Clearwell Caves

Overview

Clearwell Caves, in the Forest of Dean, have been mined for iron ore and ochre for over 4,500 years — worked today by one of the last practising Free Miners under an ancient birthright that predates the Norman Conquest.

History

Ochre mining at Clearwell is believed to have begun during the Bronze Age, making it one of the oldest continuously exploited mineral sites in Britain. The site sits within the ancient tradition of Free Mining in the Royal Forest of Dean, formally recognised by a Royal Charter granted by Edward I; local Free Miners are recorded fighting at Crécy in 1346 and Agincourt in 1415. The Forest's own Mine Law Court, which had governed mining custom for centuries, collapsed after its records were stolen in 1777, and the Dean Forest (Mines) Act of 1838 replaced the traditional law with statute, defining a Free Miner as any man born and living within the Hundred of St Briavels who has worked a year and a day in a Forest coal or iron mine. Large-scale ochre production at Clearwell — prized internationally for its pigment quality — continued into the 1930s, with all large-scale mining ending by 1945. Ray Wright reopened the caverns to the public as a show cave in 1968; Jonathan Wright registered as a Free Miner in 1981, joined the operation full-time in 1984, and completed his Mine Deputy Certificate at the Forest of Dean college in 1986–87, continuing to work the mine after Ray Wright's death in 2015.

What remains

Clearwell remains Britain's last working ochre mine, still producing the pigment in its natural yellow, brown, red and purple varieties under Jonathan Wright's traditional Free Mining rights. The caves hold a constant year-round temperature of around 10°C, and the site has been used as a filming location for productions including Willow (2022), The Winter King (2023) and The Change (2023).

This is an active mining operation. It is not open to public access, and this entry describes its history and general location only.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• Local Free Miners from the Forest of Dean are recorded fighting at the Battle of Crécy in 1346 and the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. ¹
• The Forest of Dean's Mine Law Court, which had governed mining custom for centuries, collapsed after its records were stolen in 1777; the Dean Forest (Mines) Act of 1838 replaced the traditional law with statute. ¹
• Clearwell remains Britain's last working ochre mine, with Jonathan Wright — who registered as a Free Miner in 1981 — continuing traditional extraction and processing of the pigment in its natural yellow, brown, red and purple varieties. ¹

Images

Sources

1. (secondary) About Us — Clearwell Caves

Record created: 20 August 2026 · Last researched: 20 August 2026