Norfolk and Suffolk's historic warrens and lodges given listed protection
They're said to give an insight into an ancient agricultural trade that once defined the local area
Five rare sites, Breckland warrens and lodges, in Thetford Forest have been recognised with listing protection by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, following a recommendation from Historic England.
Warrens – areas of land set aside for the breeding and management of rabbits – were introduced into England by the Normans.
The buildings and surrounding landscapes are said to give a remarkable insight into an ancient agricultural trade that once defined the local area.
Now, it's hoped this recognition will give the warrening landscape of Breckland, which is the largest of its kind in the country, greater recognition and protection.
Newly protected sites
Thetford Warren and the remains of Reed Fen Lodge
This high-status rabbit warren was granted by King Edward I to the Prior of St Mary’s Priory, Thetford, in 1274.
It was one of the largest and most economically successful warrens established in Breckland during the medieval period.
It continued in use for more than 600 years, until rabbit farming came to an end in the early 20th century.
Langford Warren Lodge (also known as Ickburgh Warren Lodge)
Langford Warren Lodge (Ickburgh Warren Lodge) is a nationally rare example of a late-medieval warren lodge and one of only three Breckland warren lodges remaining with any surviving upstanding fabric.
The building’s remains, consisting of masonry dating from the 15th or 16th centuries, stand on a raised circular mound which is possibly a round barrow dating to the Bronze Age.
Santon Downham Warren
Santon Downham Warren, south of the Little Ouse River, was first recorded in 1778.
A later addition to the Breckland warrens, it shows the longevity of the industry in the region.
It is one of the most intact examples of the later warrens, still largely in its original layout and with boundary banks still surviving.
To contain and protect the stock, limiting predators and poaching, the warrens were enclosed by banks made of turf, laid like a brick wall with the grass facing outwards.
The banks were topped with bundles of gorse twigs or planted with gorse or thorn bushes to prevent the rabbits from escaping.
Where two warrens were placed side-by-side, such as Thetford and Santon Downham Warrens, each had its own bank with the space between used as a trackway, known as a border. Some of the banks were also used as parish boundaries.
Within the warren, further banks were constructed to grow crops for additional feed for the rabbits, and for segregating the breeding does (female rabbits).
Linear banks with funnelled ends, known as trapping banks, were constructed parallel to the warren banks for the selective culling of rabbits.
Mildenhall Warren Boundary Banks
The site includes the remains of the perimeter and trapping banks of Mildenhall Warren, first recorded in 1323.
It lies within Thetford Forest on the northern boundary of Mildenhall Woods and follows the boundary between the parishes of Mildenhall and Eriswell.
Downham High Warren
Downham High Warren lies between Brandon and Thetford Warrens and its perimeter banks are clearly visible, with some sections over one metre high.
The trapping banks were the first to be identified as such and were specially constructed to funnel the rabbits into narrow corridors to enable easier capture.
"A ghostly reminder of a high-status industry"
Caroline Skinner, from Historic England in the East, said: “The Breckland warrens and lodges are a ghostly reminder of a high-status industry that once dominated the local landscape.
"Protecting these rare structures helps to ensure that the agricultural history of East Anglia can be discovered and understood.
"We’re grateful to the volunteers at the Friends of Thetford Forest for their painstaking research which helps us to appreciate these remarkable places.”
Anne Mason, Chair of the Friends of Thetford Forest, said: “From my very earliest days researching the warrens, in the 2000s, I realised that the banks and lodge sites were very important survivals of an industry which has vanished from the landscape.
"I’ve been very fortunate to lead dedicated volunteers in researching the archaeological features of the warrens and in exploring the extensive archival resources which have added so much to our knowledge.
"I’m absolutely delighted that there is now a legal framework in place to protect these Breckland warrens which are part of our heritage.”
Warrens and their history in Norfolk and Suffolk
Warrens – areas of land set aside for the breeding and management of rabbits – were introduced into England by the Normans in around 1100.
They were established in the Norfolk and Suffolk Brecklands from the 1270s onwards, where the dry climate and sandy soil replicated the rabbits’ native Mediterranean habitat.
In the medieval period only those of manorial rank were allowed to keep, eat rabbit and wear their fur.
Rabbits were high class luxury items with the same exclusive protection as the pigeons in the lord’s dovecote. They were not even known as ‘rabbits’.
The adults were ‘coneys’ and the young were ‘rabbetts’.
The Breckland warrens were managed as commercial enterprises. Many were owned by monasteries and once the monks had taken their own supply, the coneys were sold on the open market.
At larger warrens, a lodge provided living accommodation for the warrener, whose job it was to nurture, protect and trap the rabbits. The lodges provided storage for trapping equipment and carcasses and a lookout and defence against poachers.
In the 19th century, the annual cull on many of the Breckland warrens ran to over 20,000 animals, with the meat being sent to London and to the Cambridge colleges, as well as to local markets.
Factories in Brandon and Thetford processed the rabbit fur into felt, for use in the hat industry, with exports as far afield as South America.
Warrens continued in use until they declined with agricultural changes in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The planting of Thetford Forest from the 1920s by the Forestry Commission conserved the warren banks and lodge sites beneath the trees.
These landmarks remain under the care, management and protection of Forestry England.