Blaby District Heritage Walk 7

Walk preview

1. 

   Step 1: Start your walk at the top of Warren Lane where it meets the A47.

2. Step 2: Turn right onto the A47.

3. Step 3: As you walk you will notice signs for Stafford Leys School. Former headmaster Gordon Hill was a football league referee. He officiated the 1975 League Cup Final between Aston Villa and Norwich City. Villa came out on top.

4. 

   Step 4: Leicester Forest East gets its name from the giant ancient Leicester Forest that once covered the entirety of western Leicester.

5. Step 5: In the 1086 Domesday Book it was called 'Hereswode' & was 4 miles wide & 14 miles long. It survived right up into the 17th century. In 1628, King Charles I (who fought Oliver Cromwell in the civil war) ordered its dissaforestation

6. Step 6: Dissaforestation involves parcelling up land and selling it to private individuals. The forest was thus soon removed for land for agriculture and other purposes. This upset many residents of the area who lost their rights to forage & hunt.