Woburn Abbey

Woburn Safari Park

Today, thousands of people come to Woburn to visit the Safari Park, which was created by the Duke of Bedford in 1970.

The 300-acre Safari Park offers the unique experience of driving through open reserves,close to some of the most beautiful and dangerous animals in the world including a number of endangered species, (all drivers are reminded to keep their car windows closed!). Many of the animals live in herds, packs or prides with a similar social structure to the wild. Most of them have bred at Woburn. In these days of increasing encroachment of man on those parts of the world inhabited by endangered wildlife, it is important that wildlife parks work together to save those species.

Woburn has also led the way in the quest to return captive-born endangered species to their natural homes in the wild. In 1985, the Marquess of Tavistock sent fifty Pere David deer, descended from animals originally brought to the Park by the 11th Duke, to be introduced to the Imperial Park in Beijing. During the Boxer Rebellion all the Pere David Deer were killed. The species was saved from extinction and returned to its native homeland after it had been extinct in the wild for over 100 years.

There has been a long standing interest in animal conservation at Woburn and the dedicated staff are working to continue this commitment into the future. Woburn also has an active horse breeding programmme at the Bloomsbury Stud.