The mass trespass of Kinder Scout was a trespass protest at Kinder Scout in the Peak District, Derbyshire, England, on 24 April 1932. The protest sought to highlight that walkers were denied access to areas of open countryside which had been fenced off by wealthy landowners who forbade public access. It was organised by communist leader and Jewish anti-fascist Benny Rothman, the secretary of the British Workers' Sports Federation and a member of the Young Communist League. The generally accepted figure is that reported by the Manchester Guardian at the time, of an estimated 400 people. The trespassers began at Bowden Bridge quarry near Hayfield. They proceeded via William Clough to the plateau of Kinder Scout, where there were violent scuffles with gamekeepers. The ramblers were able to reach their destination and meet with another group at Ashop Head. On the return, five ramblers were arrested, with another detained earlier. They were put on trial at the Derby Assizes in July. One was acquitted; one was convicted of causing bodily harm and sentenced to six months in prison; the remainder received sentences of between two and four months for incitement to cause riotous assembly.

Political effects

According to the Hayfield Kinder Trespass Group website, this act of civil disobedience was one of the most successful in British history.<!--this is a point of view--> It arguably led to the passage of the National Parks legislation in 1949 and helped pave way for the establishment of the Pennine Way and other long-distance footpaths. Walkers' rights to travel through common land and uncultivated upland were eventually protected by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CROW Act) of 2000. Though controversial when it occurred, it has been interpreted as the embodiment of "working class struggle for the right to roam versus the rights of the wealthy to have exclusive use of moorlands for grouse shooting."

The Kinder mass trespass was one of a number of protests at the time seeking greater access to the moorlands of the northern Peak District. What set it apart from the others was it marked a new and more radical approach to the problem which was not universally popular with rambling groups. The harshness of the sentences imposed on the leaders of the protest was headline news in local and national newspapers, resulting in the issue gaining public attention and sympathy. The subsequent access rally staged in Winnats Pass attracted 10,000 people to attend in support of greater access to the adjacent moorland.

thumb|Activists from the [[Young Communist League (Great Britain) in 2021 marking the mass trespass of Kinder Scout ]]

An unintended consequence of the mass trespass was greater interest being paid to ramblers' behaviour and potential ways to regulate it. This resulted in a 'Code of Courtesy for the Countryside' being produced, which was a forerunner of the modern Countryside Code.

Revisionism

A number of writers have criticised the narrative of the success of the Kinder Scout trespass. In 2011, historian David Hey questioned the narrative of the Kinder Scout trespass as "a simple explanation of the triumph of the 'right to roam' movement". According to Hey, the trespass on balance did "more harm than good". In 1989, walkers' rights activist Tom Stephenson challenged the assertion that the trespassers had reached the summit of Kinder Scout, saying they made it only as far as Ashop Head. In 2013, historian John K. Walton questioned the absolutism of this revisionism. He advocated a post-revisionist stance on the mass trespass, acknowledging its positive effects both in the short and long term. He pointed to its symbolic role in the access campaign over the rest of the century that led to the CROW act.

Commemoration

thumb|Commemorative plaque at Bowden Bridge Quarry, unveiled in 1982

Ewan MacColl (then known by his birth name, Jimmie Miller) commemorated these events in his 1932 song "The Manchester Rambler". A commemorative plaque marks the start of the trespass at Bowden Bridge quarry near Hayfield, now a popular area for ramblers. It was unveiled in April 1982 by Benny Rothman (then aged 70) during a rally to mark the 50th anniversary.

The Young Communist League hikes up Kinder Scout every year on their annual Communist Summer Camp to commemorate their involvement in the trespass.

See also

  • Fell running
  • Freedom to roam
  • G. H. B. Ward
  • Open Country

Notes

References

Citations

Sources

  • Newspaper report of the mass trespass
  • Right To Roam Act of Parliament (explained by BBC News)
  • Article on Benny Rothman from WCML website
  • Details of Benny Rothman archives at WCML