Yorkshire’s WallFest has been launched to protect the crumbling boundary wall of what is considered the world’s first nature reserve. The wall, built by pioneering environmentalist Charles Waterton in the 1820s, surrounds the parkland and lake of Walton Hall near Wakefield.
The Wall and Its Legacy
Over four years, Waterton constructed a 9ft-high, 3-mile-long wall around his estate. This fox- and poacher-proof enclosure completed what could be the world’s first nature reserve, two centuries ago. Waterton, an eccentric and controversial figure, built nest boxes, banks for sand martins, and innovative bird hides. He even offered locals sixpence for every hedgehog brought into his reserve.
After banning hunting and shooting, Waterton recorded 5,000 wildfowl on his lake and 123 bird species, including herons and kestrels, which were widely persecuted at the time. Hedgehogs and weasels reportedly roamed freely.
WallFest Events
The overlooked achievements of this reserve and its crumbling wall are now being remembered through WallFest, a programme of 60 community events organized by the charity Friends of Waterton’s Wall. The events, taking place in May around Walton, West Yorkshire, and in Waterton’s former home (now a hotel), aim to raise funds for repairs. Highlights include a short film supported by David Attenborough.
John Smith, chair of trustees, said: “We’re keen to raise the profile of the first nature reserve in the world. Waterton was a pioneering environmentalist, probably the first in this country. We also want to raise the profile of the wall itself and the need to preserve our heritage.”
Waterton's Environmentalism
Waterton’s environmentalism was inspired by the rainforests of Guyana, where he managed his father’s sugar plantations. Returning to industrializing West Yorkshire, he was dismayed by pollution, stripped woodlands, and poor health among workers. He published a successful book in 1825, Wanderings in South America, and famously rode a caiman to subdue it.
Unlike contemporary sportsman-naturalists, Waterton abhorred shooting and fought poachers, using dummy birds to thwart them. His reserve attracted 17,000 visitors annually, and he provided free entry, tea, and entertainments in what may be the first country park. He also invited poor neighbours to fish for food and recognized nature’s mental health benefits, bringing patients from a nearby institution for park outings.
Waterton launched one of the first environmental legal actions against a soap works for pollution that killed trees and damaged his lake.
Eccentricity and Legacy
Despite his visionary work, Waterton is often remembered for his eccentricity: climbing trees in his 80s, creating bizarre taxidermy, scratching behind his ear with his big toe, and devising a failed flying machine. Local resident and biographer Barbara Phipps noted that his portrayal as “an amusing and strange fellow” by Charles Darwin was partly due to his Catholicism, which excluded him from mainstream careers.
John Whitaker, a curator and trustee, added: “He spent his life as an ‘eccentric’ Catholic, made a lot of noise, and made friends and enemies. He was a marginalized aristocrat, never in the establishment. He was massively affectionate and progressive but hugely contradictory.”
Addressing Slavery
Waterton managed plantations in British Guiana worked by enslaved people owned by his father. He did not inherit the plantations or receive compensation after abolition. Whitaker said: “He wrote that slavery can never be defended, but the fact is he did manage them. A lot of people want to talk about it, so we are sure we do.”
Repair Efforts
The charity has repaired one section of the wall, which was not always well built. Waterton claimed all money saved from not drinking alcohol went into construction, costing £3m today. About 65% of the wall remains, but ivy—another species Waterton championed—is causing damage. “Our aim is to protect what is left,” said Whitaker. “There’s so much character in it. But it’s like painting the Forth Bridge—if we ever get to the end, we will start again.”
Waterton died in 1865 at age 82, having survived malaria, cholera, and a shipwreck. His final diary entry noted two nightingales singing melodiously in the park. “It is particularly poignant,” wrote Whitaker, “because we don’t get nightingales nesting around here any more.”
