Source/Archive record SEM8808 - The landscape of the Knights on Exmoor: A case study for the Exmoor Mires Partnership

This project, commissioned by the Exmoor Mires Partnership, on behalf of the Exmoor National Park Authority, has investigated aspects of the reclamation of Exmoor Forest which was undertaken by the Knight family in the 19th Century.The study used a combination of archaeological field assessment of the surviving remains of the reclamation in the Exmoor landscape, the information from a wide range of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental work carried out in advance of mire restoration work by the Exmoor Mires Partnership, and a large body of documentary evidence.The main outcome of the study is to show that the extensive remains of the surface drainage and irrigation (for improvement of the grazing) schemes across the moorlands of Exmoor Forest date to the early phases of the reclamation process.