The Heddon Oak is sadly no more. On a Sunday in 1986, some men cut it down claiming that it was rotten. That was not the case. It was 408 years old when it was unjustly felled. Legend has that six West Somerset men who were part of the Duke of Monmouths men - and fugitives from the battle at Sedgemoor - were hanged at Heddon Oak. After hanging they were tarred and quartered in the field above Heddon Oak, this is known as Blood Field.

 

Prior to the tree being cut down, people had reported the sounds of horses, creaking leather and men breathing heavily, before the sounds of strangulation. Some reported a sensation of being choked when they walked past the tree. Whether this still occurs now that the Heddon Oak has been cut down, would be interesting to know.