Berkeley Hunt
The Berkeley Hunt is a fox hunt in the west of England. Its country lies in Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire, between Gloucester and Bristol.
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[edit] History
The Berkeley Hunt's establishment is said to have been, in its (18th Century) day, one of the largest and most important the world has ever known.[1]
Hounds have been kept at Berkeley since the 12th century, at first to hunt the stag and the buck and since the 18th century to hunt the fox.
The Berkeley family still own the Berkeley's hounds and the kennels.
Fox hunting in its traditional form has been unlawful in the UK since February 2005.
[edit] Country
The "hill country" above Dursley and Wotton-under-Edge is hunted mainly in March and early April, and adjoins the Duke of Beaufort's estate. The "vale country" comprises the Vale of Berkeley, largely dairy and stock farms with much permanent pasture, although the use of this land for growing crops is increasing.
[edit] Relationship with Old Berkeley Hunt
At one time the Berkeley Hunt's hounds were kennelled at Berkeley and at Cheltenham, Nettlebed, Gerrards Cross and Cranford, Middlesex. It should have been possible to hunt from Berkeley Castle to Wormwood Scrubs, 100 miles as the crow flies, although not on a regular basis without disturbing other hunts. This wide range of activity may have begun by the Berkeleys taking their hounds to London each year.[1] In the late 18th century, the 5th Earl of Berkeley lost most of his land in and around Middlesex.
The country around Cheltenham and Broadway became Cotswold, North Cotswold and Cotswold Vale Farmer's Hunt.
Gerrards Cross and Cranford retained the old livery and became known as the Old Berkeley Hunt. They were later divided into East and West.[1]
[edit] Lending a name
- The English slang word "berk" is a contraction of "Berkeley Hunt", which in turn refers to the English vulgarity, "cunt". (The usage is dated to the 1930s)[2] This is an example of Cockney rhyming slang. The "berk" in Berkeley is pronounced /ˈbɑrk/, but in Cockney it is pronounced /ˈbɜrk/, as in American English.
- The Old Berkeley Hunt developed a large following among the prosperous London middle classes.
- The Hunt class mine countermeasure vessel HMS Berkeley was named after the hunt.
- Berkeley Square in London is named after the Berkeley family's London home, Berkeley House, now known as Devonshire House.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Charles Richardson, The Complete Foxhunter, Methuen & Co, 1908
- ^ Jonathon Green, Cassell's Dictionary of Slang (Cassel & Co) ISBN 0-304-35167-9
[edit] External links
- berkeleyhunt.co.uk - official website of the Berkeley Hunt
- Berkeley hunt history at berkeleyhunt.co.uk
