The Knightwood Oak is a pedunculate oak

Pedunculate Oak

Quercus robur is commonly known as the Pedunculate Oak or English oak. It is native to most of Europe, and to Anatolia to the Caucasus, and also to parts of North Africa.-Taxonomy:Q...

 and the largest, and perhaps most famous, oak tree in the New Forest

New Forest

The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....

 in southern England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It is also known as the Queen of the Forest. It is over 500 years old and has a girth of 7.38 metres (24.2 ft). The tree is still growing. It was pollard

Pollarding

Pollarding is a pruning system in which the upper branches of a tree are removed, promoting a dense head of foliage and branches. It has been common in Great Britain and Europe since medieval times and is practiced today in urban areas worldwide, primarily to maintain trees at a predetermined...

ed when about 200 years old and thought to have been last pollarded about 150 years ago .

The tree is located about 2.4 miles (3.9 km) WSW of Lyndhurst

Lyndhurst, Hampshire

Lyndhurst is a village and civil parish in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. It is a popular tourist location with many independent shops, art galleries, cafés, restaurants, pubs and hotels. The nearest city is Southampton located around nine miles to the north-east...

 and just north of the A35 road

A35 road

The A35 is a trunk road in southern England, running from Honiton in Devon, that then passes through Dorset and terminates in Southampton, Hampshire...

 at . There is a carpark nearby and a gravel path, suitable for wheelchairs, leads to and around the tree. An interpretative panel explains the tree's history. A fence encircles the tree to protect its roots from soil compaction

Soil compaction

In Geotechnical engineering, soil compaction is the process in which a stress applied to a soil causes densification as air is displaced from the pores between the soil grains. When stress is applied that causes densification due to water being displaced from between the soil grains then...

 due to foot traffic. The tree has been popular with visitors for a long time and at the height of its fame, in Victorian times, people would come from far and wide to see it. It is even reputed to have been visited by Henry VIII during a hunting expedition in the forest.

In February 2006 the Forestry Commission

Forestry Commission

The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....

 harvested twigs from the tree to produce new ‘Knightwood’ oaks with identical genes. Some will be planted near the original tree, while others will go to New Park, near Brockenhurst

Brockenhurst

Brockenhurst is a village situated in the New Forest, Hampshire, England. The New Forest is a national park and Brockenhurst is therefore surrounded by woodland that attracts thousands of visitors all year round. The nearby towns surrounding Brockenhurst are Lymington and Lyndhurst. Brockenhurst...

.