originally established though it may be accepted
that they were derived from ancient wood rights. There are
records of such in Charters of the 9th and 10th centuries conceded
by the Saxon Kings of Kent and Wessex. The lopping rights
were certainly of much earlier origin than Elizabeth's time but it is
perhaps just possible that she extended or confirmed the privilege
or that some special dispensation was made to mark a notable
occasion.
THE AESTHETIC ASPECT OF THE LODGE
Quite apart from its intrinsic architectural merit and its
interesting historical associations the lodge is a picturesque and
engaging feature of the delightful forest landscape at Chingford
and has long attracted the attention of visitors. "The Daily
Telegraph" in a leading article of 1899, when congratulating the
Corporation of London on its decision to finance the restoration
of the lodge, commented aptly ' Time has dealt very kindly with
this fine old building'. It has indeed and furthermore has en-
dowed it with a charm not in the least diminished by the restoration
which was sensibly and tastefully carried out.
Local men of letters too have contributed their impressions
of the lodge and described the impact which it made on their
imagination. William Howitt, who was living at Theydon Bois
at the time and who had a sensitive feeling for the rural scene
wrote of the lodge :
'The hand of the past is impressed upon thee, and has
given thee a character. It has invested thee with the
poetry of nature.'
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