In medieval and Early Modern England, Wales and Ireland, a deer park was an enclosed area containing deer. It was bounded by a ditch and bank with a wooden park pale on top of the bank, or by a stone or brick wall. The ditch was on the inside increasing the effective height. Some parks had deer "leaps", where there was an external ramp and the inner ditch was constructed on a grander scale, thus allowing deer to enter the park but preventing them from leaving.
Depiction of a medieval hunting park from a 15th-century manuscript version of The Master of Game, MS. Bodley 546 f. 3v
Fallow deer in the park of Powderham Castle, Devon
Old hand-split oak deer-fence at Charlecote Park in Warwickshire
Royal licence to empark Dyrham granted by King Henry VIII to Sir William Denys (1470–1533), Esquire of the Body, 5 June 1511. Appended is a rare perfect example of the Great Seal of Henry VIII. Collection of Dyrham Park, National Trust
Dyrham Park is a baroque English country house in an ancient deer park near the village of Dyrham in South Gloucestershire, England. The house, with the attached orangery and stable block, is a Grade I listed building, while the park is Grade II* listed on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.
Lower part of the park and east front of the house and orangery
Dyrham Park
Royal licence to empark Dyrham granted by Henry VIII to William Denys, Esquire of the Body, 5 June 1511. Attached is a rare perfect example of the Great Seal of Henry VIII. Collection of Dyrham Park, National Trust
Eagle sculpture on the roof of Dyrham Park
