ROYAL HUNTING PARK
By Stephen Guy
IT was an enclosed area of woodland originally reserved for the exclusive use of the monarch and remained virtually unchanged for nearly 400 years. Overlooking the banks of the Mersey, Toxteth Park was off limits to the few people who lived in the area. The forest teemed with wildlife such as deer and wild boar. At one time much of the North West of England was either forest of swamp dotted with shallow lakes. Early settlers kept to the high ground, following tracks meandering among the marshes. When King John, a keen huntsman, granted Liverpool its charter in 1207 he decided to create an area where he and his courtiers could enjoy the chase. John acquired the manor of Toxteth from the Molyneux family,
later Earls of Sefton, probably in exchange for Litherland. The monarch, best known for signing the Magna Charta, made sure Toxteth Park was well looked after. Accounts at the end of his reign give an insight how it was used and maintained. There was a master huntsman and 49 men, 10 horses, two packs of dogs, 52 spaniels (for retrieving game), 2,000 hand nets and 260 cocks (used for fighting). It is likely John hunted at Toxteth Park but there is no evidence that any succeeding royals used it. The park survived an order made by Henry III destroying many other former royal forests as farming expanded. Toxteth Park was enclosed by walls, ramps and ditches to keep it secure. It remained a royal park until the reign of Henry VI when it reverted to the Molyneuxs. This was the troubled era of the Wars of the Roses when different factions jostled for power. The park passed into the hands of that other great landowning family, the Stanleys, before reverting to the Crown. James I sold the park in 1604 when it ceased to be an enclosed hunting park. Trees were felled and farmers and others moved in. It soon reverted to the Molyneuxs who retained it until comparatively recent times. At the bottom of Mersey Road, Otterspool, there is a Victorian stone gateway (pictured) that led to a long-vanished mansion. Some believe this area of woodland is a remnant of the original Toxteth Park with ditches and earthworks linked to the ancient enclosure. n Learn more about the history of Liverpool at the Museum of Liverpool, Pier Head, open 10 am to 5 pm every day, admission free.
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Issue 105 – March 2016