Falconry Displays

I have been thinking a lot recently about Major Charles Hawkins Fisher the famous Stroud falconer who died in the early part of the last century after an eventful life.

When we used to live in Woodchester I used to take the bus into Stroud and visit the little museum which had some of his old stuffed birds and falconry equipment. It was away of getting closer to falconry, I guess.

It wasn’t  till many years later when I read his book ‘Reminiscences of a Falconer’ published in 1901 that I began to admire him for his forward thinking and lack of dogma – which has sadly plagued our sport. He was basically good at everything having been a champion archer of England and no doubt with his riding skills today he would have been a modern pentathlete. It was serious riding accident that prevented him following the hunt in the way he would have liked that no doubt pushed him to looking at other activities. He encountered falconry while in Norfolk in 1858 and for that point onwards he became an avid falconer. He was a Gentleman falconer and had a professional falconer to assist him. Apart from their escapades to Salisbury Plain for Spring rook hawking and trips to Scotland he flew peregrines contrary to doctrine in more enclosed countryside around where he lived. Clearly, he had a lot of fun – but there is always a high risk of losing peregrines this way. Peregrines was his thing, and he never was interested in flying goshawks or sparrowhawks possibly more suited to the terrain. He also foresaw the importance of bringing falconry to the attention of the public – and suggested keeping a mews at Alexandria Park in London in the 1870s for that purpose. The intention was to show that the sport was still alive and to educate those that persecuted birds of prey by shooting. If falconers lost a falcon, it would invariably be shot. Many a good bird was lost this way.

I do like the way his book conveys his enthusiasm and love for the sport – the joy it can bring and the flexibility of his approach. As I have said before he wrote the book at the end of his life when he was incapacitated and in much pain. His riding accident catching up with him no doubt. It was only through the encouragement of others that it was published, and we are still reading it today. I relate strongly to Fisher because due to my own illness there is that urge to leave something behind – a legacy if you like – hence my book ‘Falconry – aspects of care of the trained falcon and hawk’ and like Fisher through the encouragement and support of others it was published in 2024. Whether anybody will be reading it in a hundred years is anybody’s guess – sadly probably not. We are steadily hollowing out our society and things which I feel bring enrichment to life are being legislated out of existence. It is such a shame – because we need these things more than ever.

I will sign off with a picture of me and our peregrine Sprite after flying him down at the Knowle a few years ago.