Ferrerting on a historic level

[Wolfdog91 7,375]

So from a historical level when did ferreting become a thing ?

[mackem 27,833]

9 minutes ago, Wolfdog91 said:

So from a historical level when did ferreting become a thing ?

It didn’t actually start out how you might imagine Wolfie old chap………

 

[mackem 27,833]

3 minutes ago, mackem said:

It didn’t actually start out how you might imagine Wolfie old chap………

 

But man being an inventive creature soon turned ye tables…….

 

[TOMO 26,956]

2000 years.....Romans were doing it Wolfdog91 

[comanche 3,084]

57 minutes ago, Wolfdog91 said:

So from a historical level when did ferreting become a thing ?

In Britain it probably started in the late Norman period which lasted from 1066 and petered out in a messy civil war in the late 1100s and gave way to  what are known as the Plantagenate Kings in  1216 .              No rabbit Warrens ( systems of artificial burrows for rearing semi free range rabbits ) are noted in the Domesday Book. This book was the result of a 1085 survey ordered by the  first Norman King of England ,William The Conquerer ,  in order to assess the taxable assets of the population.  Warrens were valuable and had they existed would have been noted.

So somewhere between 1085 and the early 1200s  when Warrens start to be   documented ,rabbits appeared in Britain. And almost certainly the art of ferreting came with them as a way of harvesting the bunnies .

Within a couple of hundred years pretty much any landowner worth his salt had a private Warren and no doubt a team of "Warreners" to oversee the rabbits welfare and harvest them using nets and ferrets.

No doubt ferreting had been going-on on the Continent and Mediterranean region for a lot longer. Some ancient Roman and Greek writings touch on the subject of using what could be ferrets, or a related species  for rabbit catching.

Edited February 4, 2024 by comanche

[Lenmcharristar 9,924]

Id say in wales where the polecat is a native, probably 1000+ years ago

[harryshounds 1,264]

Rabbits been harvested and kept deliberately in certain areas and looked after by warreners since the bronze Age.

[harryshounds 1,264]

Ferreting been around since at least the Roman age 

[mackem 27,833]

Pliny the elder records caesar Augustus sending viverrae to the balearic islands in 6 BC to control rabbits, it's speculated viverrae were ferrets or polecats. 

[harryshounds 1,264]

Initially it was thought Romans brought rabbits to Ireland but recently it's been discovered that rabbits were brought here long before the Romans. Rabbits been in Ireland since the bronze Age at least.

[comanche 3,084]

1 hour ago, mackem said:

But man being an inventive creature soon turned ye tables…….

 

Or in the case of these pictures it's  women turning the tables

[Daniel cain 46,427]

40 minutes ago, comanche said:

In Britain it probably started in the late Norman period which lasted from 1066 and petered out in a messy civil war in the late 1100s and gave way to  what are known as the Plantagenate Kings in  1216 .              No rabbit Warrens ( systems of artificial burrows for rearing semi free range rabbits ) are noted in the Domesday Book. This book was the result of a 1085 survey ordered by the  first Norman King of England ,William The Conquerer ,  in order to assess the taxable assets of the population.  Warrens were valuable and had they existed would have been noted.

So somewhere between 1085 and the early 1200s  when Warrens start to be   documented ,rabbits appeared in Britain. And almost certainly the art of ferreting came with them as a way of harvesting the bunnies .

Within a couple of hundred years pretty much any landowner worth his salt had a private Warren and no doubt a team of "Warreners" to oversee the rabbits welfare and harvest them using nets and ferrets.

No doubt ferreting had been going-on on the Continent and Mediterranean region for a lot longer. Some ancient Roman and Greek writings touch on the subject of using what could be ferrets, or a related species  for rabbit catching.

As well as employing warreners...lots of Big landowners and stately homes also had stone dove cotes...for the purpose of fattening up birds for the table....

Theres one a few hundred yards from where I grew up,as kids we climbed and played inside it...and the stately home before it was bought and  rebuilt

Its just come up for sale...we used to play in secret tunnels/walkways between the walls as kids....theres a tunnel that goes all the way from the manor house to the keep inside Caerphilly castle....over a mile long under roads,rivers and a moat

Dovecote at Van House, Van, Caerphilly

BRITISHLISTEDBUILDINGS.CO.UK

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Dovecote at Van House is a Grade II listed building in Van, Caerphilly, Wales. See why it was listed, view it on a map...

 

Check out this 7 bedroom manor house for sale on Rightmove

WWW.RIGHTMOVE.CO.UK

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7 bedroom manor house for sale in Y Fan, Gwern Y Domen Lane, Caerphilly, CF83 for £1,975,000. Marketed by...

 

[Daniel cain 46,427]

Wasn't it the Romans who brought  them originally...1000 yrs before the Normans ...

[TOMO 26,956]

Caerphilly.....that place brings back a few memories....stood that show a good few times with my stall...

[Daniel cain 46,427]

3 minutes ago, TOMO said:

Caerphilly.....that place brings back a few memories....stood that show a good few times with my stall...

Was that the old T&L show,back of the aircraft factory or along the river  in Machen Tomo?