The Yew Tree

To one side of the Castle lies the ruins of a church. Originally an Anglo-Saxon building, it was rebuilt in some haste around 1680 by Geordie’s many greats’ grandfather in red brick with a square tower as he thought the earlier building was too small and simple. However, a mere two hundred years later, it already needed a great deal of restoration and so Geordie’s great great grandfather once again rebuilt it in an even larger and more elegant style but this time on a new site just outside the park gates, nearer the village of Highclere.

Records suggest that the original Anglo-Saxon church certainly existed by 1000AD. It was likely built from brick and flint and of course faced east. Flint is found all around here and is thus inexpensive as well as being extremely hard wearing– it was used by the Romans and became ubiquitous as the building material for Saxon and later Norman churches. You can see the remains of similar walls here in the gardens and ha-ha but sadly the visible bricks marking the church walls are just that – the flints are long gone.

Aligned with where the altar used to sit is an ancient yew tree. Yew trees have a long and superstitious history. Julius Caesar recorded that the Druids preached the doctrine of the immortality of the soul and that the yew was their sacred tree and the symbol for immortality. They have also long been associated with witchcraft. The Third Witch in Macbeth mentions, as a constituent of the cauldron’s brew, ‘slips of yew slivered in the moon’s eclipse’ (Macbeth: Act 4, Scene 1).

Evergreen and very long lived yew trees are traditionally associated with the concept of eternity and continued to be noted as a landscape feature in the 7^th century in that they were often planted on ancient burial mounds or barrows. Yew branches were carried on Palm Sunday (palm trees being in short supply in England) and King Edward I ordered them to be planted in churchyards to protect the buildings.

Britain has the largest collection of ancient yews in the world. There are 117 of them, aged between 2000 and 5000 years but whilst yews stand for many centuries, it is very difficult to accurately estimate the age of a particular specimen. The Ankerwycke Yew at Runnymede is rightly admired. It is estimated at some 2500 years old and witnessed both the inauguration of Saxon Kings and the Magna Carta agreement.

Yews are one of the slowest growing and oldest genera of trees in England and are therefore categorized as a “native British” tree. Their dense canopy of evergreen needles protects the trunk from rain and probably reduces the rate of decay in the wood. Ancient yews become hollowed out but fresh growth can develop over hollows making hollowness an unxpectedly positive part of healthy trees. In addition, internal roots can also be sent down inside a hollowed tree.

Every part of the tree is toxic and the leaves, berries and wood can all be fatal to both humans and some animals. However, the same toxins (alkaloids) also discourage parasites. As such the fruit is eaten by birds such as the blackbird, mistle thrush, song thrush and fieldfare along with small mammals like squirrels and dormice whilst the leaves are eaten by the caterpillars of the satin beauty moth. As another benefit, yew hedges are incredibly dense, offering protection and nesting opportunities for many birds and thus all are alive with the music of birdsong and, despite their toxicity, modern science has found that chemicals found in yew clippings can be beneficial to cancer patients.

Yew timber is incredibly strong and durable. Traditionally, the wood was used in turnery and to make tool handles. It possesses a remarkable elasticity, making it ideal for musical instruments, furniture and of course for English long bows which require great “springiness”. In the Middle Ages however, Spanish yew was much preferred by both English archers and their foes and as a result few yew forests remain on mainland Europe. It is too slow growing to be replanted as a commercial crop.

In the ancient Celtic world, the word for yew tree was eburos – the Ebor race meeting at York still celebrates the yew and York itself was originally derived from the ancient word for yew though the name underwent several transformations by both the Saxons and Vikings. There is a local garden centre near Highclere called the Yew Tree, Yew Hills and homes named for Yews.

Yew trees give us place names and protection and, for all our modern world, they still seem ancient, dark and magical.