About Boothorpe
THE HISTORY OF BOOTHORPE
Boothorpe was a settlement in Domesday Book, in the hundred of Goscote and the county of Leicestershire.
It had a recorded population of 1 household in 1086, putting it in the smallest 20% of settlements recorded in Domesday.
After the King Charles II was condemned to death for treason, four members of Cromwell's army detailed to escort him to London were forced to draw lots to decide who was to act as executioner. It is reported that Cornet George Joyce of Blackfordby was awarded this dubious honour. The story however does not end there. After the restoration of Charles II, Joyce was forced to flee the country, returning some years later not only to Blackfordby but to one of his family's farms, This is thought to be Old Hall Farm in Boothorpe .He did not feel himself to be safe, and so took the drastic action of disguising himself as a woman, calling himself Jane Joyce. Unfortunately, this did not secure his safety and he was stabbed to death whilst walking from Boothorpe to Blackfordby. The footpath to Boothorpe, off Driftside is still there and the parish records have an entry for the burial of "Cornet George Joyce" alias Jane Joyce in the chapel in 1674.
SURROUNDING BOOTHORPE
The woodland has long inspired creative and cultural gatherings, reflecting the character of the National Forest and the communities who live there.
The woodland itself was planted in different eras, the oldest being Feanedock Covert, established in the late 19th century, possibly as a fox covert. A century later, further tree planting took place as part of the Ashby Woulds regeneration in the 1990s, shortly before the National Forest added a third area of planting in 2009 to create the woodland we see today. The site is planted mainly with native broadleaved species. A small pond was created at the northern end and is surrounded by marshy grassland with a variety of flowers and emergent plants, such as reeds and rushes.
There are clues to the industrial heritage of the area with steep embankments thought to be due to coal mining, and views over the neighbouring lake, previously a landfill site and before that, an open cast coal mine. From black to green, the landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation to the scenic views of today.
A bridleway link has been created along the hedgerow edge of the site. Gorse Lane, the bridleway which separates Feanedock from the adjacent Boothorpe Wood, is part of the National Forest Way.
COUNTRYFILE PLANTS TEN MILLIONTH TREE AT BOOTHORPE
John Craven and Charlotte Smith head to the National Forest in the Midlands as it reaches a milestone moment: the planting of its 10-millionth tree.
They discover how three decades of regeneration have transformed formerly scarred mining land into a thriving mosaic of woodland and rich wildlife habitat.
John and Charlotte meet the people whose lives have been reshaped by the forest, from a women’s walking group discovering the countryside on their doorstep to the craftspeople building sustainable livelihoods from woodland materials.
