This year is the 160th anniversary of the birth of Beatrix Potter, children's author and creator of Peter Rabbit and a cast of many characters. On a recent trip to the Lake District, I took some Sunday reflection time to think about what her legacy reminds me of during an over-due return to Hill Top Farm in Near Sawrey, one of my favourite places.
"With opportunity the world is very interesting" - Beatrix Potter in her journal, 23rd February, 1896
The landscape from Hawkeshead to Lake Windermere is a very special place with a remarkable story and the setting for some of the world's greatest children's tales involving cheeky rabbits, sassy squirrels and kittens of mischief.
For generations of children, Beatrix Potter has been the creator of Peter Rabbit, Tom Kitten and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle. Her beautifully illustrated stories have become part of Britain's cultural identity, travelling far beyond the landscapes that inspired them and drawing in countless visitors to see the landscapes that inspired her. All her story telling was placed-based.
But behind those charming characters was a determined entrepreneur, naturalist, farmer and conservationist who understood that places have value beyond just being visitor destinations. .
When Beatrix died in December 1943, she had requested to leave approximately 4,000 acres of Lake District countryside, including farms, cottages and her beloved Herdwick sheep, to the National Trust. Her husband honoured this wish.
It was an extraordinary gift, one that continues to shape the landscape more than 80 years later.