One of Britain’s top historians has expressed serious concern at plans to build a wind farm next to the Naseby battlefield.

Professor Richard Holmes, who is president of the Battlefields Trust, said he feared the seven, 377ft turbines which power company E.ON wants to build close to the Northamptonshire site could have a real negative impact.

“I think any reasonable person would certainly not be for it.”

This is taken from an article that appeared in the Northampton Chronicle and Echo on 23^rd February 2008,

Click here to read the whole article

The local Harborough Mail has published an article detailing the proliferation of proposed wind farms in the North Northamptonshire and South Leicestershire, which it should be remembered is one of the least windy places in the UK!

In this article Laura Carse, the development manager of Wind Direct, a company who have previously looked at building a wind farm close to Naseby Battlefield site said:

“We originally considered a site close to the Naseby battlefield but decided that the cultural heritage of the site could be compromised. We have to consider a whole range of aspects before one is chosen, such as the environmental impact and the historical culture of sites.”

Click here to read the whole article

As we have stated elsewhere on this site, we believe that this proposal is more about greed than any green issues. If further evidence of this were needed, an article was published recently in the magazine of a local estate agent – Fisher German.

Mark Newton the Head of Fisher German’s wind farm department states –

“There is an immense amount of money to be made” and

“Land owners are in a prime position to make phenomenal profits”

Click here to read the whole article

Colonel Lancaster, who had been the owner of the Kelmarsh Hall Estate since 1924, set about placing the Hall and most of the estate in perpetuity to a trust in the 1970s but he died in 1977 leaving the blueprint for the Trust to his sister. Miss Lancaster pursued her brother’s wish and the Kelmarsh Trust was established in 1982. On her death in 1996 and under her will the whole of the estate passed to the Trust.

One of the stated aims of the trust is - “Conserving all features of the built environment, designed, historic and natural landscape, and all wildlife which are of national, regional or local significance and managing them according to best practice.”

The proposed wind farm would appear to be in direct contradiction of the wishes of the Lancaster family.

The Trust is established as a registered charity, and the charitable aims of the Trust are set out in the Memorandum and Articles of Association of The Kelmarsh Trust (25th August 1982);

One of those stated aims is - “To maintain the character and scenic beauty of the landscape.”

We fail to see how seven 400 foot turbines, each taller than a 30 storey block of flats, fits in with the wishes of the Lancaster family. It would appear that the current trustees have decided to go against the terms of the trust, established by the last owners of the Kelmarsh estate and pursue a policy of greed over green.

Click here to read more details about the Kelmarsh Trust.

Contact us by email - info@stopkelmarshwindfarm.com

Just because ‘big business’ is involved, it is not a foregone conclusion that the proposed Kelmarsh Wind Farm will succeed, let alone get to the planning stage.

Recently a similar proposal also in Northamptonshire was turned down at appeal, primarily on the grounds of the detrimental effect to the rural environment and nearby ancient monuments and public rights of way.

Not only is The Kelmarsh Wind Farm bordered by the historic Naseby battlefield site, it has a byway running through it which is very popular with walkers and riders, and there is an ancient monument just a few hundred metres away in the village of Haselbech.

The appeal also found that Northamptonshire has easily achieved its 2010 wind energy target, three years early.

To read the full appeal decision click here http://www.newt.me.uk/decision%20letter.pdf

Of course the efforts of the local residents played a massive part in getting the plan overturned; visit http://www.newt.me.uk to find out more.

It goes to show what can be done - these monstrous turbines are never a foregone conclusion, many many proposed sites are refused.

No study of English history or modern democracy would be complete without reference to the decisive Battle of the English Civil War at Naseby in Northamptonshire. The Battle of Naseby marked the triumph of Parliament over the Monarchy and the birth of modern democracy.

Early on the morning of Saturday 14th June 1645 Parliament’s New Model Army, including Lieutenant General Oliver Cromwell, lined up at Naseby to face down the Royalists headed by Charles I.

Plans leaked recently, show that the current Trustees of the Kelmarsh Hall Estate, which owns land adjacent to the Battlefield site, are in league with German energy giant E.on to erect 7 x 120 meter wind turbines on land adjacent to the Battlefield site. Kelmarsh Hall, a magnificent Grade 1 Georgian Building, would be dwarfed by the massive structures each the height of a 30-40 storey block of flats. The plans have been met with anger from historians, who are working to boost the national reputation of Naseby and who fear that the development would have a serious impact on the area which is unspoilt by anything at the moment.

Whilst there is clearly a place for renewable energy, it is not in an area of such national historical importance, adjacent to a magnificent Grade 1 Georgian Building, an ancient monument and the scene of what many consider the decisive fight of the English Civil War.

And so the battle lines have been drawn once again for The Battle of Naseby (Part 2). With local residents, English Heritage, the Naseby Battlefield Group, The Battlefield Trust and local Parishes poised to join forces in their own ‘New Model Army’ to fight the might of E.on and the Kelmarsh Hall Estate.

Click here to read the objections of the Naseby Battlefield Trust

The full English Heritage Battlefield Report: Naseby 1645 click here http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/upload/pdf/Naseby.pdf
For more about The Battle of Naseby visit: http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/resource-centre/civil-war/battleview.asp?BattleFieldId=51
For more about the Naseby Battlefield Project visit: http://www.naseby.com/