Hartington is situated in an ancient and man made landscape, criss crossed by stone walls and patterned with trees, planted in rows, groups and plantations to provide shelter from the winds that sweep across the plateau. These shelterbelts were often planted along old lead workings, where dangerous shafts and poisoned ground made the land unsuitable for anything else.

Farms in the region are usually isolated, many of them with the name `grange`, suggesting that they are of medieval monastic origin. The land over the centuries has become enclosed to provide better pasture for cattle and sheep. Water supplies were always a problem in these limestone regions, as the rain tends to sink straight into the rock. In the past meres were built to hold the rain water for farm animals and the railways were once used to bring water to isolated settlements in times of drought.

Read more at Hartington Village in Derbyshire and the Peak District