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| Major Oak | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The Major Oak | |
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| Species | English oak (Quercus robur) |
| Location | Sherwood Forest,Nottinghamshire |
| Coordinates | 53°12′16.70″N1°4′20.80″W / 53.2046389°N 1.0724444°W /53.2046389; -1.0724444 |
TheMajor Oak is a largeEnglish oak (Quercus robur) near the village ofEdwinstowe in the midst ofSherwood Forest,Nottinghamshire, England. According to localfolklore, it wasRobin Hood's shelter where he and hismerry men slept. It weighs an estimated 23 tons, has agirth of 33 feet (10 metres), acanopy of 92 feet (28 metres), and is about 800–1,000 years old.[1][2] In 2014, it was voted 'England's Tree of the Year' by a public poll by theWoodland Trust, receiving 18% of the votes.[3][2] Its name originates from MajorHayman Rooke's description of it in 1790.[4][5][disputed –discuss]
There are several theories as to how it became so huge and oddly shaped.[citation needed] The Major Oak may be several trees that fused together as saplings, or the tree could have beenpollarded. (Pollarding is a system of tree management that enabled foresters to grow more than one crop of timber from a tree, causing the trunk to grow large and thick.) However, there is only limited evidence for this theory as none of the other trees in the surrounding area were pollarded.[citation needed]
This enormous tree is commonly thought to be the UK's second-largest oak tree, only truly surpassed by the gigantic Majesty Oak in Fredville Park, in the village ofNonington, near Dover, Kent.[6]
Support chains were first fitted to the tree in 1908, and its massive limbs have been partially supported by an elaborate system of scaffolding since the 1970s.[7] In 1974, fences were installed around the tree to protect it from root damage, since the number of visitors to the tree was compacting the soil around it.[8]
The formation sign of the46th Infantry Division of the British Army in the Second World War was the Major Oak.[citation needed] Among the units of the division were battalions of theSherwood Foresters regiment.
In a 2002 survey, it was voted "Britain's favourite tree".[9]
Also in 2002, a person illegally attempted to sellacorns claimed to be from the Major Oak on an internet-based auction website.[10]
In 2003, inDorset aplantation was started of 260saplings grown from acorns of the Major Oak.[5] The purpose was to provide publicity for an internet-based study of the Major Oak, its history, photographic record, variation in size and leafing of the saplings, comparison of theirDNA, and an eventual public amenity.[11]
The Major Oak was featured on the 2005 television programmeSeven Natural Wonders as one of the wonders of theMidlands.[citation needed]
It was voted 'England's Tree of the Year' in 2014, and came sixth in theEuropean Tree of the Year finals in 2015.[5][2]
The threat to the Major Oak fromfracking is the subject of a song by English musicianBeans on Toast on his 2017 albumCushty.[12]
In July 2020 the tree was reported as vandalised, with a three-foot section of bark fallen off.[13][14]
