Epping Forest

Not only was Epping Forest one of the many hunting forests for the royal Tudors it also had a special and tragic connection to Henry VIII. When Henry VIII was chasing Anne Boleyn they visited this forest together and probably went riding there together. They stayed at the hunting lodge Poteles once.

Henry VIII was especially fond of Waltham Abbey where he would stay whenever he went hunting in Waltham Forest. We know that he set out from Greenwich to Waltham Abbey with both Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn in May 1528. The next time Henry visited Waltham Abbey was in July 1529 but this time he was accompanied by Anne Boleyn alone - he also took her there on progress in 1532 during which they stayed for five days at the Abbey.

However, there is another more tragic connection to this doomed couple. In 1536 Henry VIII went to Epping Forest on May 19th. While he was staying here the sound of a canon being fired informed him that Anne Boleyn had been executed - the King was having his breakfast under the shade of a large tree. According to Moray's History of Essex the King cried out: "Away! Unkennel the dogs!" when he heard the bang.

Henry VIII hunting on the Morning of Anne Boleyn's Execution