Jane Eyre Hathersage Trail

Transport Trail Summary Step into the pages of Jane Eyre, Pride & Prejudice and Robin Hood This circular  lm and literature walk takes you to the places visited by Charlotte Bronte that appear in Distance Jane Eyre . You can also recreate the 8 km famous scene from Pride & 5.5 mi Prejudice ‘on location’ above Stanage Edge and visit the grave of Allow Robin Hood’s sidekick Little John . + Explore a Romano-British Howvillage, We Ate...... Blackwell 3 hr Norman fort, historic church and breathtaking moors on the way. Diffi culty Moderate di! culty. Easy underfoot with some steep ascents and descents. Valley  elds, high moorland paths, woodland path. Start and  nish: The George Inn at the junction of the village Main Road (A6187) and the B6001 to Grindleford. OS Dark Peak Explorer Map, OL 1. SK230 815. Access: Buses from She! eld and Bakewell stop on the Main Road. She! eld to Manchester trains stop at Hathersage. Turn right out of the station. At the road (B6001) go right down to the village to arrive at the George Inn. Pay & display car park in village. . Part-funded by the European Union European Regional This map is reproduced from Ordnance Survey material with the permission of Controller HMSO. Crown Development Fund Copyright. All Rights Reserved. Peak District National Park Authority. License No. LA 100005734. 2005 Jane Eyre Hathersage Trail

Transport refreshment to travellers and their horses. Bronte 2. Brook eld Manor/Vale Hall Circular walk of roughly 4½ used pub landlord Morton’s name for her new This is Brook eld Manor, which features as Vale km along moderately easy novel. Morton is the village where Jane Eyre works Hall in Jane Eyre. In the novel, Mr Oliver of Vale tracks through streamside as a schoolteacher, after A eeing from Rochester Hall made his money from a needle factory and, Distance woodland and heather and Thorn eld. in fact, Hathersage was famous for producing moorland, including some needles at the time. Daughter Rosamond Oliver 4 km funds the village school where Jane teaches ascents. Option to add a 2½ 3 miles under the false name Jane Elliott and pays Jane’s km round trip through the £30 a year salary. Explore historicalAllow Hathersage village, with its ancient church and surroundingNational hallsTrust’s that Longshaw are central to Charlotte Bronte’sEstate Jane via Eyre a tea (above). room and Continue along the footpath and at the road, turn Climb the cli@2 wherehr Keirashop Knightley in a former (below) hunting right onto Birley Lane. After about 200 metres lodge.surveyed the Peak as turn left onto the public footpath. Follow this Diffi culty Elizabeth Bennet in Pride tarmac road up to North Lees Hall.

Trail Summary Trail and Prejudice before stepping back down into 3. North Lees Hall/Thorn eld polite society and marry- Head up the main street through the village, past ing proud Darcy. Listen the National Westminster bank and courtyard for rooks at North Lees cafés. Immediately after the next building, turn Hall, and watch the attic left onto Baulk Lane, a signposted public footpath. windows for the ghostly In May and June the pastures along the path are face of a distressed cap- radiant with yellow buttercups. Follow this foot- tive, a sad vengeful wife path for nearly a mile (1.5km) until you see a large no longer desired and house with towering chimneys (below). destined to burn. The bridge is a  ne piece of Victorian engineering built to carry the railway over Wye Dale. 1. The George Inn In 1845, Charlotte Bronte arrived at Hathersage by stage coach to ‘three stories high... a gentleman’s manor house... stay with her friend Ellen Nussey at battlements around the top gave it a picturesque the Rectory, while Nussey’s rector look.’ This is Thorn eld, home of Edward Roches- brother was on honeymoon. The ter, Jane’s destined love. In the book, Thorn eld is George (above right) was the vil- lage coaching inn, o@ ering rest and One of a suite of downloadable trails available from www.peak-experience.org.uk Jane Eyre Hathersage Trail

Transport far to the south of Morton, but North Lees Hall is pottery made in the Derbyshire potteries set up Some 4,000 to 2,000 years ago people lived in the undoubtedly the templateCircular for the walk building of roughly Bronte 4½ after the Romans arrived. They also found a corn- valley below and the moorland hills opposite you. describes. It is one of thekm many along Eyre moderately family homes easy grinding stone, so can be certain that back then They left us traces of their lives – burial mounds, in the area and we all knowtracks how through Charlotte streamside Bronte villagers grew grain in the  elds around you. Most stone circles and standing stones. used their Distancename! woodland and heather probably the people who lived here were native moorland, including some local farmers. The invaders had a fort a few miles As you walk, you will pass Robin Hood’s cave 4 km away. The ruined wall with the arched window tucked in to the Edge below. Robert Eyre built Northascents. Lees Hall Option in the early to add a 2½ 1590s, with 3a further miles wing added in 1750 after a across the  eld was once a Catholic chapel.  re. A persistent local legendkm round has it trip that through Agnes the Follow along the top of the Edge for about 1 Allow Ashurst, an early mistressNational of the hall, Trust’s was Longshaw Cross back over the stile and head left and uphill kilometre, heading south. imprisoned as a mad womanEstate in via the a attic tea androom died and along the woodland path. At the road, just before in a  re. 2hr shop in a former hunting the public toilets, turn left and then right onto the 6. Jane Eyre on the Moor lodge. bridleway. Cross the road and follow the bridle- Peaty moorlands quickly get wet and boggy. Here, Continue alongDiffi culty the footpath running behind way up through woodland. Bear left, staying on Ruth Wilson as Jane Eyre in the BBC series,  nally the most obvious path and ascend up on to collapsed after A eeing Thorn eld, only to be res- the Summary Trail hall, and take a sharp right by an information board into a  eld, which is likely to have cows or Stanage Edge. cued by the Reverend St John Rivers, nursed back sheep in it. About half way along the top  eld to health by his sisters and begin a new life teach- wall, to your left, is a stile. Cross it and follow the 5. Pride and Prejudice ing at Morton. path about 50 metres till it kinks to the left. Could you be Keira?! On Stanage Edge, Keira 4. Romano-British Village Knightley as Pride and Look right and you’ll see what looks like a stand- Prejudice’s Elizabeth ing stone (below). This was once the end of a wall Bennet felt freedom and marking out a terrace. The terrace is one of  ve air to breathe. So can you that were  lled with Romano-British houses al-  nd Keira’s rock? most 2,000 years ago. Archaeologists have found Listen out for curlews and Take the concessionary path to your right, which cackly red grouse on the heads diagonally down o@ the edge. Turn left out high moorlands to your of the car park and immediately right onto the left. Rare ring ouzels are Hathersage road. After about 200 metres take the among the birds that nest in the cli@ s at Stanage righthand footpath across heather moorland. – a conservation success story! When you leave the moorland, turn right onto the

One of a suite of downloadable trails available from www.peak-experience.org.uk Jane Eyre Hathersage Trail

Transport 8.8.track8 When and MedievalMedieval you continue leave farmfarm the down moorland,tracestraces through turn a wooden right onto gate the 8. Norman Fort churchyard, con rming the importance of this thentrack a and metal continue gate and down intoCircular through the grounds walk a wooden of of roughly Moor- gate 4½ This is the earth wall of a name and family to Hathersage. seatsthen a(house). metal gate It feels and like intokm private the along grounds property, moderately of Moor- but it easyis 1,000- year-old Norman OKseats to (house).pass through It feels on like thistracks private public through property, footpath. streamside but it is Fort built shortly after the Look out for gargoyles OK to passDistance through. woodland and heather Battle of Hastings and the and ‘Celtic’-style carved heads adorning the 7. Moorseats/Moor Housemoorland, including some Norman invasion. William CharlotteMoor House Bronte4 km created Moor House out of the Conqueror granted all church. The church you ascents. Option to add a 2½ Moorseats.Charlotte Bronte The3 miles Revd created St John Moor lived House here out with of Moor-his Hathersage to one of his see today dates from sistersseats. Theand Revdit becomes St John Janekm lived roundEyre’s here protection with trip throughhis sisters and the lords. 1460. Robert Eyre, then retreat,and it becomes dark, Allowhidden Jane Eyre’saway,National sturdy.protection Trust’s and Longshaw retreat, Lord of the Manor, dark, hidden away, sturdy.Estate via a tea room and Continue along the path restored the church ‘They. loved Medieval theirhr sequestered farm tracesshop inhome. a former I too, in hunting the with the remains of the and added the 2 gargoyles. It was grey small antique structure,lodge. with its low roof, its fort wall on your left until you reach a gate and latticed casementsDiffi culty , its mouldering walls, its stile. The church is in front of you. Turn left on to restored again in the avenue of aged  rs all grown aslant under the the road and enter the churchyard through the mid 1800s. Trail Summary Trail stress of mountain winds; its garden, dark with second gate on your right. It’s the gate with the yew and holly and where no A owers but of the wooden roof. Leave the churchyard by a gate more or less op- hardiest species would bloom found a charm posite where you came in. Take the path down to both potent and permanent.’ 9. Robin Hood and his Merry Men! rejoin Baulk Lane to head back into the village. To return to the George, turn right out of Baulk Lane. Walk through the grounds and turn immediately right after you exit. The footpath is through a Credits. Walk: devised by Bill Bevan & James Tolhurst as a small wooden gate between 2 sets of stone gate Moors for the Future audio trail; adapted for print by pillars. After 50 metres or so, go through the Georgia Litherland. Photos: Bill Bevan, Jane Eyre still blue-grey gate to your left and then follow the courtesy of www.VisitPeakDistrict.com , Pride & Preju- path down through Moorseats Wood. Continue dice still courtesy of EM Media. Hathersage churchyard is most famous for the straight on where the path forks, grave of Little John, Robin Hood’s giant righthand There are more Peak Experience self-guided trails for ignoring the left turn to the metal man (above). Local legend claims Little John’s you to download at www.peak-experience.org.uk kissing gate. Immediately after the bow, hat and mail shirt once hung inside the fork you will see the grass and Download the audio version of this trail to play on an church. There’s been a church here for at least iPod or mp3 player at www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk tree covered ground rise up 2 or 3 1,000 years. times head height, in front and to Inspired by the landscape? your left (pictured above right). It Send us photos or stories from your walk to share You will also  nd many Eyre family graves in the blocks the view of the church. with others on www.MyPeakExperience.org.uk One of a suite of downloadable trails available from www.peak-experience.org.uk