The Hog's Back is a hilly ridge, part of the
North Downs
The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Areas of Outstanding Natural Be ...
in
Surrey
Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
, England. It runs between
Farnham
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the ...
in the west and
Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
in the east.
Toponym
Compared with the main part of the Downs to the east of it, it is a narrow elongated ridge, hence its name.
Jane Austen
Jane Austen ( ; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for #List of works, her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century ...
, in a letter to her sister Cassandra dated Thursday 20 May 1813 from her brother's house in Sloane Street, wrote of her journey to London in a
curricle
A curricle is a light two-wheeled carriage drawn by two horses abreast. Usually open with a falling hood, it seats two people, plus a Livery, liveried groom on a seat or small platform between the rear springs—whose weight might be required ...
via "the Hog's-back"
:"Upon the whole it was an excellent journey & very thoroughly enjoyed by me; the weather was delightful the greatest part of the day. ... I never saw the country from the Hogsback so advantageously.
This shows that it was known as the Hog's Back by Jane Austen's time. However, the medieval name for the ridge was ''Guildown'' (recorded first in 1035 where it was the site of the abduction of
Ælfred Ætheling, Prince Alfred of
Wessex
The Kingdom of the West Saxons, also known as the Kingdom of Wessex, was an Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy, kingdom in the south of Great Britain, from around 519 until Alfred the Great declared himself as King of the Anglo-Saxons in 886.
The Anglo-Sa ...
by
Earl Godwin and then in the
Pipe Rolls
The Pipe rolls, sometimes called the Great rollsBrown ''Governance'' pp. 54–56 or the Great Rolls of the Pipe, are a collection of financial records maintained by the English Exchequer, or Treasury, and its successors, as well as the Exche ...
for 1190 and onwards) but this name is no longer in use. However, the name Guildown is evoked by Guildown Road, a residential road that climbs the southern side of the ridge on the southwestern fringes of Guildford.
The Guild- element of Guildown is the same as that found in Guildford, meaning "gold". Various explanations have been suggested for the relationship between the names of Guildown and Guildford. Guildown may be an abbreviation of Guildford Down ("the Down by Guildford"). The Hog's Back ends at Guildford, which is the point where the
River Wey
The River Wey is a main tributary of the River Thames in south east England. Its two branches, one of which rises near Alton, Hampshire, Alton in Hampshire and the other in West Sussex to the south of Haslemere, join at Tilford in Surrey. Onc ...
cuts through the North Downs. Alternatively, both Guildown and Guildford may derive independently from a gold-coloured feature; either the yellow flowers of the marsh marigold or the gold-coloured (sandy) soil of the hillside.
Geology
The Hog's Back is formed of
chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...
of
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...
age, laid down in shallow seas from the deposition of the calcium carbonate skeletons of
micro-organisms. The Hog's Back is the surface representation of a
monoclinal fold, where once horizontal chalk beds have been folded into steeply sloping layers. Across much of the North Downs, the angle of the chalk as it disappears below the surface is relatively shallow (c. 18° near
Dorking
Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
), however at the Hog's Back, local faulting has produced a much steeper angle (up to 55°). To the north of the ridge lies the
London Clay
The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
, and to the south the clays of the
Wealden Group
The Wealden Group, occasionally also referred to as the Wealden Supergroup, is a group (stratigraphy), group (a sequence of rock strata) in the lithostratigraphy of southern England. The Wealden group consists of wiktionary:paralic, paralic to c ...
. The chalk is more resistant to weathering than the flanking clays, leading to the ridge's prominence over the surrounding terrain.
The Hog's Back gives its name to the geomorphological
landform
A landform is a land feature on the solid surface of the Earth or other planetary body. They may be natural or may be anthropogenic (caused or influenced by human activity). Landforms together make up a given terrain, and their arrangement ...
known as a
Hogback, which is a long narrow ridge or series of hills with a narrow crest and steep slopes of nearly equal inclination on both flanks.
[Huggett, JR (2011) ''Fundamentals of Geomorphology,'' 3rd ed., Routledge, New York. 516 pp. ]
Geography
The Hog's Back has a minimum prominence (drop) of , reaching above sea level, the 24th highest hill in Surrey.
Along its course are half panoramas north and south separated by less than viewable from paths alongside the road which runs along the Hog's Back (the
A31).
The view north includes many towns and villages, including
Woking
Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...
,
Ash and
Aldershot
Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...
which on a clear day reaches to London, as far as
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is a financial area of London, England, located in the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The Greater London Authority defines it as part of London's central business district, alongside Central London. Alongside ...
,
Tower 42,
The Gherkin,
Wembley Arch and
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...
. The view to the south is unspoilt and has been designated an
area of outstanding natural beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is one of 46 areas of countryside in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Since 2023, the areas in England an ...
as well as a
site of special scientific interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...
. These views extend to Hindhead and the
Devil's Punchbowl
The Devil's Punch Bowl is a visitor attraction and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest situated just to the east of the village of Hindhead in the English county of Surrey. It is part of the Wealden Heaths Phase II Special Protection ...
.
History
The route along the Hog's Back is ancient, since its raised position offered travellers a vantage point and also kept them above the thick
ancient woodland of the valleys on either side. It was part of the ancient ridgeway which runs from Wiltshire down to the east coast of Kent. The Hog's Back might have been ''"the
Via Regia
The Via Regia (Royal Highway) is a European Cultural Route following the route of the Historic roads, historic road of the Middle Ages. There were many such ''viae regiae'' associated with the king in the medieval Holy Roman Empire.
History ...
of early deeds and Hundred Rolls"''.
The road is part of the highway from
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
. Although there is very little archaeological evidence in support, it has been suggested that a Roman road ran from London to Winchester and that, at this point, it passed, either over the Hog's Back or perhaps a little to the north (e.g. ''Roman Surrey'', David Bird, 2004). Research on this is continuing.
The original A31 along the Hog's Back originally formed part of a road leading directly from
Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
into
Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
High Street and from there into London. However, the modern A31 adopts a slightly less direct and less steep approach to the High Street, and reorganisation of central Guildford into a roundabout road system centred on the Friary Centre (named after the medieval Dominican Friary there) has also broken up this direct stretch of road at the point that it reaches Guildford, where it ends at the junction with the A3.
When the idea of the
Pilgrims' Way
A pilgrims' way or pilgrim way is a standard route that pilgrims take when they go on a pilgrimage in order to reach their destination – usually a holy site or place of worship. These sites may be towns or cities of special significance such a ...
to
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
was popularised in the nineteenth century, a route over the southern slopes of the Hog's back, parallel with the ridgeway and running through
Seale and
Puttenham, was incorporated in its course. In order to avoid the A31, however, the Pilgrims' Way does not run along the top of the Hog's Back.
The Hog's Back stretch of the A31 is now a dual carriageway, but the two directions of the road are separated by a central area of trees, some of them very old. The original road ran along the stretch now occupied by the lanes running from
Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
to
Farnham
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the ...
, i.e. from east to west. The other two lanes, running from west to east, which are a little below the high point occupied by the original carriageways, were added in the early 1970s.
Archaeology
Roughly midway along the ridge of the Hog’s Back between
Farnham
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the ...
and
Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
(OS grid reference SU911483), the human remains of at least six skeletons were discovered in 1935 when ground was being dug for a new water pipe.
They were buried less than a yard from the then-northern edge of the road (now part of the central grass verge between the two carriageways).
[ One of them was buried prone and another showed signs of having originally been bound or trussed, and scholars now believe that they were criminals buried here after execution at different times over an extended period (Reynolds in 2005; Briggs in 2010).][ Their burial place was at the meeting point of the parishes of Wanborough, Seale (originally ]Farnham
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the ...
) and Puttenham, which were each in the different hundreds of Woking
Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...
, Farnham
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the ...
and Godalming
Godalming ( ) is a market town and civil parish in southwest Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, at the confluence of the Rivers Wey and Ock. The civil parish covers and includes the settl ...
respectively.[ It is suggested by Rob Briggs that an elevated site at the junction of different hundreds and parishes was probably a site of general assembly and he identifies it with the place name Seven Ditches, found in the charter of King Caedwalla of ]Wessex
The Kingdom of the West Saxons, also known as the Kingdom of Wessex, was an Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy, kingdom in the south of Great Britain, from around 519 until Alfred the Great declared himself as King of the Anglo-Saxons in 886.
The Anglo-Sa ...
confirming Farnham to the Bishop of Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...
(following the original grant by King Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder (870s?17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousi ...
in 909 AD) (Latin '); and also in a feoffment defining the Shoelands estate in about 1210 (Latin ''“Seuedic”''); and also in the plea rolls of the 1263 Surrey Eyre, noting the hanging of one Robert de la Felde of Send at (Latin) ''“Seinedik”'', translated Sendike or Seven Ditches.[
]
Notable buildings
On the north side of the Hog's Back near the turn off to the village of Seale formerly stood a mansion known as Poyle Hill Lodge. This was once one of the Admiralty semaphore stations because of its high vantage point. In 1935 it became the Hog's Back Hotel, initially owned by the Guildford Friary Brewery, and it remains a hotel, now officially known as the Hog's Back Hotel and Spa, Farnham.
On the south side of the Hog's Back, a little to the east of Poyle Hill, another large mansion was built in 1873 called Great Down, attributed to Robert Kerr. This was demolished in about 1950, but the parkland and other associated buildings, such as a lodge and stables, remain.
Also on the south side is Greyfriars House, a Grade II* listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...
Arts and Crafts
The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...
style mansion built in 1896 by the renowned architect Charles Voysey. It is now a boutique wedding venue.
The Hogs Back Brewery is an independent real ale brewery based in Tongham, which is a village just below the Hog's Back.
The Hog's Back Cafe is in a layby on the Guildford to Farnham (westbound) carriageway of the A31 along the Hog's Back, between the turn offs to Puttenham and Seale. It is popular with lorry drivers, who use the cafe and toilets during the day. The hillside adjacent to the A31 layby was a popular site for dogging (viewing or participating in sexual relations in a public place), but recently (2012–13) Guildford police and local residents are curbing these practices.
Towards Guildford, on the north-east side of the Hog’s Back, lie Down Place and Blackwell Farm. The manor of Down Place was demolished in 1963, all that remains today of the estate are the stables where is established Hogs Back Books, the children’s book publisher.
Once associated with the manor as one of the first model farm in Surrey, Blackwell Farm is now a place of controversies since the University of Surrey, its owner, announced its plan to build a "Garden Neighbourhood" as part of Guildford Borough Council's local plan consultation.
In popular culture
The Hog's Back is mentioned in:
* Richard Thompson's song ''MGB-GT'' on his 1994 album Mirror Blue.
* The Freeman Wills Crofts detective novel '' The Hog's Back Mystery'' (1933)
* ''Brave New World
''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931, and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hier ...
'' by Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley ( ; 26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. His bibliography spans nearly 50 books, including non-fiction novel, non-fiction works, as well as essays, narratives, and poems.
Born into the ...
.
* ''The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly'', an episode in season one of the TV Series, ''Agatha Christie's Poirot
''Agatha Christie's Poirot'', or simply ''Poirot'' (), is a British mystery drama television programme that aired on ITV from 8 January 1989 to 13 November 2020. The ITV show is based on many of Agatha Christie's famous crime fiction series, wh ...
''.
* The Paul Temple radio detective story, ''Paul Temple and the Gilbert Case''.
* '' Bulldog Drummond'', novel by "Sapper"
References
{{Guildford
Hills of Surrey
Ridges of England