Shrawley Wood

A Brief history of Shrawley Wood

The history of Shrawley Wood can be traced back to the middle ages and beyond. For several centuries it was managed as coppiced woodland, predominantly of small-leaved Lime Tilia cordata. Throughout that time it played an important part in the life of the village of Shrawley, providing both employment and materials for locals and local industry such as rope making.

When bomb damage to the houses of parliament was repaired following the second world war, much of the oak used came from Shrawley Wood.

In 1961, the major part of Shrawley Wood was acquired by the Forestry Commission who, in tune with the prevailing woodland management strategy of that time, set about replacing a substantial number of the lime trees with conifers. The lime proved somewhat resistant to this devastation, so that today several ancient trees are reasserting themselves amidst the douglas firs.

In 2022 a small group of local authors collectively published a book entitled

Shrawley Wood
History and Natural History
A nationally important Small-leaved
Lime wood in Worcestershire

Copies may still be available from Pemberley Books