Blackdown, or Black Down, summit elevation AMSL, is the highest point in both the
historic county of
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
and the
South Downs National Park
The South Downs National Park is England's newest national park, designated on 31 March 2010. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hamp ...
. It is one of the highest points in the south east of England, exceeded by
Walbury Hill
Walbury Hill is a summit of the North Wessex Downs in Berkshire, England. With an elevation of , it is the highest natural point in South East England. On the hill's summit is the Iron Age hill fort of Walbury Camp, whilst the flanks of the hill ...
,
Leith Hill
Leith Hill in southern England is the highest summit of the Greensand Ridge, approximately southwest of Dorking, Surrey and southwest of Charing Cross, central London. It reaches above mean sea level, above sea level, and is the second highe ...
and
Pilot Hill. Blackdown is protected as part of the
South Downs National Park
The South Downs National Park is England's newest national park, designated on 31 March 2010. The park, covering an area of in southern England, stretches for from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east through the counties of Hamp ...
.
Location
![Blackdown hill](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/Blackdown_hill.jpg)
Blackdown is located in the far northwest of
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...
. The hill presents as a dark-sided mass that towers over the western parts of the Low
Weald
The Weald () is an area of South East England between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It crosses the counties of Hampshire, Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It has three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the ...
and south-west Surrey. There is no village or hamlet on Blackdown although it lies approximately equidistant from the railway town of
Haslemere
The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south west Surrey, England, around south west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill, they comprise the civil parish of Haslemere i ...
2 miles to the northwest;
Fernhurst
Fernhurst is a village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England, on the A286 Milford, Surrey, to Chichester road, south of Haslemere. The parish includes the settlements of Henley Common, Kingsley Green and Bell Vale, ...
to the southwest, and Lurgashall to the southeast.
[Ordnance Survey]
There are three National Trust car parks on Tennyson's Lane, which runs up Haste Hill from
Haslemere
The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south west Surrey, England, around south west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill, they comprise the civil parish of Haslemere i ...
. There are numerous footpaths from the surrounding villages including a steep walk up the southern escarpment from
Lurgashall
Lurgashall is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England, 6.5 km (4 ml) north west of Petworth, just inside the South Downs National Park. The population at the 2011 Census was 609.
History
The church has ...
. Blackdown is crossed by the
Sussex Border Path
The Sussex Border Path is a long-distance footpath around the borders of Sussex, a historic county and former medieval kingdom in southern England. The main path is long and stays close to Sussex's borders with Hampshire, Surrey and Kent, co ...
and
the Serpent Trail
The Serpent Trail is a long distance footpath. It runs from Haslemere to Petersfield, Hampshire, Petersfield, which are 11 miles apart in a straight line, by a route which is designed to join up the many heathland areas on greensand in the ...
.
Tennyson's Lane is named in memory of the poet who lived here. The lane is a
sunken, tree-tunnel lane that runs from Haslemere, past Aldworth House (today a couple of dwellings) to near the summit. The lane keeps to Arthur Paterson's description in 1905:
Trees meet overhead, copsewood surrounds it, and later, it is hedged by high sandy banks thickly overgrown with plant and scrub; squirrels and rabbits, and all other small woodland creatures, disport themselves over it. It twists and turns, and to the stranger appears to lead nowhere in particular.
Natural history
![Blackdown Jan 3 09 004](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Blackdown_Jan_3_09_004.JPG)
Geologically Blackdown is part of the
Greensand Ridge
The Greensand Ridge, also known as the Wealden Greensand is an extensive, prominent, often wooded, mixed greensand/sandstone escarpment in south-east England. Forming part of the Weald, a former dense forest in Sussex, Surrey and Kent, it runs ...
. The acid sandstone of Blackdown limits the range of plants. Until the beginning of the 20th century, Blackdown was a grazed common where trees were kept down by sheep, and heather dominated. After the end of regular grazing Scots Pine became the dominant species. The National Trust now carries out a programme of tree-felling and controlled burning to maintain and regenerate areas of open heath. The reserve has been fenced so that
conservation grazing
Conservation grazing or targeted grazing is the use of semi- feral or domesticated grazing livestock to maintain and increase the biodiversity of natural or semi-natural grasslands, heathlands, wood pasture, wetlands and many other habitats. with cattle can be used as a management tool. Blackdown is an important habitat for insects and birds.
The pine- and heather-covered slopes are owned by the
National Trust
The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
and have many paths and organised walks supported by volunteers, the local authorities, charities and guidebooks. The north of the long hilltop is pitted with very small old sand and gravel pits.
From north, large woods are: Homewood, shared with
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
, Jays Wood (woven up with a farmstead of similar size), Abester's Copse lining the eastern slope; Quellwood Common, Quell Copse and Windfell Wood/Ewhurst Copse (together a tapering triangle on the south side), Leazers Wood, Bridge Reeds, Sheetland, Lye Wood (a break in a linear farm), and the belts of woodland of Alder and Chase Woods, south of the town.
A geological relief model of Blackdown, and much information on its natural history, can be found in the
Haslemere Educational Museum
Haslemere Educational Museum was founded in 1888 by the eminent surgeon Sir Jonathan Hutchinson to display his growing collection of natural history specimens. After two moves it found in 1926 a permanent home in Haslemere High Street, in the ...
.
History
Flint artefacts show there has been settlement on Blackdown since at least the
mesolithic period
The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymously ...
, around 6000 BC. The name of an ancient track, pen-y-bos comes from the
Brythonic
Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to:
*Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain
*Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic
*Britons (Celtic people)
The Br ...
language of the ancient Britons that lived in the area – rather like the well-known ''
pen-y-ghent
Pen-y-ghent or Penyghent is a fell in the Yorkshire Dales, England. It is the lowest of Yorkshire's Three Peaks at ; the other two being Ingleborough and Whernside. It lies east of Horton in Ribblesdale. It has a number of interesting geologic ...
'' in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
.
The ownership Blackdown Estate can be traced back to the fourteenth century to William Yaldwyn of Blackdown (1298-1375) who received the Patent of Esquire in 1330. The Yaldwyn family tree shows Blackdown Estate as having been inherited by eight successive generations. William de Blackdown and Sutton (1342–1418) is said to have fought at the
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt ( ; french: Azincourt ) was an English victory in the Hundred Years' War. It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. The unexpected English victory against the numerica ...
.
Although the Yaldwyn's had owned extensive farmlands in Sussex since at least the year 1300, it was William Yaldwyn the elder who succeeded to the property in 1600 and had the extraordinary drive to make full commercial use of the estate and surrounding lands. In 1627 he secured the sole right to purchase iron ore mined on the extensive Petworth Estate. This made him an extremely wealthy man and by 1640 he completed the build of the central portion of the present Blackdown House.
During the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
(1642–1651) there was an enormous increase in the demand for iron for the production of ordnance and materiel.
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
was said to have stayed at Blackdown House. Although the exact date of his visit is unknown it was probably during 1644–45 when Cromwell went to assist the Earl of Essex and Sir William Waller during the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
campaigns in the west of England. The room where the Cromwell slept at Blackdown is still known as the Oliver Cromwell bedroom. The four poster bed remained in the house until Blackdown was sold by
William Henry Yaldwyn (1801–1866) in 1844.
When Richard Yaldwyn died in 1807 the Blackdown Estate consisted of 1300 acres and included Blackdown, Brockhurst, Vale Wool, High Diddlesford, Cotchett, Reeth, Sheetland, Cooks Bridge Farms and Blackdown Cottage Barfold-under-Beacon. Many members of the Yaldwyn family are buried at St. Laurence's at Lurgashall. (References Yaldwyn of the Golden Spurs by J.O.Randell published by the Melbourne Mast Gully Press 1980. Church records at Lurgashall of the Yaldwyn Family).
In 1944 the then current owner
W. E. Hunter donated Blackdown to the National Trust as a memorial to his wife. The Hunters are remembered by an inscribed stone seat at the Temple of the Winds. Today, Blackdown is managed by the National Trust, with guidance and financial assistance from the Blackdown Committee of the National Trust.
Architecture and buildings
As well as ''Aldworth House'' on the steep eastern flank and ''Foxholes'' (which together formed the estate of Alfred, Lord Tennyson) walkers can enjoy a range of architecture, especially in Victorian and turn-of-the-20th-century, rustic styles (such as
Arts and Crafts architecture). These include, to the west, ''Blackdown House'' which is surrounded by daffodils in the spring; and to the east ''Old Manor Farm''.
Because of its elevation, from 1796 to 1816 Blackdown hosted a
shutter telegraph chain station which linked the Admiralty in London to the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
in
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
.
Lord Tennyson
Aside from its elevation and beauty, Blackdown is best known as the site of the poet Tennyson houses, ''Aldworth'' and ''Foxholes''. Keen to escape the summer 'trippers' who came to his Isle of Wight home,
Farringford House
Farringford House, in the village of Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight, was the home of the poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson, from 1853 until his death in 1892. The main house dates from 1806 with gothic embellishments and extensions added from the 1830s. ...
, Tennyson purchased Blackdown, and built Aldworth in 1869. The French-style
Gothic revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
house was designed by
Sir James Knowles and built with local sandstone. It stands on a ridge overlooking the Weald, with magnificent far-reaching views. Lord Tennyson used it as his summer home, taking long walks over Blackdown.
Helen Allingham
Helen Allingham (née Paterson; 26 September 1848 – 28 September 1926) was a British watercolourist and illustrator of the Victorian era.
Biography
Helen Mary Elizabeth Paterson was born on 26 September 1848, at Swadlincote in Derbyshire, ...
was a frequent visitor then, and her illustrations to ''The homes of Tennyson'' vividly capture the landscape. He died in the house on 6 October 1892.
Blackdown air crash
Iberia Airlines Flight 062 was a twin-engined Sud Aviation Caravelle registered EC-BDD operating a scheduled flight from Málaga Airport, Spain, to London Heathrow Airport. While on approach to Heathrow on 4 November 1967, the Caravelle descended far below the flight level assigned to it and flew into the southern slope of Blackdown Hill in West Sussex, killing all 37 on board. Lost were the all-Spanish crew of six, 25 Britons (including the actress
June Thorburn
Patricia June Thorburn Smith (8 June 1931 – 4 November 1967) was a popular English actress whose career was cut short by her death in an air crash.
Early life
Thorburn was born in Karachi, then part of British India. She was the eldest ...
), two Americans, two Spaniards and two Australians.
The crash also killed a flock of sheep, damaged parts of the roof of Upper Black Down House and destroyed a garage.
References
*
*
Further reading
* Book on the many writers (including Tennyson) who settled around Haslemere after the coming of the railway in 1859.
External links
*
National Trust: Black DownHaslemere Educational MuseumIberia crash recordat the
Aviation Safety Network
The Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) is an independent, nonprofit, international organization concerning research, education, advocacy, and communications in the field of aviation safety. FSF brings together aviation professionals from all sectors ...
*
National Trust properties in West Sussex
Hills of West Sussex
Marilyns of England
Napoleonic beacons in England
Nature reserves in West Sussex
Highest points of English counties