Duffield Frith 1

© Copyright Friends of Belper Parks, St Johns Chapel, The Butts, Belper, DE56 1HX, U.K. Site update 1st September 2008
Background aerial photograph courtesy of Amber Valley Borough Council

In 1200 England was still a wild place, over a third of the country was designated as "forest", a vast hunting ground for nobles and the king to chase and kill wolves, deer, boar and other game. William the Conqueror had earlier set up great game reserves and set down harsh laws for them as a means of closer controlling large tracts of his domain.

Duffield Frith (The word Frith was derived from the Old English word “fyrho” meaning a wood, woodland or wooded countryside was probably granted to Henry de Ferrers soon after the Norman Conquest. The total area of the Forest was enclosed within a fence some 30 miles long. It was subdivided into four administrative areas known as wards: Duffield or Chevin, Belper, Colebrook and Hulland, the last name still survives on the modern map. There were further enclosed areas within the Forest known as parks, which were intended for holding deer and related purposes:

Ward	Park Name		Existed as a park in Duffield	Approx. Size (acres)	Note
Ward	Early	Late	Existed as a park in Duffield	Approx. Size (acres)	Note
Duffield	Le Posterne	Postern	By 1296-1559	517	Disparked & leased out c. 1560
Duffield	Le Champein/ Champagne	Champayne/ Champaigne/ Champion	By 1296-1329		Leased out from 1329
Beaurepair Later Belper	Beaurepair/ Beaureper	Belper	c.1330-1633	100
	Morley/ Marelei	Morley	By 1313-1633	491
	Dey	Day
	Denebihuyrne/ Denebyhuyrne		By 1296, gone by 1330		May not have been a deer park
Colebrook or Coldebrook	Schothull	Shottle	By 1296-1559	2000	(largest)
	Milnhay		By 1313-1633	1000	Not a deer park
	Seynendeclif/ Seyvenecliff	Shining Cliff	c.1280-1515	450	Leased out 1515
Holand later Hulland	Ravensdale	Ravensdale	By 1296-1633	450	Corresponds to modern civil parish of Ravensdale
Holand later Hulland	Mannsis/ Mauncel/ Mauncell/ Mancell/ Manskell/ Mansfield	Mansell	By 1260?- 1633	200