*Once upon a time, The Abbess of Bordesley (1) owned a beautiful white stag. It's coat was so white it glistened like snow and it's antlers sprouted from it's head like mature oak trees. The Abbess kept her stag tethered by a long golden chain on the lawn in front of the Abbey, which resided on the edge of Feckenham Forest.
Feckenham Forest was home to Herne the Hunter,(2) a wild god who ran joyously through the trees, making sure flowers bloomed, stags rutted and wolves hunted. One day in his revels he came upon the manicured lawns and herb beds of the Abbey. Sniffing the air he picked up a sent amongst the alien human smells that he recognised, a stag. Creeping quietly into the open, he spied the white stag belonging to the Abbess. Noticing the chain which tethered it, he let out a roar of protest. No wild animal should be restrained in this way, especially one as noble as this stag. Dashing from the cover of the trees, he ran to the stag and with a mighty stamp of his hoof, smashed the links of the chain. Together, the stag and Herne galloped away back into the forest. The Abbess, rounding the corner of the Abbey, was just in time to glimpse the white tail of her beloved stag, followed by the strange figure of the man-stag, Herne, bow and arrow raised ready to fire.
Enraged by his actions and believing Herne to be planning to kill her stag, the Abbess screamed a curse to ensure that Herne would be condemned to ride the night sky, leading the Wild Hunt for eternity.(3)
Many years later, a young man named William Shakespeare was spending time in Worcestershire, at the Drainer's Arms on Earl's Common,(4) where the tale of Herne was recounted to him in front of a roaring fire, one stormy winter's night. Shakespeare was from the Forest of Arden, which was separated from Feckenham Forest by the River Arrow, which flowed next to Bordesley Abbey. He knew the area well and the tale fired his imagination. In time young William became quite famous for his own stories and was called upon to write a play to amuse Queen Elizabeth 1. Remembering the story of Herne he added the character to The Merry Wives of Windsor, claiming that Herne fequented Windsor Forest.(5) Herne of Feckenham was all but forgotten.
*This story may not be true, the written word can not always be trusted.
1;Bordesley Abbey
2;Herne
3;Ghosts of Redditch
4; The Folklore of Hereford & Worcester
5;Who Killed William Shakespeare?
